“What is a cassette store?” has been oft repeated since International Cassette Store Day was announced in mid-July. With the September 7th “Record Store Day” knock-off for tape-lovers now upon us, the answer to that question is no clearer, though details on merchandise, special events and participating retailers are.
The stated goal is simple – “a celebration of a physical product that is accessible, fun, cheap and still going strong in the turbulent current musical climate.” Though you don’t have to be a skeptic to assume another aim is to echo the profits of Record Store Day (244,000 LPs were sold in the week ending April 21, 2013 according to Nielsen SoundScan, the largest one-week sum for vinyl in SoundScan history). Though cassettes have long been dismissed in the mainstream (even more so than vinyl), pockets of tape enthusiasts have kept the culture alive – both through labels that specialize in the format, and documentaries on the phenom. Cassette duplication plants are few but those that have survived are thriving as various underground genres still depend on the cassette. Tapes are generally cheap and easy, plus quicker to produce than vinyl.
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Click here for the full list of Cassette Store Day releases. Highlights are below:
- The Flaming Lips – “The Terror” (Bella Union)
- Deerhunter – “Monomania” (4AD)
- Efterklang – “Tripper” (Blood & Biscuits)
- Mum – “Smilewound” (Blood & Biscuits)
- Animal Collective – “Sung Tongs” (Fat Cat)
- Guided By Voices – “English Little League” (Fire / Bad Paintings)
- Xiu Xiu – “Women As Lovers” (Bad Paintings)
- Volcano Choir – “Repave” (Jagjaguwar)
- Fucked Up – “Hidden World” (SEXBEAT)
- JJ Doom – “Keys To The Kuffs Butter Edition” (Lex)
- Los Campesinos! – “A Good Night For a Fist Fight Live Album” (Kissability)
- At The Drive-In – “Acrobatic Tenement” (Transgressive)
- At The Drive-In – “Relationship Of Command” (Transgressive)
- Suicidal Tendencies – “Debut” (Burger)
- Hard Skin – “On The Balls” (Wichita)
- Haim – “Forever EP” (Polydor)
Matt Flag from Suplex Cassettes and Jen Long from Kissability and Steve Rose from SEXBEAT teamed up to create the new event. Their Cassette Store Day launch party will take place in London with similar events at shops in Los Angeles, New York and Tokyo, and elsewhere. In the US check out special events at Burger Records (Fullerton, CA), Rhino Records (Claremont, CA), and Record Room (Portland, OR). New Yorkers can check out the Cassette Fair and Show presented by Mirror Universe Tapes at Brooklyn’s Silent Barn and Chicago’s The Owl is hosting Parliament Tapes Cassette Tape Vending Machine Launch with exclusive live tapes from, Silver Apples, Bloodiest, Cairo Gang, Lazy, Rabble Rabble, Vamos and more. A complete list of participating US stores is below. Click here for the full global list.
Burger Records, 645 S. State College Blvd. #A Fullerton, CA
MadCity Music Exchange 600 Williamson Street Madison, WI
Mount Analog 5906 1/2 N Figueroa St Los Angeles, CA
Landlocked Music 202 N. Walnut St. Bloomington, NI
Bedrock Music & Video 2226 Fourth Street San Rafael, California
The Business 402 Commercial Ave. Anacortes, WA
Music Millennium 3158 East Burnside Street Portland Oregon
Spektrum Muzik 2712 e. Boulevard plaza Wichita, Ks
GoJohnnyGo Records 4775 Banning Ave. White Bear Lake, MN
USA The Bazaar 675 Brandon Ave SW Roanoke, VA
Warehouse – Arlington 1213 S. Cooper St. Arlington, TX
Bric-a-Brac Records & Collectibles 3156 W. Diversey Ave. Chicago, IL
Creme Tangerine 2930 Bristol Costa Mesa, CA
Zzz Records, 2200 Ingersol Ave, Des Moines, IA,
Skully’z Recordz, 907 Bourbon Street, New Orleans, LA,
Mills Record Company, 314 Westport Road, Kansas City, MO
The End of All Music, 1423 North Lamar, Oxford, Mississippi
Rainbow Records, 2705-B N. Main St. Anderson, SC
Twist and Shout, 2508 E. Colfax, Denver, CO
The Corner Record Shop & Audio Kalamazoo, 1710, West Main, Kalamazoo, MI
Omega Music, 318 East 5th Street, Dayton, Ohio
Kim’s Music & Video, 124 1st Ave, NYC, New York
Redscroll Records, 24 North Colony Road, Wallingford, CT
Joe’s Record Paradise, 8216 George Ave, Silver Spring Maryland
The Old School Ltd, 7446 W Madison St Floor, Forest Park, IL
End Of An Ear, 2209 South 1st Unit C /, Austin, TX
Lunchbox Records, 1419A Central Ave, Charlotte, NC
Park Ave CDs, 2916 Corrine Dr, Orlando, FL
The Telegraph, 19 Golden Street, New London, Connecticut
Touch Vinyl, 1646 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
Rhed Rholl Recordings, 725 Porter Rd, Nashville, Tennessee
Darkside Records and Gallery, 782 Main Street Poughkeepsie, NY
Tonevendor, 81-D King Street St. Augustine, FL
Steady Sounds, 322 W. Broad St. Richmond, Virginia
M-Theory, 915 W Washington St San Diego, CA
Vinyl Daze Records, 958 Laskin Road, Virginia Beach, VA
Hogwild Records, 1824 N. Main San Antonio, Texas
Love Garden Sounds, 822 Massachusetts St Lawrence, KS
Beacon Sound, 1465 NE Prescott St, Portland
Zia Records, 1850 W. Camelback, Phoenix AZ
Zia Records, 1940 W. Chandler Blvd, Chandler
Zia Records, 2510 W. Thunderbird Road, Phoenix
Zia Records, 105 W. University Tempe AZ
Zia Records, 3370 E. Speedway Blvd, Tucson AZ
Zia Records, 3655 N. Oracle Road, Tucson AZ
Zia Records, 4503 W. Sahara Avenue, Las Vegas, NV
Zia Records, 4225 S. Eastern Avenue, Las Vegas, NV
Astro Black Records, 1000 E. Oak, St, Louisville, KY
Vinal Edge Records, 239 W. 19th St, Houston, TX
Vertical House Records, 2211 Seminole Drive, RR #3, Huntsville AL
Exile On Main Street, 1 Main Street #108, Champaign IL
Sweat Records, 5505 NE 2nd Ave. Miami, FL
Waterloo Records, 600 N Lamar Suite A, Austin TX
Homer’s Music, 1210 Howard St, Omaha NE
Jacknife Records and Tapes, 3149 Glendale Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
Graveface Records & Curiosities, Savannah GA
The Future Heart 