Unique Gifts for Music-Lover Dads
He's got the records, the turntable and the opinions. Here's what to get the music-lover dad who's already got the music.
The music-lover dad is a tricky one. Buy him a record and you’re rolling the dice. He’s either got it already, got a better pressing of it, or has a reason he doesn’t want that one that he’ll happily explain to you at length. You will not win the record game. Don’t play the record game.
Play the game next to the records instead. The mat, the brush, the little thing on the shelf. That’s where the good gifts live for a dad like this, because it’s the stuff he wants and never gets around to buying for himself.
The thinking, quickly
A music-lover dad has spent real money on the big things. The turntable, the speakers, the records. What he’s running on is whatever cheap accessories came in the box years ago. So the move is to upgrade the small stuff he’s been ignoring. He’ll notice it more than you’d expect, because he’s the kind of person who notices.
A mat that actually does something
The slipmat that came with his deck is probably thin and a bit sad. A proper felt mat grips the record so it spins true, sits with a bit of weight so nothing slides around, and warms up under the needle. For a dad who cares about how things sound and feel, this is a small upgrade that punches well above the price.
The Signature Mat is the safe pick. If he’s the moody-listening type who plays records after everyone’s gone to bed, the Midnight mat suits him. Either way it’s a gift he’ll use every single time he puts a record on, which is more than you can say for most things.
Something for the shelf
Music-lover dads curate their space. The records on display, the gear lined up just so. So give him something worth displaying. We print little dads that spin on the platter, and Chinese Unc is the pick for the patient collector, the one who buys once and keeps it forever. Heavy in the palm, balanced to keep going long after you’ve walked off.
Browse the full lineup and pick the dad that matches the man. There’s a fair chance one of them is uncannily close.
The bit he keeps forgetting
Every music-lover dad knows he should clean his records and his stylus, and most of them don’t, not properly. A carbon brush and a stylus brush sort that in seconds. It’s the practical gift dressed up as a thoughtful one. He’ll think of you every time he gives the record a quick once-over, which, if he’s doing it right, is every play.
Pull it together
The neat move for a music-lover dad is a small set. A mat, a brush, and the spinner that looks most like him. A thing to use, a thing to keep things clean, and a thing to smile at. Boxed up, it reads as effort, even though it took you ten minutes.
For more, have a look at the full vinyl-dad gift guide, or if his hobbies run louder than his records, the gift guide by dad type.
Get him something he’ll actually spin.
Mats off to dad.