Carlos Sotelo
Streaming services are the primary way a lot of people consume their media of choice, whether that be music or TV shows or movies. Not everybody is on board, though, and some of those who are have started to tire of it. Regular price increases and limited streaming libraries have some consumers returning to physical media — vinyl, CDs, 4Ks — preferring objects they can hold and own over streaming options that can vanish at any time.
Companies are more than happy to support this wave: Whatever you might be into, each month brings a slew of new releases that has something for everybody. Some stand out above the rest, naturally, so check out some of our favorite physical media releases of April below.
Dijon – How Do You Feel About Getting Married? 12” EP on brick colored vinyl.
WMG
Before Dijon was playing Coachella and working with Bieber, he was getting noticed with this 2020 offering, his second EP, which preceded his 2021 debut album. For Record Store Day, Warner Records is finally giving this a vinyl release, limited to 4,900 copies and pressed on brick-colored vinyl. As Dijon continues to get his well-deserved flowers, adding this early work to your collection is essential.
Get it here.
Various Artists – Just Tell Me That You Want Me: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac (2-LP, Translucent Sea Blue Vinyl)
Craft
We get a lot less of these compilation albums these days than we did in decades past, so it feels like a real treat to have this Fleetwood Mac collection finally hit vinyl for Record Store Day, thanks to Craft. The Lykke Li version of “Silver Springs” tackles one of the great songs of all time and somehow stands up to the original (though nothing will ever match the intensity of the live version from The Dance). The rest of the roster is extremely 2012, which means you get artists like St. Vincent and MGMT next to Gardens & Villa and Washed Out. The set is limited to 3,700 copies and pressed on Translucent Sea Blue vinyl.
Get it here.
Sleepers (4K Ultra HD + Digital)
WB
Barry Levinson’s Sleepers is turning 30 and gets the 4K treatment from Warner Bros. Discovery. While the movie certainly impacted a generation of cable subscribers, the hope is that this release helps the movie’s esteem grow, looking better on this version than it ever has. What’s fascinating about this film, especially in the internet era, is that the apparent controversy of this “true” story was easy to miss at the time, and now makes the film all the more interesting.
Apparently, investigations into the allegations that the movie highlights led many to believe that this story is a hoax, but the author maintains that it is a true story with facts changed to protect those involved. There’s no saying who is right, but it does add a bit of intrigue to the film, which features heavyweights like Brad Pitt, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, and Billy Crudup. This version boasts a couple of new special features with Levinson, but really you just want to see this new restoration and bask in the movie’s deeply felt sadness.
Get it here.
John Singleton’s Hood Trilogy
Criterion
John Singleton sadly left us too early, passing away at just 51 years old in 2019. He left behind an incredible legacy of filmmaking, including everything from the mainstream plays like Shaft and 2 Fast 2 Furious to the underrated classics Higher Learning and Rosewood. But his most enduring works centered on the region where he was born, Los Angeles, and the Black culture that is so crucial to the area.
Criterion has collected and restored what they’re calling his Hood Trilogy, made up with the universally adored Boyz N The Hood (a film that made him the youngest nominee for Best Director ever as well as the first Black nominee), Poetic Justice, and cable TV mainstay Baby Boy. The collection looks absolutely beautiful, with art from Ngabo “El’Cesart” Desire Cesar, while the 4K conversions are especially vibrant when depicting the unforgiving neighborhoods of South Los Angeles and the expansive coastlines of California. These are enduring films that couldn’t have been made by another figure, and this set gives them the canonical status they deserve, with the set bolstered by tons of extras, including a conversation between Ryan Coogler and Regina King, a new documentary on Singleton, and audio interviews with Taraji P. Henson and Tyrese Gibson.
Get it here.
Duran Duran – Duran Duran
Rhino
Last summer, Rhino and Duran Duran reissued their first five albums on vinyl, a run that delighted fans of the band. The project continues this year with fresh vinyl reissues of 1993’s self-titled effort, generally referred to as The Wedding Album, along with 1995’s Thank You. It’s perfect timing, as “Ordinary World” had a big moment earlier in the year in the film 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, with these editions marking these albums’ first vinyl pressings since their original issue. All the audio is remastered and the releases are spread out into deluxe 2LP editions.
Get it here.
Send Help (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital Copy)
Disney
Sam Raimi has been a master of gross-out horror hilarity for 40 years, but still Send Help felt like an early-year miracle on its release. The film was also a box office winner, making nearly $100 million globally. Now, Disney is sending help (heh) to your homes with this 4K release, making the extremely fun and rewatchable film a perfect addition to your home collection.
In addition to the movie, the release boasts more than 2 hours of special features, including interviews with Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, bloopers (literally all 4Ks should include this), making-of features with Raimi, and an audio commentary. The movie joins greats like Evil Dead 2 and Drag Me To Hell as quintessential examples of the genre.
Get it here.
Robin Trower – Live! 50th Anniversary Edition
Chrysalis
Rock legend Robin Trower is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his live album, appropriately titled Live!, with a reissue of the performance in a 2LP set. Originally released in 1976, the album captures a February 3, 1975 performance at Stockholm Concert Hall on February 3, 1975, where he performed as the Robin Trower Band with James Dewar (bass/vocals) and Bill Lordan (drums). This offering includes five never-before-released songs, so fans can experience the set as it happened for the first time since that original night.
Get it here.
Wire – Read & Burn 03+ (RSD)
pinkflag
For Record Store Day, post-punk legends Wire released Read & Burn 03+ for the first time ever on vinyl. Originally released in 2008, the vinyl version offers an alternate intro for the song “23 Years Too Late” and is limited to just 1000 copies. There are still copies available if you didn’t make it out to your local shop, but they’re sure to be gone soon. You don’t want to be, ahem, 23 years too late.
Get it here.
The Deer Hunter (Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD Steelbook + Blu-ray)
Shout! Factory
I was recently listening to The Big Picture podcast and they were doing the Meryl Streep Hall of Fame. The conversation noted the importance of this role and film, both in her narrative and in film history, but ultimately did not include it due to it “falling a bit out of fashion” with contemporary film criticism. As someone that recently saw the film in 35mm at the Vista in LA and then again with this new 4K steelbook, I’m hopeful that this isn’t quite the case, as both experiences advocated for the film’s endurance as a titanic piece of art.
Though the movie’s view of war’s ability to decimate the lives of its participants isn’t exactly novel, it’s easy to forget that the 1970s was a different time when films this unflinching were rare. Shout! Factory’s new edition gives this a pristine presentation, particularly the scenes set in Pennsylvania, with the pristine beauty of the hunting grounds providing a stark contrast to the unforgiving terrain of Vietnam. Along with deleted scenes and trailers, this set contains five separate interview features and audio commentary with cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond and journalist Bob Fisher. It is an essential disc of one of the great films. And if I’m making my own Meryl Streep Hall Of Fame, I’m absolutely putting it in, especially when you consider that her partner, John Cazale, filmed the movie with a terminal cancer diagnosis, his final role and their only film together.
Get it here.
