These other music formats didn’t provide the richness of sound that musicians and record lovers craved. Streaming dominates today’s market, but 43 million vinyl records were sold in 2023. And Asheville’s Citizen Vinyl is helping to lead the comeback.

Winston-Salem native Gar Ragland grew up loving music and enjoying the experience of searching for records, purchasing them, opening the shrink-wrap covering and playing the albums. That inspired him to study music composition at the New England Conservatory of Music, where his focus switched to music production.In 2012, he relocated his family to Asheville, where the city’s music history and artistic vibes made him feel right at home. He dreamed of opening a business where every step of the recording process would be housed under one roof. But where?

Beginnings

His search led to the Citizen Times building. In the 1930s, it had been the home of two newspapers, plus the studios of WWNC-AM radio. Bill Monroe, called the father of bluegrass, had broadcast from that studio in 1939. When Gar toured the building, he knew he’d found what he was looking for.“

My first reaction was, ‘this must be fate!’” he remembers. “Little did I know that the Citizen Times building had a very historic and well-crafted radio station studio that was perfectly provisioned for doing recording and mixing. The stars really did align on this one.”

Gar Ragland opened his ambitious startup on the first floor of the historic Citizens Times building in October 2020. Citizen Vinyl comprises a combination recording studio, vinyl pressing plant, analog art/record store and farm-to-table café.

Pressing business

There was just one vinyl press in 2020; now there are three. They’re kept busy pressing Citizen Vinyl’s own releases, plus the overflow from larger labels unable to keep pace with demand. When vinyl album sales nosedived in the 1980s, many pressing facilities closed. Citizen Vinyl — the state’s only large-scale record pressing plant — contracts with major labels to press recordings for them.

“The same process used 80 years ago is still being used today”

How has the process changed since the analog days of the 1980s? Not much, Gar says.“The same process used 80 years ago is still being used today,” he explains. “While the process is similar, modern presses are computer-controlled, which makes it easier to control settings.”

The pressing process begins with the mixed and mastered digital recording files being transferred to vinyl. A master disc is created when digital files are sent to the cutting lathe. It converts the sound into vibrations and literally carves them into grooves. Then, a template, or stamper disc, is made. A puck-sized cake of polyvinyl chloride is placed on the press, with album labels on both sides. Then the record is pressed. (You can view this process for yourself by booking a tour at citizenvinyl.com.

Citizen Vinyl has invented and patented a modern addition to the old pressing process. Gar calls it “vinylkey.”

“It’s a vinyl record that has an NFC chip embedded into the vinyl under the label,” he explains. “A smartphone can scan the chip and create a link where the buyer can register ownership and access exclusive digital content like bonus tracks, videos, tickets and other experiences.”

Helene recovery

In late September 2024, Hurricane Helene brought disastrous flooding to parts of Asheville, including Biltmore Village and the River Arts District. Citizen Vinyl closed temporarily but was relatively unscathed and wanted to help the community.

“Surprisingly, we never lost power or internet,” Gar marvels. “We couldn’t open for business due to lack of potable water, but we offered our wireless internet and power to those who needed it.”

With power out across much of the region, hot meals were hard to find. Citizen Vinyl helped there, too.

“Our awesome chef, Michelle Bailey, set up grills outside to prepare free hot meals for the community,” Gar says. “Over 1,500 meals were served each weekend. Food, water and supplies were all donated by Michelle’s regional network of farmers and chefs.

“It was a great honor and privilege for us to support our community. We didn’t think twice about it, and we’re happy to play our role as ‘Citizens’ in this way.”