Nostalgia and the desire to physically possess music: why audio tapes are popular again
A Life / / January 06, 2021
Roman Leshchenko
He also rewound cassettes with a pen.
With the massive proliferation of digital media in the early 2000s, it seemed that the era of compact cassettes was irrevocably gone. But, contrary to the opinion of skeptics, in recent years, the popularity of audio cassettes and the demand for them has only grown. In the UK alone, in the first six months of 2020,The UK's Official Top 20 bestselling cassette albums of 2020 so far 65,000 cassettes is twice as manyThe unlikely cassette comeback isn’t over yet: sales are up in 2019than in the same period in 2019, and more than in the entire 2018. The last time the British noted such a demand for these storage media was back in 2004. American companies have also recordedCassette Tapes Are Back, Don’t You Dare Call Them Obsolete annual growth in sales of audio cassettes in the USA.
Why cassettes are back in vogue in the streaming era
There are several reasons for this. Moreover, the initiative comes both from the listeners themselves and from musicians and media moguls.
1980s style popular in culture
The massive boom for this era, which began in the early 2010s and has only intensified over time, has penetrated all areas of the media business. Tape cassettes and their playback devices, especially the original Sony Walkman portable player, were once prominent symbols of the early 1980s in Europe and the United States.
A key moment that kicked off the revival of the cassette industry was the release of Guardians of the Galaxy in the summer of 2014. The Star-Lord dance that went viral in the opening scene was accompanied by music from the same Sony Walkman.
Soundtrack-compilation in November 2014 was officially released to the delight of fansVarious - Guardians Of The Galaxy Awesome Mix Vol. 1 in authentic compact cassette format. In the UK, music from Guardians of the Galaxy and the 2017 sequel still remainsThe cassette comeback continues: sales are at their highest in 15 years among the sales leaders among all officially released audio cassettes.
Then these sound carriers became almost an integral part of most films and TV series filmed in the 21st century, which are set in the American 1980s. Perhaps the most famous example is the Netflix series “Very strange things».
But in many stories about our time, cassettes are an important component of the narrative. For example, in the drama series of the same Netflix about the current problems of American teenagers "13 Reasons Why" Hannah Baker recorded her suicide messages on compact cassettes
The younger generation wants to physically have the music they love
This reason equally leads to the growth of not only audio cassettes, but also vinyl records.
Many people reasonably believe that in our time it is no longer advisable to keep a music collection on separate physical media. This is impractical and takes up a lot of space. There are digital drives with millions of songs. Have become ubiquitous streaming services, which also haveFree music online: how streaming changed the music industry direct influence on the development of the entire world music industry.
In a sense, the unlimited consumption of music leads to its devaluation.
This is especially felt by the generation buzzerswho listens to tracks from social networks and flash drives from an early age. Unsurprisingly, many young people want a more meaningful experience of music - and this is where the physical possession of the albums of their favorite artists helps. And here, the decisive factors for choosing audio cassettes instead of vinyl records, as at the peak of their popularity in the 1980s, were again compactness and cheapness.
The older generation is nostalgic
Along with young people who are just discovering compact-cassettes, their parents feel nostalgia for their youth. Many with trepidation take out from storerooms and garages the surviving players and tape recorders with cassette collections. At the same time, in the same British sales charts of new cassettes appearThe UK's Official Top 20 bestselling cassette albums of 2020 so far artists such as Charles Aznavour, Brian Adams and Prince, who are popular with an older audience.
Nostalgic The artists themselves create the mood for their fans, holding various promotions and competitions with compact cassettes as prizes. For example, in 2018 at the "Hands Up!" it was possible to purchase a collection of the group's hits in the format that frontman Sergei Zhukov announcedHands Up! Cassettes are coming back! in social networks. In such cases, the cassette becomes more a souvenir for fans than a practical thing.
