For Boise brothers Chad and Travis Dryden, life goes right round, baby right round.
By Ken Levy
Photography by copper Chadwick
While the world, it seems, is rushing to download digital tracks of their favorite albums, Boise brothers Chad and Travis Dryden are content to wax nostalgic when it comes to how they listen to music.
In 2007, the brothers Dryden founded Boise’s Vinyl Preservation Society. Their love for LP’s (long-playing albums) and old 45’s guided them to build a community of like-minded enthusiasts. Locally, many share that feeling. Membership, derived from VPS’ email list has topped 500, with the VPS’s monthly meetings drawing 20-40 vinyl aficionados.
“For us, it was never about wallowing in nostalgia or riding a trend,” said Chad. “We founded the club right before vinyl [popularity] exploded. Simply put, vinyl is our favored format because of the quality of sound, the richness of the listening experience and the appreciation of the record as an audio and visual piece of art.”
“It’s a very genuine or authentic experience,” Travis said. “The album artwork has a backstory, the production values are typically high, the overall quality markedly different than digital files. It’s a way for people to differentiate themselves through a choice they find meaning and value in. It’s very tangible and something you just feel compelled to delve into and talk about as much as listen to.”
With that in mind, the brothers developed the Vinyl Preservation Society and its mission statement to “preserve our vinyl music heritage by fostering an active, all inclusive community, building amongst the passionately interested and curious, to promote enjoyment and education relating to vinyl records, record collecting, record playing and all associated matters of analog musicology regardless of listening tastes.”
VPS is currently on a venue tour to test potential permanent homes. They started at the Modern Hotel and Bar, where they met for almost five years, and have since tested the waters at The Crux and the Owyhee, as well. “Each month, we have a theme that acts more as a recommendation [and] guide for what members could bring to play on the communal turntable,” said Chad.
Meetings can include presentations on music-related topics, with several members bringing records to sell and trade. “Meetings help us open our ears and minds to new genres of music or artists and, again since we’re geeks, challenge ourselves to surprise and delight one another with a track or artist that no one else thought fit into that theme somehow,” Travis said. “Come to a VPS Idaho meeting and you’ll see members spinning 99-cent thrift store ‘treasures’ and ultra-rare, singed test pressings or three-figure platters. It’s a real treat.”
In addition to its monthly meetings, the VPS holds an anniversary party (held October 25 this year), as well as its highly anticipated Boise Record Show and Swap. This is a great excuse to scour the bins for your favorite long-lost album and find that illusive prized gift that will knock the socks off the music lover in your life.
The Boise Record Show and Swap will be held Sunday, November 3, and runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Linen Building. To learn more about the Vinyl Preservation Society, it’s meeting and events, visit www.vps.org or visit their Facebook page.
