Cool stuff to light up the season
From vinyl to attire, books and trinkets, there are many ways to make a music fan happy with the perfect holiday gift. Here are some ideas crossing genres and eras, including a few for local music aficionados.
Making music is fun, especially when it’s easy. One option is the Otamatone, which is shaped like an eighth note and sounds like the spawn of a synthesizer and a slide guitar. The emotively adorned Aggretsuko Rage version is $44.99 at hamee.com.
Or spring for the $159 Orba 3, Artiphon’s latest iteration of its music-in-the-palm-of-your-hand synthesizer, which starts with a massive library of drum sounds and adds sampling for miniature magic. Artiphon also makes the keyboard-shaped Chorda, both a standalone synthesizer and MIDI controller ($249.99 at artiphon.com).
For listening to music, headphones are a great gift that can range in price from the reasonable and well-regarded Status Audio 3ANC, the first in-ears with a dedicated bass speaker ($179, status.co). Audiophile legends Bang & Olufsen just introduced its high-end Beoplay H100 cans ($1,549, bang-olufsen.com) for the truly nice person on your list.
Affordable tabletop surround sound is available with the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 4 portable Bluetooth speaker, a compact yet powerful unit costing $80 at most stores. For heavier listening, the 6-pound Marshall Acton III is a boomer that will evoke the giant amp it’s named after ($227.99 at amazon.com).
For something completely different in the portable speaker category, Uncommon Goods has a combination water bottle and Bluetooth unit that’s perfect for pop-up parties. It’s quite popular, though, and as of this writing it was sold out on the store’s website. Check for restocking at uncommongoods.com, a great stop for other gifts.
Speaking of one-stop shopping, it’s axiomatic that the best way to support local music is buying direct from your favorite artists. For those who can’t attend every show, the best alternative is the Bandcamp website (bandcamp.com). There, area bands make most of the money, unlike Spotify, where the CEO is richer than any musician on his site.
If your list includes a dedicated collector of vinyl albums, consider gifting them a Spin-Clean cleaning kit. Its $125 price tag may be too lofty; if so, there are some cheaper options available. The Discwasher D4+ Record Care System is the granddaddy of the bunch, dating back to the ’60s. It’s $25.
Of course, your giftee will need records to clean with their new gear. 2024 doesn’t disappoint. For the Swiftie on your list, Target offers a bunch of exclusives, including a double album of songs from The Tortured Poets Department with a bonus track (“The Manuscript”) on clear vinyl for $32.99. Give it with a copy of the massive Official Taylor Swift The Eras Tour book ($39.99) and you’ll be a hero.
For fans of an earlier era, the debut LP from an influential New Wave band recently received a deluxe treatment. Talking Heads: 77 introduced songs like “Psycho Killer” and “Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town” while hinting at adventurous music to come. The four-CD set has goodies including outtakes, Atmos mixes and a full-length CBGB show from October 1977.
Elvis Costello was another artist who evolved from that period, moving from angry young man to reverent roots-music adherent. The six-CD King Of America & Other Realms Super Deluxe begins with the 1986 album and includes new songs, along with beauties like a Grand Ole Opry performance of “The Scarlet Tide” from the Cold Mountain soundtrack accompanied by Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings, and duets with Ralph Stanley and Larkin Poe.
While physical tickets have mostly been displaced by cell phone barcodes, dedicated concertgoers usually have a big collection of stubs. For those, consider a Ticket Stub Diary for preserving those memories. It will give them something to share with their children and grandkids one day ($29, uncommongoods.com).
Finally, let’s not forget stocking stuffers. Uncommon Goods is a great source for things like music playing cards with drawings of David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and other rock stars. Mistaken Lyrics Coasters are fun if you’ve ever misheard this U2 song: “It’s alright, it’s alright, it’s alright / Shamu, the mysterious whale.” Or get a mahogany thumb piano for your favorite fan.
Featured photo: Courtesy photo.