Ah, the analogue cassette tape. Those little plastic beasties were the medium for countless adolescent epiphanies, and they were an endless source of frustration in my adult years in the music business. Holding one of these in my hand now, I see a fragile, tempermental and inefficient medium that’s better off dead. My teenage years were a different story.
In high school, everyone traded tapes. Sure, vinyl was nice, but the tape had two distinct advantages: it was portable, and you could record on it. Both these factors lent it great power. I grew up in the Walkman generation, and though it’s commonplace to see middle-aged types walking down the street with those white Apple buds in their ears these days, shutting out the world with headphones was something rebellious in my day.