Vinyl Albums Missing Tracks: Charli xcx, Olivia Rodrigo, and Others Face Fan Backlash

A growing trend in the music industry has fans paying premium prices for vinyl editions that differ from their digital counterparts, often missing tracks or containing unfinished mixes. Charli xcx's new album 'Music, Fashion, Film' features a vinyl version of the closing track 'No One Lasts Forever' that omits a spoken-word contribution from filmmaker David Cronenberg, which is present on streaming platforms. Charli explained on the Tape Notes podcast that the vinyl deadline was missed, resulting in a different version. Olivia Rodrigo's album 'You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love' has vinyl editions with edits across multiple tracks, including missing bridges and outros. Raye's second album also shipped with earlier mixes, prompting an apology from the artist. The Weeknd's 'Hurry Up Tomorrow' first pressing contained only 11 of 22 tracks, and Beyoncé's 'Cowboy Carter' vinyl omitted five songs. This issue stems from vinyl manufacturing requiring audio masters at least six weeks before release, while digital platforms need only five business days. Ben Savage, manager of Skeleton Records, warns that this practice may lead to buyer exhaustion and a collapse of the vinyl bubble. UK vinyl sales reached 7.6 million LPs last year, a 13.3% increase, according to the BPI.