Brand New Vinyl Static and Pops

Kennyc, Magnetism and static electric charge are two different things, even though static chargecan make two things that are charged with opposite polarity (positive on one and negative on the other) cling together.  The point being that it is quite controversial whether LPs ever need to be demagnetized, whereas no one doubts they often become electrostatically charged up. A "demagnetizer" designed to work on LPs will do nothing, zero, nada for static electric charge.

Cleeds, the laugh is on me. Staticmaster not Dynagroove. I can’t even imagine how I came up with that name. Anyway in my experience it works better than anything else I own to eliminate static charge. Mine is wider than the one in your image, and I was going on received information when I claimed it was discontinued. Could it be they took the polonium out of the product to permit sales? Anyway if you have one don’t eat it. Further reading suggests polonium is still used.

Has anyone got a Dynagroove brush? There’s a strip of polonium built in near the fibers that emits both positive and negative ions. You use it as a brush like the Audioquest brush. They were taken off the market because of the mildly radioactive polonium. I think it works for me just prior to needle drop but because static charge is so idiosyncratic I dare not swear by it.

I said dirt not static electricity. Static is not inserted at the factory. The culprit is us .

I wouldn't argue that from a perfectionist point of view it is not a good idea to clean "new" LPs, but I do play new LPs right out of the jacket without cleaning them, very often, and I cannot recall a problem due to dirt (ticks and pops).  Sure, some are warped and some are off center and some are both warped and off center, but not dirty enough to cause mistracking or ticks/pops.  Just my personal experience.

Clean your stylus, if you have not already done so.