(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)
Artist: Robert Ascroft
Album Title: Echo still remains
Year released: 2025
Details: Special edition, custard vinyl
The skinny: Do you have a favourite record label? One that you swear by, trust, and pretty much love everything it releases? For a while in the 2000s, Arts & Crafts* was that for me. Into the 2010s, it was Paper Bag Records**. And now, it seems to be Hand Drawn Dracula***. Incidentally, all of these have been Toronto-based but not coincidentally, all have been locked into one scene or another, what was hot and new and seemed to be making music just for me. Early last year, Hand Drawn Dracula announced they were releasing the debut solo album of photographer/producer Robert Ascroft. I gave it a go, like I seem to do for all their releases of late, and quickly fell for its dark and cinematic sound and wonderful cast of guest vocalists (just check out that hype sticker). I purchased this special edition, custard yellow pressing off of the label’s Bandcamp site, and further spins drove me to place “Echo still remains” at number eight on my Best albums of the year list for 2025.
Standout track: “Empty pages (feat. Zumi Rosow)”
*Home to Broken Social Scene, Stars, Dan Mangan, etc.
**Home to Austra, Young Galaxy, The Rural Alberta Advantage, etc.
***Home to No Joy, Breeze, Tallies, etc.
My (life in) music lists 