Talk:Mini-LP

Mini Album vs. EP
What's the difference? I only heard "mini album" in reference to Japanese EPs up until now ("LP", "EP", etc. are not very commonly used terms there). --Zilog Jones (talk) 19:07, 27 March 2010 (UTC)

The difference is that while the cuts are the same as usual on any vinyl issue, it is the medium that is not the same width. 10 inch mini-albums take on two forms. Those that are a genuine first effort to go to print and those that are a second or marketing gimmick being released at or later than the initial album release. For instance The Police has Regatta de Blanc out in both formats, 12 inch one disc, in a simple sleeve not gatefold. And 10 inch mini-album with the same tracks spread out on two 10 inch discs in one sleeve also not gatefold. The Police - Regatta de Blanc: 10 inch, A&M Records, SP-3713, USA, 1979 12 inch, A&N Records, AMLH 64792, USA, 1979. 12 inch, A&M Records, SP-4792, INDIA, 1979. These are all I have, although I got 3 sets of the 10 inch version, two sets with sleeve and one set without. This 10 inch release seems to have been a US effort. As to the merit that i.e. Australia was a market for this size I cannot tell, I live in Denmark and bought all of my records above locally here in Denmark, or while on vacation in London, England. I guess the contrast to this is the single disc 12 inch LP that is released with a gimmick cover as gatefold, or other use such as the teeth and eye movement on Oh La La by The Faces, or the windows on Led Zeppelin Grafitti, girls faces on Stones Some Girls, or the gatefold sleeve with inserts for Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band by those four guys out of Liverpool. For a collector it is a nightmare and one should generally only collect to listen, and stick to the pressings that have been well made and cherish them. The different cover graphics, media sizes and what not are nothing to me personally but I always had a soft spot for the 10 inch as a size. It is longer than a 7 inch release (I have a 6 inch Big Shot/Baby's On The Street single by Jonah Lewie from some time in the 70s) and typically one song short of the length of a 12 inch disc side and they are more rare. Other than that there ought not be any other discernable differences except for sonics which is always an issue with something old or indeed with some of the recent 180 gram pressings. Some current music is issued just to be on vinyl no matter how it sounds, and 180 gram is only the weight of the disc and says nothing about how it sounds. -Mikkel Breiler —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.59.232.151 (talk) 19:13, 15 November 2010 (UTC)

Noting Format on Articles about Mini-albums
Seeing the references to specific Mini-albums that have their own articles, which have existing in this article for over 5 years, I sought to add consistency by noting the format in those articles. In most cases, this was met with resistance from other editors, who insisted, often with surprising enthusiasm, that each was either an "album" or an "EP", despite having reliable sources (more than one in one case) calling it a mini-album. Among the article's cited examples:

Where editors insist it's an "album" rather than a "mini album":

• Ye (album)

Where mentions of both "mini album" and "album" exist simultaneously:

• Nasir (album)

• Under a Blood Red Sky

• From a Page

• The Planet (album)

• The Honeydrippers: Volume One

• K.T.S.E.

• Daytona (album)

• Walking Back to Happiness

Where editors insist it's an "EP" rather than a "mini album":

• Found All the Parts

• The Story Begins

• Taste of Love (EP)

• The Fat Skier

• Come On Pilgrim

• 2NE1 (2009 EP)

Are there any thoughts on what the appropriate approach is here? There are fairly clear definitions for the distinction between an album its subtype of mini-album but there's a little gray area in between, as well as where EP comes in, in between a single, "single album" and mini-album". But people seem to be pretty defensive about their chosen format in some cases :) —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 14:04, 7 February 2024 (UTC)


 * I don't think a blanket solution is needed. Each of the topics should be assessed by itself. The media should be summarized with due WP:WEIGHT. Is the album consistently called a mini-LP in the media? Or was it just a 2018 marketing idea that fizzled? Binksternet (talk) 15:26, 7 February 2024 (UTC)
 * I've made some updates to the list above, including adding a few more examples. —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 22:52, 7 February 2024 (UTC)

Binksternet: I'd love to understand your recent deletions of Born to Be (Itzy album) & Body Talk Pt. 2, where these were simply examples that already referred to the releases as mini-albums within their articles. Obviously we could add the sources from those articles if that's helpful, but…? —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 20:49, 9 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Facts that are cited in one article must be cited again if they are brought to a new article.
 * The Born to Be (Itzy album) article has some sources that say it is a full album. For instance, one of the Korean language sources says that Born to Be is a full-length album following Itzy's previous mini album. When the sources contradict each other it is impossible to select one of them and decide this one is defining while this other one is not defining.
 * The Body Talk release by Robyn has no sourcing for mini-LP. Binksternet (talk) 21:11, 9 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Sources added. —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 21:19, 9 February 2024 (UTC)
 * See also: Citation needed. —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 21:31, 9 February 2024 (UTC)
 * You didn't address the serious problem of contradictory sources on the Itzy album.
 * And don't cited Discogs.com because it fails WP:USERG. It's listed as verboten at WP:ALBUMAVOID. Binksternet (talk) 22:35, 9 February 2024 (UTC)
 * As a "mini-album" is a type of "album" I don't see a conflict, serious or otherwise. —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 22:51, 9 February 2024 (UTC)
 * See also: Full Album. —Shada Ng (talk | contribs) 23:02, 9 February 2024 (UTC)