The Sound of Vinyl offers exclusive records via text message

What's the easiest way to buy vinyl? Online? Oh no.

A call? Think again.

Text message? Now you're talking!

The Sound of Vinyl storefront, which was created by a division of Universal Music Group, provides its members with text-based recommendations for their next record purchase.

Users enter their phone number and create a "taste profile", and then the shop sends daily texts with album recommendations straight to their phone.

Reply "Like" or "Dislike" to improve the accuracy recommendations, or "Yes" to instantly buy the album (warning: only suitable for people with a lot of disposable income or the willpower to resist the daily temptation of vinyl).

They have a catalogue of over 20,000 titles, as well as some exclusive items from Arrested Development, Marvin Gaye, Miles Davis, Iggy Pop, KISS, Grand Funk Railroad and The Go-Gos which will be released in the future.

Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately, for the more impulsive among us) the service is only available in the U.S. at the moment - so in the meantime, how about some of the weirdest vinyl ever made instead?

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Adam was a staff writer for What Hi-Fi?, reviewing consumer gadgets for online and print publication, as well as researching and producing features and advice pieces on new technology in the hi-fi industry. He has since worked for PC Mag as a contributing editor and is now a science and technology reporter for The Independent.