The 90s were a weird time for vinyl in Australia. CDs dominated. Most releases got tiny vinyl runs, if they got vinyl at all. Local pressing plants were shutting down.

Which means some Australian pressings from that era are now absurdly valuable because barely anyone bought them at the time.

If you’ve got any of these in your collection, you’re sitting on serious money. Here’s what to look for.

1. The Cruel Sea - “The Honeymoon Is Over” (1993, Red Eye Records)

Original Australian pressing on red vinyl, limited to about 500 copies.

What it’s worth now: $800-1,200 for mint copies. Even beat-up copies go for $400-500.

This album defined Australian pub rock in the 90s. The CD sold well. The vinyl didn’t because vinyl was “dead” in 1993. Red Eye pressed a tiny run for collectors and it sold slowly.

Now? It’s one of the most sought-after Australian rock pressings of the decade.

How to identify it: Red translucent vinyl. Cat number REYE 164. The barcode on the back should read 9 398489 000164.

If you find one, don’t sell it for less than $700 unless it’s completely trashed.

2. You Am I - “Hi Fi Way” (1995, rooArt/Festival)

First pressing Australian vinyl. Black vinyl, gatefold sleeve.

What it’s worth now: $600-900 depending on condition.

This might be the definitive Australian alternative rock album of the 90s. It won the ARIA for Album of the Year. But the vinyl pressing was minuscule compared to CD sales.

Most copies that survive have been played to death because people actually loved this album. Clean copies are rare.

How to identify it: Matrix number in the runout groove should include “FESTIVAL D 19439.” Later represses have different matrix codes.

The gatefold inner sleeve often has ring wear. That’s fine, it doesn’t hurt value much. But if the actual vinyl has scratches, value drops significantly.

3. Regurgitator - “Unit” (1997, Valve/Warner)

Original Australian pressing. Clear vinyl variant.

What it’s worth now: $500-750 for the clear vinyl. Black vinyl version is worth $200-300.

Unit was huge in Australia. It went triple platinum. But again, almost all those sales were CD. The vinyl was a limited run that Warner didn’t expect to sell.

The clear vinyl variant is particularly rare. I’ve only seen maybe a dozen copies in circulation over the past decade.

How to identify it: Check the vinyl color obviously. Clear variant has “UNIT-CV” marked somewhere on the labels or runout groove.

This one gets bootlegged occasionally. Real copies have Warner Music Australia licensing info on the back cover.

4. Something for Kate - “Beautiful Sharks” (1999, Murmur/Sony)

Original Australian pressing. Limited to around 300 copies.

What it’s worth now: $700-1,000 for clean copies.

Beautiful Sharks is beloved by Australian music nerds but was never a massive commercial hit. Which paradoxically makes the vinyl more valuable now because serious collectors want it.

This pressing is legitimately rare. Something for Kate had a devoted cult following but not mainstream dominance, so Sony pressed barely any vinyl.

How to identify it: Murmur catalogue number MUR 005. Sony Music Australia distribution.

Watch out for the 2018 repress. It’s nice but worth maybe $40, not $700. The original has a slightly different cover color saturation and uses heavier cardboard stock.

5. The Living End - Self-Titled (1998, Modular)

First pressing Australian vinyl before they signed to Reprise.

What it’s worth now: $1,200-1,800 for mint copies.

This is the holy grail of 90s Australian punk/rockabilly pressings. The Living End went 4x platinum in Australia, but almost entirely on CD. The indie vinyl pressing before they got picked up by a major label is incredibly rare.

Most collectors have never even seen one in person.

How to identify it: Modular Recordings label, cat number MOD 001. Matrix number should include “MODULAR-001” in the runout.

The major label repress from 1999 is worth about $150-200. Still decent, but nowhere near the indie pressing value.

If someone’s selling you what they claim is the original for less than $1,000, be extremely skeptical. Get detailed photos of the labels and matrix codes.

Why These Specific Records

All five of these albums are:

1. Genuinely significant in Australian music history
2. From the CD-dominated 90s when vinyl pressings were tiny
3. Actually good albums that people want to own and play
4. Hard to find in good condition because the people who bought them actually listened to them

That combination creates serious collector value.

What About Other 90s Aussie Vinyl

There are dozens of other valuable Australian pressings from this era. Powderfinger’s Internationalist, Magic Dirt’s Friends in Danger, Spiderbait’s Ivy and the Big Apples—all worth $300-600 depending on condition.

The common thread is limited pressing numbers during vinyl’s wilderness years.

How to Sell If You’ve Got One

Do not take these to a generic second-hand shop. They’ll offer you $50 because they don’t know what they’re looking at.

Use Discogs marketplace to check recent sold prices for your exact pressing. List it there or on specialized Australian vinyl Facebook groups.

Get good photos. Show the labels, the matrix numbers, the cover condition. Serious collectors want to see exactly what they’re buying.

How to Buy If You’re Looking

Don’t overpay. Just because someone lists a record for $2,000 doesn’t mean it’s worth that. Check the actual sold history on Discogs, not just current listings.

Condition matters enormously. A VG+ copy might be worth half what a NM copy sells for.

And verify it’s actually the pressing they claim it is. Get matrix numbers confirmed before you buy anything over $500.

The Broader Market

Australian 90s vinyl is having a moment right now. International collectors are paying attention to Australian pressings in a way they didn’t five years ago.

That’s driven prices up across the board. What was a $200 record in 2020 might be $400-500 now.

Is it a bubble? Maybe. Or maybe the market’s just correcting to reflect actual scarcity.

Either way, if you’ve got any of these five records, you’ve got something valuable. Don’t sell them cheap to someone who knows better than you do.

And if you’re hunting for them? Good luck. They don’t turn up often, and when they do, people who know what they’re worth grab them immediately.

That’s the game with rare vinyl. Knowledge is expensive.