“Unpopular music on tape” is how the description of Newcastle, United Kingdom label Panurus Productions reads. I’m sure there are plenty of seasoned digital marketers out there who might openly scoff at such a tagline. But, as those of us who are unapologetically immersed in cassette culture know, this sort of phrase most certainly elicits... Continue Reading →
The Reptilian Elite conspiracy theory is one of my favorites. It revolves around reptilian overlords who wear human suits, infiltrate political parties and powerful corporations, and subsequently hold clandestine dominion over the world as we know it. Honestly, based on Western civilization’s current trajectory, I am poised to believe anything at this point. Why not... Continue Reading →
Puzzle Time is a four-way split curated by Nicholas Langley, owner of United Kingdom label Third Kind Records. Complete with tracks from four different artists (Langley himself included) and an actual puzzle designed by Bristol-based illustrator Takora, the album (in the words of Walt Whitman) truly contains multitudes. Bary Center’s opening tracks are pensive and... Continue Reading →
Well-crafted noise music from the Midwest released by a fledgling tape label based out of the Pacific Northwest. That’s what I love about the online cassette community: the magic of unlikely connections, the miracle of epic alliances formed via email and bandwidth. I ordered the first batch of releases (officially referred to as the Cyan... Continue Reading →
Strategic Tape Reserve is a cassette label owned by Eamon Hamill (possibly the most well-spoken lad in the underground music game) -- who operates out of Cologne, West Germany. Though STR's canon is not genre-specific in any way, the complete body of work shares a common theme of explorative home-brewed quality. In an effort to... Continue Reading →
Hausu Mountain is a legendary Chicago-based experimental label (owned and operated by duo Max Allison and Doug Kaplan) that has been churning out quality noises and transmissions since 2012. Unlike many labels, the Hausu dudes go out of their way to restock tapes (for two years after the album release date) when they get low -... Continue Reading →
My best friend once told me about a teacher he had when he was in elementary school. He remembers him to this day for a number of reasons, but mostly because he taught him how to build a birdhouse. “He’s probably dead by now,” he said, “but that birdhouse still feeds birds.” It was years... Continue Reading →
Let’s talk about language. Unless you’re living in an underground bomb shelter with Christopher Walken and Sissy Spacek, you know that it’s the weapon of choice these days. This is not to say, of course, that this has not always been the case. The power of language dates back to its ancient origins. Language was,... Continue Reading →
There are various schools of drone that exist in the underbelly of bedroom-style noise music these days, each with their own idiosyncratic attributes and accolades. However, for the sake of the ensuing album review, I want to temporarily zoom out and separate them all into two categories: The ones who insert a home-made tape loop... Continue Reading →
CLOUD2 is a cassette that has sat on my shelf since April without knowing its true purpose in this remorseless physical realm. Don’t ask me why it took nearly five months for me to stick it in my deck and give it an honest listen. I was by no means avoiding it—especially considering how fond... Continue Reading →
Album Reviews, Label Spotlights, and More 