The 7in. revival - fans get back in the groove

As CD sales drop worldwide and download sales rise, a much older format is thriving. Vinyl has stood the test of time. With the advent of guitar bands in the charts in recent years, led by Arctic Monkeys, the White Stripes, The Killers and The Libertines, the 7in found its popularity soar once again and vinyl sales have been on the up ever since.

In America over the past year, sales have increased by 80 per cent. Now the record label Capitol is cashing in both on the surge in sales and the worldwide popularity of UK artists Radiohead and Coldplay – the latter of which have the second biggest-selling album in the world so far this year with Viva la Vida, despite its being released just a month ago. The label is releasing a new series of reissued vinyl albums called From The Capitol Vaults on 19 August and each new vinyl package will feature artwork and packaging that replicates the original single or gatefold jacket LP releases.

Capitol has picked a small but key selection of albums to release on newly remastered, limited-edition vinyl including four titles from Radiohead – OK Computer, Kid A, Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief – and Coldplay's Parachutes and A Rush of Blood to the Head. It's a trend that looks set to develop. EMI UK currently releases a one-off vinyl edition of their bands' new albums after the CD release in a limited print run of 1,000 or 5,000 copies, which makes them highly sought-after limited editions.

Rough Trade East shop co-owner and manager Nigel House says it's young rock fans who are bringing about the boom in vinyl sales: "We get a lot of kids coming in to buy 7in singles. The number of LPs and 12in singles we're selling has gone up exponentially in the last year."

At vinyl's selling peak, sales of 7in singles reached 89 million units in 1979, when "Bright Eyes" by Art Garfunkel (remembered by many as the tear-jerking theme tune to the 1978 film of Watership Down) sold more than a million copies.

The rise of punk and the growing importance of album format that the compact disc offered contributed to its steady decline in sales, which plummeted to its lowest point back in 2001 and CD sales have been generally sliding with the download market. In 2005, the UK saw a mini-revival when sales of the 7in went past the one million mark – but they have continued to increase alongside the popularity of guitar bands.

The discerning fans of a rock band as revered as Radiohead would be as particular about sound quality and the quality of the packaging and artwork as the band themselves. The 7in has always maintained a level of distinction among discerning rock fans. That NME has given away, free on their cover, crucial hot releases on 7in proves the format's popularity with young music fans, while boosting its success.

Most recently, the magazine gave away Coldplay's "Violet Hill", the first single off Viva La Vida, in May. Then Babyshambles' "Delivery" came out in a September issue. But it was the White Stripes' give-away – their first release off Icky Thump, a vinyl-only single, "Rag And Bone", produced on special red vinyl for the magazine in June 2007, that sparked a renewed demand for vinyl.

While NME gave away the first part (which fans from around the world tried to get hold of), part two could only be bought on 7in, which sent thousands of fans to record shops, and forced vinyl back into the major music stores keen to keep up with the trend. Since then, many singles have come out only as downloads and on 7in vinyl.

Vinyl has always been an essential part of independent and specialist record stores. Rough Trade East devotes a third of its Brick Lane, London, store to vinyl (the floor space is equivalent to sales) compared with 3 per cent of HMV albums on the format. But even at HMV, vinyl makes up more than a third of the singles' market, which shows the extent of the format's rising success, though six out of ten singles are downloaded. That five of HMV's top selling vinyl albums are by indie rock bands, and their top selling 7in is "Standing Next to Me" by The Last of the Shadow Puppets (the supergroup helmed by Arctic Monkey's Alex Turner) shows that it's a new, younger rock-buying generation that is buying vinyl.

"Vinyl's never been out of fashion for our customers," says House, who has worked at Rough Trade for almost 30 years. "The dance culture kept it going for a while 10 years ago. Since then, a new generation has discovered vinyl. They love the complete antithesis to downloads, the physical copy – I don't want to sound a nerd, but it's lovely, you can look at it and it sounds much better. Maybe Brian Eno sounds better on CD, but rock, hip-hop and reggae sound so much warmer.

"The White Stripes had a big effect, but the main thing that happened was The Libertines. When they came along they got young people back into buying records. Pete Doherty appealed to a new generation who wanted the physical thing."

The Rough Trade shops also sell the new model of turntable, Numark USB, which enables the record collector to transfer their vinyl collection onto their computer and iPods. They shift 10 of the machines a week.

Gennaro Castaldo, spokesperson for HMV, says: "We've seen a steady rise in demand for vinyl on 7in and album formats for a few years now. We began noticing it in the early part of this decade with the explosion of indie guitar bands such as Arctic Monkeys, The White Stripes and The Killers. Record labels picked up on this trend and began marketing vinyl as part of the fan experience, appealing to students in particular.

"Now, it's become a bit of a badge of honour for any self-regarding new band, and, even though most fans no longer have decks or a record player, they seem to like the idea of collecting and owning vinyl for the sake of it. At HMV we've expanded the amount of space we give to vinyl, and it's become a quintessential part of our music offer to our customers."