For the record: DJ's new album is a tactile hit

Montreal – The new album by Canadian DJ Kid Koala, 12 Bit Blues, comes with a kit that enables listeners to assemble a functional, miniature turntable and to play a special flexi-disc on it.

For £14 ($22, €17) fans receive a cardboard gramophone kit along with a two-LP set and a digital mp3 download. The digital version alone costs £5 ($8, €6). The contents of the flexi-disc – a spoken message from the artist’s mother-in-law – may not be especially exciting, but enthusiasm over the kit has amplified the media buzz surrounding the album.

Flexi-discs have been used as promotional tools since the days of The Beatles, but they have enjoyed a revival recently along with a general rising interest in vinyl. Earlier this year, Jack White released the first promotional copies of his new single on flexi-discs attached to 1,000 balloons in Nashville, Tennessee.

For more on how artists and music labels are including tangible experiences alongside digital sound, read our Digi-tactile microtrend.