Third Man Records Vault delivers an exclusive 12" and 7" vinyl + a bonus item every quarter. On top of that, there a lot of other perks including live streams of events, pre-sale opportunities, shop access, and chat room access with Jack White and Third Man Employees.
My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out our review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
The Subscription Box: Third Man Records Vault
The Cost: $60 per quarter (There's a $20 option as well, but that doesn't include the 12" vinyl record)
The Products: A quarterly Vault package which includes a 12” record, a 7” record, and a bonus item.
Ships to: Worldwide!
Check out all of our Third Man Records Vault reviews and the Vinyl Subscription Boxes in the Subscription Box List. Rate, review, and follow this subscription on the Third Man Records Vault profile page.
The packaging this month wasn’t as impressive as Vault #30 - no shelf box, standard LP shipping packaging, and the extras were tossed into a manilla envelope.. Not what I was expecting!
Vault package #31 features a double LP, a 7”, a DVD, a challenge coin and a collar pin, all centered around one artist: Margo Price. I had never heard of her before this package, but knowing Jack White’s excellent curating skills I knew I wouldn’t be let down.
They include an info card with backstory on all the items.
First up we have this beautifully packaged 2 LP set! The double 180-gram LP set features a performance from Margo Price and her band The Pricetags recorded live at the Hamilton in Washington, DC on November 9, 2016. The first LP is on a clear, coke-bottle green and the second an opaque white. The set is housed in a vellum optical sleeve, with standard white paper sleeves. The sound quality on this release is just gorgeous, it really feels like you’re in the venue when you’re listening to this one. The set features lots of tracks from Margo’s first album, and some classic country covers from the likes of Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson and more.
Next up is this vault’s 7” - a new Blue Room Session! Previous Blue Room Sessions alums are Cat Stevens and Coupler, but this is the first to be released as a vault exclusive, and it comes on clear blue vinyl. Blue Room Sessions are recorded direct-to-acetate on a 1955 Scully lathe machine. It produces its own signature sound, and while it doesn’t sound as crisp and clear as the live performance on the LP set, it’s unique sound is still something to behold. The A-side here is a brand new song, “You Told Me With Your Eyes”, and the B-side is a cover of Billy Grammer’s “Gotta Travel On”.
Next up we have a DVD of yet another live performance by Margo and her band, taken from Austin City Limits on October 3, 2016. This performance aired in early 2017 but this is the only physical release as of yet. After the set, which includes 18 tracks, a handful of which are covers, there’s an interview of Margo with Terry Lickona, producer of Austin City Limits. There are some fun songs on here (“It Ain’t Drunk Drivin’ If You’re Ridin’ A Horse” comes to mind…) and the crowd was definitely getting into it. Not sure everyone there was a Margo Price fan to begin with but she definitely put on a fantastic show and really got people moving.
The next item in the vault is this set of double skull collar pins, inspired by a tattoo Margo has on her leg. I’m not one to rock a set of these but they are really cool looking. You can’t go wrong with a couple of cow skulls to hold your collar together, right?
And finally this month we have the 2017 challenge coin! Third Man has sent out on of these every year. They are meant to mimic the 45rpm adapter you have to use to play certain 7” records.
Verdict: This quarter’s Third Man Records Vault was pretty great. At first, I was a little disappointed that the entire vault featured on one artist that I was unfamiliar with, I quickly understood why she was chosen and have really ended up enjoying each piece included this month. Check out all the past Vault releases to get a sense of what you could expect for future releases!
What did you think of the 31st Third Man Records Vault?
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