{"id":3994,"date":"2021-03-27T09:30:47","date_gmt":"2021-03-27T09:30:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/?p=1344479"},"modified":"2021-03-27T09:30:47","modified_gmt":"2021-03-27T09:30:47","slug":"heres-why-cassette-tape-sales-doubled-during-the-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=3994","title":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s why cassette tape sales doubled during the pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Described by some as \u201cEurope\u2019s biggest tech show<\/a>\u201d, the Berlin Radio Show has long been famous for exhibiting the next big thing in consumer electronics. In 1963, that was the compact audio cassette, introduced at the time by its creator, the late Dutch engineer Lou Ottens, who died<\/a> in early March.<\/p>\n

Over the course of Ottens\u2019 lifetime, cassette tapes came to redefine listening habits, which until then had been limited to the much more unwieldy vinyl record. Car stereos and the iconic Sony Walkman suddenly made individual listening experiences<\/a> possible outside of the home. The re-recordable nature of the format, meanwhile, helped music fans collate and circulate their own mixtapes. At its peak in 1989, the cassette tape was shifting 83 million units per year<\/a> in the UK alone.<\/p>\n

Despite having been superseded in functionality first by the compact disc (CD) and then the digital file (MP3 and MP4), the audio cassette retains a special place in the history of audio technology, with mixtapes a precursor to playlists, and the Walkman the precursor to the iPod.<\/p>\n

And, despite being considered aesthetically and materially inferior to the vinyl record that came before it, the audio cassette is actually experiencing something of a resurgence \u2013 partly for sentimental reasons, but also because, with gigs cancelled, it\u2019s a smart way for smaller artists to monetize their work.<\/p>\n

Hit rewind<\/h2>\n

Against a backdrop of a pandemic that has done huge damage to the music industry<\/a>, 2020 could justifiably be called the year of the cassette. According to British Phonographic Industry figures, 156,542 cassettes<\/a> were sold in the UK last year, the highest figure since 2003 and an increase of 94.7% on 2019 sales. Seemingly out of the blue, global pop icons such as Lady Gaga, the 1975, and Dua Lipa<\/a> have started rushing out their new releases on cassette \u2013 and they\u2019re selling out.<\/p>\n

For those of us who are old enough to remember the cassette tape as a common format of music consumption, their resurgence is somewhat puzzling. After all, even in their heyday, cassettes were always a bit rubbish<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They lacked the aesthetic appeal and the romance of the vinyl LP and its gatefold sleeve. Subsequently, they lacked the usability, flashiness and sonic fidelity of the CD. And there is not a music fan alive over the age of 35 who doesn\u2019t have a horror story to tell about a favorite album or mixtape being chewed up by a malicious car stereo or portable boombox.<\/p>\n

\"The
Credit: Dave Weatherall<\/a><\/figcaption>
<\/i><\/a>The boombox may now appear fashionably retro \u2013 but that won\u2019t stop it chewing up the occasional tape.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ottens himself was dismissive of the \u201cnonsense\u201d of a cassette revival, telling Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad<\/a> that \u201cnothing can match the sound\u201d of the CD, the development of which he also played a key part in. For Ottens, the ultimate goal of any music format was clarity and precision of sound, though, in a nod to nostalgic listeners, he also conceded: \u201cI think people mainly hear what they want to hear.\u201d<\/p>\n

Feeling it<\/h2>\n

As a scholar of popular music and material culture<\/a>, I can\u2019t help but wonder if Ottens\u2019 strict utilitarian perspective misses a deeper point about the cassette tape and its recent resurgence as a medium in popular culture.<\/p>\n

After all, the cultural enjoyment of music goes far beyond narrow debates about sound quality. Our enjoyment of music, and the cultural rituals surrounding that enjoyment, is a complex and deeply social thing<\/a> that engages more than just our ears.<\/p>\n

The ongoing revival of the record, for instance, is sometimes explained as a turn back to vinyl\u2019s superior sound. But it\u2019s just as often regarded as a cultural turn<\/a> back to an iconic medium, steeped in musical history, that people can feel, handle, and experience together \u2013 unlike a digital file. Though they may be less iconic, cassettes also represent cultural moments of cherished significance to music fans.<\/p>\n

\"Many
Credit: Ruslan Ruslan<\/a><\/figcaption>
<\/i><\/a>Many music fans appreciate the tactile nature of old analogue formats like the audio cassette.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the mid-2010s, I investigated the first signs of this resurgence of cassettes within Glasgow\u2019s indie and punk scenes as part of my PhD<\/a>, talking to musicians, labels and fans about the resurgence of cassette tapes. In these conversations, the materiality of these objects \u2013 their physical, tangible presence \u2013 was often highlighted as a motivating factor.<\/p>\n

As one fan remarked to me: \u201cI just like having things. They\u2019re all kind of becoming a bit defunct now, but I just like having something. That\u2019s my hobby, music is my hobby, and that\u2019s how I spend my money.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Read more: Music collectors seek out rare albums not available on streaming<\/a>
<\/em><\/p>\n

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There\u2019s also an economic component to the cassette resurgence. With debates raging<\/a> about how music streaming services should reimburse artists, independent musicians have, for some time, been looking to the sale of physical products and merchandise<\/a> as a means of generating income.<\/p>\n

For Glasgow\u2019s indie and punk bands, as with today\u2019s independent artists, cassettes actually represented a cost-effective<\/a> means of providing a physical product, far cheaper than pressing a vinyl record and printing sleeves and packaging. As one label owner put it, \u201cwe tend to release on tape because it\u2019s cheap to manufacture, it\u2019s easy to recoup, and it leaves money left over for the bands to get something.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the practices of these small, independent artists may feel quite far removed from the recent embrace of cassette tapes by mainstream pop stars, each arguably has their roots in a desire for analogue products we can touch<\/a> in an increasingly digital world mediated via screens.<\/p>\n

Many people have reported feelings of digital detachment and alienation<\/a> during the pandemic. It doesn\u2019t seem unreasonable to suggest that a desire for something we can actually feel, embellished with a nostalgic glow<\/a> from a COVID-free past, may also explain the resurgence of the audio cassette, nearly 60 years since its Berlin debut.\"The<\/p>\n

This article by Iain Taylor<\/a>, Lecturer in Music Industries, Birmingham City University<\/a>, is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Did you know we have a newsletter all about consumer tech? It\u2019s called Plugged In \u2013 and you can subscribe to it right here<\/a>. <\/i><\/p>\n

Published March 27, 2021 \u2014 09:30 UTC <\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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