For quite a few members of the 101WKQX audience, cassette tapes were once the king of music portability. Then came digital. And away went the Walkmans and tape decks.
But in 2017, sales of the seemingly defunct media actually went up, according to Popular Science. For the second year in a row.
NOW, while the sales percentage increase sounds impressive (136%), the actual number of cassette tapes sold last year was about 90,000…which makes up less than a tenth of a percent of all music sold. So what gives? Is the beginning of another love affair with an analog delivery system, much like those who swear by their record player?
The more likely answer is a temporary wave of nostalgia — triggered by a movie franchise.
Those that have seen Guardians of the Galaxy know that a mix tape plays heavy into the story. Peter Quill/Star-Lord’s Walkman and mix tape were so popular that the movie soundtrack was eventually put out on tape. It would seem this would be the catalyst of the resurgence. And why not? A film with a cult following naturally could drive the resurgence or development of a cult product.
This phenomenon was enough to propel the importance of Cassette Store Day. And The White Stripes jumped on board this wave by releasing their first three albums on tape late last year. A group whose founder — Jack White — is smack dab in the middle of the far more successful resurgence of vinyl with his Third Man Records company. That resurgence, however, wasn’t always viewed as a business that would maintain. So it is possible cassettes follow the same trajectory? Or will they remain a fun, fringe product?
And as of now, that’s all cassettes seem to be at this point — a one-off . After all, there are far better music delivery devices out there — ones that don’t playback at slightly different speeds, degrade, or worst of all, require a pencil to spool back inside. — [eric]
