Massive Fire Impacts Vinyl Record Production Worldwide

A massive fire last week at the 15,000 square foot Apollo Master Discs manufacturing plant will effect vinyl record manufacturing worldwide.

Apollo is one of only two companies worldwide that manufacture the lacquered discs used to make the masters used to manufacture vinyl records.

“There were multiple reports of explosions when the fire started”, California Fire Captain Fernando Herrera told the Palm Springs, CA Desert Sun. “There wasn’t anyone spot you could say wasn’t on fire”.

“It is with great sadness we report the Apollo Masters manufacturing and storage facility had a devastating fire and suffered catastrophic damage. Apollo Master Discs said in a statement. “The best news is all of our employees are safe. We are uncertain of our future at this point and are evaluating options as we try to work through this difficult time.”

A Global Problem

“From my understanding, this fire will present a problem for the vinyl industry worldwide,” Ben Blackwell, co-founder of Third Man Records told Pitchfork. “There are only TWO companies that make lacquers in the world, and the other, MDC in Japan, already had trouble keeping up with demand BEFORE this development.”