Underground artists and indie labels want to stand out
For many little-known artists, releasing their recordings exclusively on tape in limited editions has become a special cause of pride. In recent years, a huge number of local labels have appeared that release music only on cassettes and hardly investing in marketing.
Topical communities have formed around such indie publishing houses (for example, United Cassettes) with selections and reviews of new products in the cassette industry. In the USA, cassettes are distributed by independent artistsWhy the Cassette Tape Is Still Not Dead some music stores. The principle of word of mouth on social networks also works.
Tape recordings have a specific sound
This is perhaps the least compelling reason for the rise in popularity of audio cassettes. But nevertheless, some music lovers admitCassette Tapes Are Back, Don’t You Dare Call Them Obsoletethat they are attracted by the special analog sound. It should be noted that the recording quality even on the flagship models of household cassette devices was significantly inferiorFormat battle: reel vs cassette vs vinyl vs CD vs HiRes on all characteristics of digital media and vinyl records.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of cassettes
In the 1980s, at the peak of the popularity of compact-cassettes, their main advantages over vinyl records and bobbins were cheapness, small size and convenience - both of the carriers themselves and of reproducing and recording devices. In addition, the stake was placed on the owners of car electronics, who finally got the opportunity to listen in their cars not only to the radio, but also to their favorite records.
For many music lovers, the decisive factor in choosing audio cassettes was their wide customization. Apparently, therefore, rewrite-protected compact-cassettes did not gain popularity in their time. On the tapes were transferred the sounding on the air radio stations songs, partially or completely copied musical collections of friends and acquaintances. To this day, many people use the dubbing capabilities to create unique copyrighted collections of songs and voice notes on cassettes.
Giving a loved one a cassette with your favorite songs and a touching message on the body is not at all the same as sending a link to a playlist on a streaming platform.
If for one audience dubbing was an undoubted advantage of cassettes, then for another, in comparison with content security on vinyl records - a significant drawback. But the main reason for the decline in popularity of cassettes at one time was, of course, the lowest sound quality among media. By the time magnetic tape technology reached a bearable level, digital formats were already ubiquitous.
Where to buy cassettes and what you need to know before buying them
Until now, most new cassettes useCompact Cassettes: Past, Present and Future stocks of magnetic tapes issued in the early 2000s. Since 2018, only one company in the world has been producing audio cassettes and a new tape under its own brand - RecordingTheMasters.
In Russia, at present, no record company officially publishes albums of artists in the format of compact cassettes. For music lovers, eBay remains the only platform to buy new releases in this format. Amazon, Yahoo, Discogs and others - with mail delivery from abroad.
Fortunately, aftermarket purchases are much easier. A huge number of official and unofficial releases of previous years, as well as blank cassettes sealed in original packaging, are regularly put up for sale at Avito, Yulia and Sack. There are many forums and communities in Runet in social networks (eg, this), where participants buy and sell CD-cassettes.
Experts advise before purchasing from handsCompact Cassettes: Past, Present and Future first check with the seller in what conditions the audio media were stored. For example, a prolonged stay in an unheated garage will lead to shedding of the film and squeaking of the cassette body. Excessively hot conditions can deform plastic parts.
Where to find cassette equipment
Cassette recorders disappeared from the catalogs of modern stereos back in the early 2000s. And despite the growing popularity of this audio format in recent years, there are almost no new cassette decks on sale. Perhaps the last relatively large brand that produces cassette receivers today is the Japanese company TEAS.
Sometimes on sale on radio markets or, for example, on AliExpress you can find new radios and portable players of little-known Chinese manufacturers. But there can be no question of any guarantee of good sound quality.
There are also more experimental cassette devices. For example, Hong Kong-based design studio NINM Lab sells cassette player with the function of wireless data transmission according to the Bluetooth 5.0 standard.
But the range of used reproducing and recording devices for audio cassettes remains wide. On the same "Avito", "Yulia" and "Sack", as well as in thematic communities, people willingly sell as a variety of models of past years, and spare parts for them.
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