Cassettes were my introduction to the world of rock. When I first got into music in 1986, vinyl had just gasped its dying breath and compact discs had yet to appear. This was the era of going into the mall record store, picking up Iron Maiden's "Somewhere in Time" and slapping down your unspent lunch money so the shopkeep would free this masterpiece from its excessively long shoplifter proof package. Or better yet, joining one of those mailorder tape clubs, where for very little money they would send you a box of 15 cassettes of your choice, plus 4 more for signing up a friend, plus a free one with every purchase thereafter. How did they stay in business ? Turns out it really was too good a deal, and none of them did.
I amassed hundreds of cassettes in the last four years of the eighties, which would fundamentally alter my perception of the universe. Sure cassettes wore out way before I was tired of listening to them, sometimes played too fast, sometimes played too slow, and were prone to being devoured by the always hungry tape deck. Still, I am not alone in having a sentimental attachment to them and a regret it is no longer a viable medium. Releasing albums on vinyl has become a trendy thing, so when will cassettes once again see their day in the sun? Lightsabres is here to make it so.
