On November 12, 1996, a hungry young rapper named Marshall Mathers, performing as Eminem, released his first studio album, Infinite , on the small Detroit label Web Entertainment. The album was recorded at the Bass Brothers’ “Bassmint” studio, produced entirely by Mr. Porter (later of D12), with drum programming by the late Proof.
The year 2009, however, was pivotal for the record’s digital legacy:
Fast forward to 2009. Eminem had been on a five‑year hiatus, battling prescription drug addiction. His return album, Relapse , was scheduled for May 18. To build anticipation, offered Infinite as a free digital download .
: Because there is no official digital master for the full album (outside of the title track), these CDs are usually sourced from vinyl-to-digital transfers. FLAC versions (like the one mentioned in your string) are sought after because they offer "lossless" quality, even if the original source was an analog record. Market Value Eminem – Infinite | Releases | Discogs emineminfinitereissuecdflac2009thevoid
But that isn't the point.
That said, the 2009 "The Void" version is technically a . It is not endorsed by Eminem, Paul Rosenberg, or Universal. If you want to support the artist, buy the 2016 digital version or hunt down a used copy of the 2000 CD reissue on Discogs ($20-50).
: To date, only the title track, "Infinite," has an official remastered release on platforms like Spotify. Scarcity and Identification On November 12, 1996, a hungry young rapper
There is no official 2009 CD reissue. Any file claiming to be one is unofficial.
Collectors on platforms like Discogs and Reddit identify these copies by several markers:
The anniversary also saw the first official digital release of Infinite on streaming platforms—but only as a (the remix), not the full album. The original album remains absent from Spotify and Apple Music. The year 2009, however, was pivotal for the
The final two segments of the keyword, flac and thevoid , are crucial for pinpointing the exact desired version. FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) is a codec for digital audio that compresses the file without any loss of quality. Unlike MP3s, which discard data to save space, a FLAC file preserves every bit of the original CD audio, providing the highest possible sound quality for digital storage and playback. For a rare album like Infinite , having a FLAC version is the holy grail, ensuring that the digital copy is a perfect, bit-for-bit replica of the physical CD.
: For fans and historians, this reissue offers a chance to study Eminem's evolution as an artist. "Infinite" provides insights into the beginnings of Eminem's career, showcasing his raw talent.
Commercially, Infinite was a failure. Only 500 to 1,000 physical copies were pressed, mostly on cassette, which Eminem sold out of the trunk of his car in Detroit to make ends meet. The album was not available on any online music store. However, its artistic DNA—the relentless wordplay, the internal rhyme schemes—would evolve into the furious style that later redefined hip-hop. As the Guardian notes, Infinite is the "pre-fame" album, laying the lyrical groundwork for everything that followed.
: Web Entertainment only pressed roughly 1,000 physical copies split between 12-inch vinyl records and cassette tapes. No official CD version was ever manufactured in 1996.