August 4, 2009 8:50

Arctic Monkeys to release vinyl-only single through Oxfam

'Crying Lightning' will only be available on 10 and seven-inch singles

Photo Gallery: Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys are ditching CDs to release comeback single 'Crying Lightning' exclusively on vinyl.

The band are issuing two versions of the single, one on 10-inch and one on seven-inch - the latter of which will be exclusively sold through Oxfam charity shops in the UK.

The Oxfam-only version of the single - which is currently only available as a download - will come out on August 17, and features the B-side 'Red Right Hand', a Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds cover.

The seven-inch costs £2.99, though the band and Oxfam are encouraging fans to donate items to their shops - particularly unwanted records or other music-related merchandise - when they come in to buy the new single.

"Oxfam is a Great British institution, and it's a delight to be working together on this project," declared Laurence Bell, founder of Arctic Monkeys's record label, Domino. "There are about 700 Oxfam shops in the UK, many of them in high streets that once housed a record shop, so as well as raising some money for a great cause we are able to get vinyl back onto more of the nation's high streets, which feels good.

"We encourage all customers to bring something of value to donate to the store when they come down to buy the new Arctic Monkeys single."

A 10-inch version of 'Crying Lightning' is also being released via conventional record shops and features an extra B-side, new track 'I Haven’t Got My Strange'.

Both versions of the single come with codes which will allow fans to download the relevant tracks on MP3 for free.

Arctic Monkeys release their third album, 'Humbug', on August 24.