Death of an icon?

By now, you’ve probably heard the terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad news.

Based on my investigative skills and deep perspicaciousness and the fact that I’ve read an article or two, I can confirm that it’s all true.

Ikea has discontinued the Expedit shelving units! Cue the moaning and wringing of hands! Oh woe! Vinyl Nerds everywhere are now in full revolt. Roving bands have been seen trashing Ikea stores worldwide.

For those of you not currently part of a Raging Throng of Consumer Terror, I can offer this ray of sunshine: there are still units available! Yes! It’s true! Chances are, your local Ikea will in fact still have all the units you’re desperate to cover your walls with! I mean, unless it’s already been ravaged. But act fast — no more are being made, so when they’re gone, they’re gone.

Pardon me while I roll my eyes and chuckle into a knuckle pretty much at the same time.

Honestly, all this fuss is kinda hilarious, isn’t it? Remember when vinyl was pretty much an anachronistic joke and the idea of a major multi-national corporation taking into account the feelings of a weird micro-niche would be worthy of an article on The Onion? Times have changed. Well, sort of. Ahem.

As for me … well, I will confess that I do have two Expedit shelves. And yes, that makes my reaction a bit “I have mine; too bad about you!” To that, I can offer a heartfelt “ptphthtpthtphhtphthpth”.

The issue, at least as I understand it, isn’t so much about Ikea than about vinyl storage. To be honest, there really isn’t a lot that’s out there that’s actually suitable for storing extremely dense/heavy items like vinyl LPs that’s likely to be WAF-approved, and also is priced at non-extortionist levels. Apparently, the trifecta here is what’s the issue. I mean, take one out and there’s a few more options.

So, what’s your favorite? Drop some pics and links in the Comments section, below.