The old technologies are the best and will always be. Seen any technology that beats vintage music yet? No, I guess. That’s exactly how I feel about cassette tapes. There is just something beautiful that goes into making these tapes.
Have you ever held a smartphone and wondered how people listen to music on these and feel good? Listening to music is great anyway, no matter where you are listening from, but to me it does matter. Don’t get me wrong, the smartphone is one of the world’s greatest technologies. I mean, I still wonder how you can have hundreds of albums at just your fingertips. I love that convenience, but I’m going to stick to my old-school way of listening to music. Why? It’s just more fun.
Cassette tapes
Cassette tapes came out after vinyl records and are still very much available. Cassette tapes do not sound better that digital. They have this tiny “tape hiss” in the background that tends to distract you from the music. They also warble if you listen to the same tape over and over. With a good quality cassette player, you can still enjoy good music and reminisce about old times.
Three reasons why cassettes are just way more fun than digital music.
Memories
I can still remember that soothing feeling of removing the cellophane protection and opening the case to unfold the cassette card.
As a kid, I only remember being able to purchase cassette tapes because vinyl records were way more expensive. They were so pocket-friendly, I could move around with an entire album. I was definitely set for the day with my Walkman. Cassette tape could get damaged easily as the castings were weak and the tape could get stuck in the player.
Nothing beats that moment of receiving your first mixtape. It was a way of confessing your feelings to your crush. Just as we share playlists on our phones, sharing mixtapes with hand-crafted artwork was a thing then.
It is less costly
Compared to digital music, cassette tapes were sold at affordable prices. Although digital music is much easier to carry around, you basically carry nothing. Streaming music is expensive, and cassette tapes are less expensive to create. You even get to personalize your mixtape as it gives room to craft art, including the album cover and cassette label.
Album art
Album art was a big deal then. Nowadays, too many details are not really put into album covers. They all feel the same. An album cover is meant to give the imagery of what the album is about, reflect its genre, and portray the theme. It’s usually the label of a cassette or record.
Cassette tapes are just more fun and classic.