Orignal X-Ray Record
As I get contacted often by people who have bought, or want to buy, Bone Records online (usually from a Russian or Georgian source), asking if they are genuine, I have updated my previous advice.
It is difficult to tell definitively without actually examining each disc individually; from the images, the look of the surface (and often from the content), many, if not most, of them are modern. That is fine if you know what you are getting, but fraudulent if they are being sold as “original Soviet-era bootlegs. "
Records such as THESE are not orginal
As a result of the X-Ray Audio Project, a lot more people know about bone records, and understandably some want to own one - so inevitably a market has developed, with crazy prices being asked. Where there is money to be made, there are people wanting to make it …. Even I have been contacted by people offering to sell records they have cut himself.**
So generally we would caution people against buying online, but If buying from Ebay, Popsike etc ask for a guarantee that a record is an original from the era (not just recorded on an old machine)
And be careful with regard to the following:
Modern x-ray record of Marc Almond performing Vadim Kozin’s song Druzbha (Friendship) at Rough Trade Records 2017
1. The "Cigarette" Centre Hole
In a secret apartment or a basement workshop, the bootleggers didn't have a precision drill press.
The Authentic Sign: Look at the centre hole. There has long been a lovely legend that the centre hole was made by a burning cigarette. I am not convinced that is true, given that radiography film of the era was flammable, but on a genuine record, the centre hole is often irregular and has slightly torn, brownish, or thickened edges.
The Modern Fake: Modern reproductions often have a perfectly clean, circular hole made by a standard hole punch or a laser cutter. If it looks "factory perfect," it probably isn't a 1952 original.
2. The Shape: "Almost" Circular
Genuine records were cut by hand from large rectangular medical X-ray sheets using shears or a basic compass-knife.
The Authentic Sign: The edges are rarely a perfect circle. You might see slight wobbles in the circumference or even straight-ish segments where the scissors didn't quite make the curve.
The Modern Fake: Perfectly symmetrical, computer-aided circles are a red flag for a recent reproduction.
3. The Look
The Authentic Sign: The X-ray image itself should look like a vintage medical film. Look for blurred edges, high contrast (very dark blacks and translucent whites), and sometimes handwritten medical notations You might see a song title or style handwritten in Cyrillic/Latin script.
The Modern Fake: Many fakes use high-resolution, modern digital X-rays or even laser prints. They look too sharp, and are often clean, clear and have a blue tint. Vintage films were often slightly cloudy or had a tint inherent to the nitrocellulose of that era.
If the image is very clear, or is of a skull (always much rarer than ribs and indistinct images) or something dramatic with jewellery or artificial parts, it is probably modern.
4. The Grooves
These records were cut, not pressed. This means a needle physically carved a path into the plastic.
The Authentic Sign: Authentic records usually have scuffs, scratches, and groove wear from being played on heavy, primitive gramophones with steel needles but they will often play all the way through.
The Modern Fake: Some modern records don't even have real grooves—they are just digital images of X-rays with grooves printed on top for effect. If you can’t feel the texture with a fingernail, it’s a prop. Those that do have grooves will often skip - as recording on modern X-rays is difficult.
5. The Tactile Test
The Feel: Genuine vintage X-ray film is often brittle. If you flex it (don't!), it might crack. Modern acetate or vinyl-based reproductions are much more smooth and flexible.
The Smell: This is for the truly dedicated. Authentic nitrocellulose film from the 40s and 50s has a very faint, specific acrid or chemical smell (similar to old cinema film) as it degrades. New fakes smell like modern plastic.
6. The Music
If the song or artist dates from after 1964 / 1965 (the X-ray culture mainly died out then) it almost certainly modern
The sound of a modern X-ray is different from that of an old one - they tend to be quieter with a lot of high frequency ‘swishing’ noise rather than a more vinyl / shellac type crackle and hiss..
If buying from Ebay, Popsike etc ask for a guarantee that a record is an original from the era (not just recorded on an old machine)
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*Of course, modern X-ray records can be cool - we cut them ourselves as part of our live performances and demonstrations - but just don’t be fooled by fakes and understand what you are buying.
** In some ways, this is in ‘the spirit of bootlegging’ . Even in the original X-ray era, punters never really knew what they were getting
We are only interested in buying original records for this archive, not for profit. If you have records you can contribute, please be in touch.