Cassettes Are Making A Comeback!
Time to break out your jean jacket with the Metallica patches on it (Nickelback if you are Carter) and your boom box. Everything that's old is new again. Berry Lipstick colors, Doc Marten's, and Jelly Sandals are all making a big comeback according to InStyle.
I think this is awesome! I loved the 90's! I say bring on the Hypercolors,Coca-Cola Shirts, and tight-rolled jeans!
I also remember the transition from cassette tapes to CD's at that time. It was the thin and shiny future of music! At the time, I had thousands of pounds of cassettes - roughly 50. Sure, you had to rewind and fast forward without being able to know where you were time-wise on the album except for an impossibly small window in the tape itself to get to your favorite songs - but that was part of the charm!
If you miss these double sided windows into a musical realm filled with bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Paula Abdul (don't judge me), don't you fret! Cassettes are coming back in a big way! According to Engadget, cassette sales actually went up in 2016.
Who is selling cassettes? How about Justin Bieber and The Weeknd both releasing specialty cassettes selling close to a thousand copies each. Re-issued versions of Eminem's The Slim Shady LP and Prince and The Revolution's Purple Rain sold 3,000 and 2,000 units respectively. Plus, the Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 soundtrack sold about 4,000 copies each in 2016 and 2015. These numbers don't seem like much, even compared to vinyl (which sold 13.1 million in 2016). But don't forget, this is a very dead format, and it sold 129,000 copies last year. Vinyl has the club scene and the audiophiles that swear by it's warm crackly tone to keep it thriving. Cassettes are living on pure nostalgia. I wonder if that can keep them alive.
Probably.