Chad Kassem (Acoustic Sounds)

Called "the Wizard of Vinyl" by the New York Times, Chad Kassem has devoted his professional life to the cause of great-sounding records. In addition to running Acoustic Sounds, a go-to mail-order company for audiophile albums and equipment, the outspoken Kassem oversees the specialty label Analogue Productions, the Mastering Lab, Quality Record Pressings (QRP) and other related businesses, all based in Salina, Kansas. In this freewheeling conversation, Kassem discusses how Analogue Productions has been able to obtain and execute such projects as the Atlantic 75 Series and Steely Dan UHQR releases. He previews upcoming releases from Jethro Tull, Robert Flack and Bob Marley and the Wailers. And he gets into the joys of early recordings, the evils of compression, the market manipulations of record labels, his take on the One Step controversy and the reason a CD has never made him cry.