When Taylor Swift’s releases her new album, “Life of a Showgirl,” in October, it can be heard on the usual places, including streaming, vinyl and…cassette tape?
The cassette tape was once one of the most common ways to listen to music, overtaking vinyl in the 1980s before being surpassed by CDs. But the physical audio format has become an artifact of a bygone era, giving way to the convenience of streaming.
Or, that’s what many thought.
In 2023, 436,400 cassettes were sold in the United States, according to the most recent data available from Luminate, an entertainment data firm. Although that’s a far cry from the 440 million cassettes sold in the 1980s, it’s a sharp increase from the 80,720 cassettes sold in 2015 and a notable revival for a format that had been all but written off.
Cassettes might not be experiencing the resurgence of vinyls or even CDs, but they are making a bit of a comeback, spurred by fans wanting an intimate experience with music and nostalgia, said Charlie Kaplan, owner of online store Tapehead City.
“People just like having something you can hold and keep, especially now when everything’s just a rented file on your phone,” Kaplan told CNN.
“Tapes provide a different type of listening experience — not perfect, but that’s part of it. Flip it over, look at the art and listen all the way through. You connect with the music with more of your senses,” he said.
How about reel-to-reel? Unlike cassettes, it actually sounds good. Probably the best you’ll ever hear from an analog format.
Nagra ftw.
Was reel-to-reel ever mainstream?
I always had the impression that it was too complicated and/or expensive for most.
It was always expensive and niche. Only a few commercial releases even at its peek. Most of the machines were used for mastering, not personal listening.
They’re not that complicated. They just look that way when you’re threading the reel through the mechanisms. There’s a logic to it, and it’s pretty easy once you understand that. Does have a little more maintenance than a record player or cassette deck. Stuff needs to be lubed right.
Edit: also, note that people aren’t necessarily buying cassettes or vinyl to listen to them. Lots of vinyl is purchased by people who don’t even own a turntable. It’s for the art and physicality.