Records you can eat? The story of edible vinyl...

Creating a playable record out of melted down sugar should technically be relatively straight forward, when melted down, it is a very malleable liquid - meaning it can be (again, theoretically) cast over a record mould pretty easily.

The problem comes when actually trying to play a sugar based record. When eventually turning back into solid form, sugar begins to develop many little air pockets, which result in small bubbles and cracks forming in its surface (unless treated professionally). It is these little imperfections that make the resulting record’s ‘music’ almost totally unintelligible.

Take a look at what the process of making a sugar based record involves below!

Not an ingredient that you would normally find yourself eating, but still worth a mention is the ice record - created back in 2012 by Swedish band Shout Out Louds. The band sent out record creation kits to the press and fans as part of a promotional campaign for their upcoming single ‘Blue Ice’.

The kit included a pre-made silicone mould, and a bottle of distilled water. That was it. The process of creating the record is not particularly complicated either, you would simply pour about half of the water into the silicone mould, and then freeze it for roughly six hours.

After the ice is fully frozen the bottom layer of the mould can be peeled away, and the resulting record is ready to play. Take a look at the process in full swing below.

It was bound to happen eventually. It turns out that many people are creating and selling chocolate records these days. Many online sellers of chocolate records do claim that there is no guarantee that any decent sounding music will be able to be heard from them, and that they are just a bit of fun. What is so appealing about a chocolate record anyway?

Well, unlike some of the other examples in this article, chocolate records are made to be just as consumable as any other chocolate product. It is likely that not many people would want to devour an entire record made out of pure sugar extract, or indeed ice for that matter - but chocolate? Absolutely!

The drawback of chocolate records, however, is just how soft their surfaces are - and because of this, a record’s stylus will be very sensitive to it. The video we have linked to below shows how the stylus’s tracking force has to be adjusted to stop it from just carving straight through the chocolate (skip to 4:30 to hear the record play)

As part of a promotional campaign in 2014, Legacy Records came out with a 30th anniversary 12” single release of the ‘Ghostbusters’ film soundtrack. This particular release was dubbed the ‘Stay Puft Edition’, and came with a number of foody features.

The record’s gatefold sleeve was textured in a way that made it feel very similar to a marshmallow, and the record itself was scented to even smell like one as well!

Only 3000 copies of the record exist, however, it can be purchased relatively inexpensively through sites like Discogs. Not much about the creation process is known for this particular record, however scenting records was certainly already a known gimmick before this soundtrack released.

Back in 1979, Stevie Wonder’s Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants record was given a faint rose scent for its initial release. This was eventually stopped as customers began to complain that the addition of the scent made the quality of the sound much worse.

Other artists including Duran Duran, Spinal Tap and Madonna have all used food based fragrances to promote their records. There was also a peach scented vinyl released featuring the 'Call Me By Your Name' soundtrack. 

Click here to learn more about the Marshmallow vinyl.

Another record that was created to publicise an upcoming single was one that was made entirely out of Kellogg’s Chocolate Frosted Flakes.

The band ‘PRETTYMUCH’ partnered with the cereal giants in 2018 to create the world’s first multi-ingredient, edible record. This was achieved by creating a mould of the single’s master recording, laying the ingredients into the mould, then freezing.

The process in general is not too dissimilar to that of the earlier chocolate record example we mentioned, but the addition of the frosted flakes makes things a little more complex. This record’s composition has to finish with a layer of chocolate over the top of the cereal, so that the playing surface is (at least somewhat) smooth enough for a stylus to play over. This simply would not be possible if the record simply comprised of the flakes alone.

The process of creating the record (as well as hearing what it sounds like) can be seen in the video below...

Albeit an Asian exclusive, the Oreo cookie record was introduced to markets in Hong Kong and Taiwan in an attempt to get the teenage generation on board with the brand; as they are largely viewed as a child’s snack brand in many Asian countries.

The solution? Appeal to the music-loving teens through a music-playing cookie! These musically charged Oreos came with their own, unique speaker box and would play short snippets of different styles of instrumental music.

The campaign launched in 2017 and gained a small amount of traction before eventually being dismissed as a gimmick to boost sales. Unlike many of the other examples we have mentioned, the music that went onto the cookies’ surface was lasered on, instead of a mould being made.

This allowed for a more precise groove to be made on what was of course a much smaller playing surface. Unlike the other examples as well, the cookies came pre-made, as they were incredibly intricate and delicate.

So, what’s the takeaway from all these edible examples? Well, it turns out that records don’t have to be just for playing and collecting; they can also be eaten! We wouldn’t recommend taking a bite out of your regular vinyl records though -maybe only do that if you are sure what you are listening to is made of chocolate.