# Vinyl (2016)

> A jaded 1970s New York record executive fights to save his failing label and fractured life while chasing the city's raw new sound.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/56394

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 10
- Episode runtime: 60 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: drama, music
- Created by: Terence Winter, Rich Cohen, Mick Jagger, Martin Scorsese
- Network: HBO
- Cast: Bobby Cannavale, Olivia Wilde, Ray Romano, Ato Essandoh, Max Casella, P.J. Byrne, J.C. MacKenzie, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen
- TMDB rating: 7.7/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3186130/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: gritty, nostalgic, melancholic, sweaty, tense

## What critics say

Audiences rate the series positively, praising its period recreation of 1970s New York music and its gritty atmosphere, though its uneven pacing and sprawling plotting draw mixed reactions.

## Synopsis

Vinyl (2016) is an American prestige drama series created by Terence Winter, Rich Cohen, Mick Jagger and Martin Scorsese for HBO. Bobby Cannavale plays Richie Finestra, a jaded record executive trying to resurrect his failing American Recordings label while his marriage to Devon Finestra (Olivia Wilde) unravels. Ray Romano plays Zak Yankovich, a fellow industry operator, and Ato Essandoh plays Lester Grimes, whose path crosses the label's fortunes. Set in 1970s New York, the ten-episode run follows the deals, drugs, nightclub scenes and studio sessions that surround the city's new sound, with each episode built from another gamble to keep the company alive. The tone is gritty, sweaty and nostalgic, rooted in period texture, moral compromise and the restless energy of rock and punk. Fans of Boardwalk Empire and Mad Men will find resonance in its ambitious male lead, its period detail and its portrait of a fading era. The single season was canceled, leaving the story unfinished.

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