Episode 56: Mark Piro of Analog Spark and RecordNerdz Podcast

As a longtime employee of Razor and Tie -- known for their compilation and reissue work in the 90's -- Mark Piro is living the dream that any record collector would want: Founding your own imprint and putting out high-quality represses of classic albums that haven't seen the light of day on vinyl in ages. Inspired by the work of Mobile Fidelity, Analogue Productions and ORG, Mark heads Analog Spark, dedicated to using only the best original sound sources, vinyl plants, jackets and sleeves while repressing favorites of yesteryear (Dave Brubek, Sam Cooke, Ella Fitzgerald) as well as much-needed alternative-rock reissues for Blind Melon, The Cranberries and Ben Folds, where original copies still go for several hundred dollars. Today, Mark discusses his journey in founding the label, his completist tendencies with The Beatles discography, how playing Rock Paper Scissors with Smashing Pumpkins' James Iha led to him scoring one of his prized Oasis possessions, how his vinyl habits differ from his co-hosts on the popular RecordNerdz podcast and much more! We also geek out on specific pressings from The Zombies, The Beach Boys, The White Stripes and Elvis Costello, PLUS you can win Analog Spark's recent colored represses of two Ben Folds releases: The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner on opaque red, and Songs For Silverman on clear! Visit analogspark.com and @analogspark on social media for upcoming releases, as well as @recordnerdz on Instagram!