What's with all the new colored vinyl?

Other than the clarity vinyl that is a translucent milky white, all vinyl is colored, all.

If the vinyl used is high quality (virgin) and the quality control is high its all relative.

Not to dismiss that in some instances it has been used as shiny object marketing where quality sound is glossed over. Picture disc's are another thing all together meant as visual novelty items not to be played with any seriousness whatsoever or at all.

As far as the underwear vs vinyl context goes  ....

In this economy like many , for purchases like records I'm on a shoestring budget for now... so no context relative will be necessary or wanted . Prioritize and rationalize as a music loving audio person should...

Choose the original pressing and go commando ...

@aewarren 

 I also have a dozen or so "clear" vinyl records. I believe the process is not simply removing the carbon black but requires a replacement compound to obtain that clarity.

The translucency is quite often a telling of the quality of the vinyl (virgin) used . Japanese pressings and British and German  pressings using quality vinyl also were translucent even in black.

I have many British pressings that appear black but even in low natural or incandescent light they are actually a deep see through plum purple color.

No filler and higher quality (controlled) ingrediants .

Like the old softer red odeon  pressings. Clear pressings still require an added compound in place of any other colorant to make them. Still colored to be colorless . Its all relative to the quality of materials used and the quality input from machines and the humans setting them up and handling them.  I'm constantly amazed at how good many records do sound in context to my previous sentence.