So, you’re a rock ‘n roll rebel who has basically devoted your life to music. But what’s going to happen to your body when you die? Surely you don’t want to lie in a coffin or take up residence in an urn for all eternity. Well, have we got an afterlife solution for you! Meet And Vinyly, a pun-tastic British company that will bake your ashes into an LP. Yes, this really exists.
As Wired UK reports, And Vinyly allows the dearly departed to “press their ashes in a vinyl recording of their own voice, their favourite tunes or their last will and testament. Minimalist audiophiles might want to go for the simple option of having no tunes or voiceover, and simply pressing the ashes into the vinyl to result in pops and crackles.” The process itself involves embedding the ashes in raw vinyl before the record is pressed. “This means that when the plates exert their pressure on the vinyl in order to create the grooves, the ashes are pressed into the record,” Wired explains.
Founded by electronic musician and serial label boss Jason Leach, And Vinyly was the result of his mother’s job at a funeral parlor and his realization that he “might not be invincible.”
Of course, vinyl immortality doesn’t come cheap. The basic package will run you £2,000 (about $3100) for up to 30 LPs — and that’s without a personalized portrait (also containing your ashes), an original song, “global distribution of your record in vinyl stores,” or a FUNeral (for which prices start at £10,000).
Is this a wonderful opportunity for eternal life on vinyl… or just a tasteless cash-in? Let us know what you think.