Cassette Store Day 2013

It was announced in July that the first international Cassette Store Day would be taking place on 7th September 2013. The event will be held at Rough Trade East, London with a wide range of record labels taking part including Kissability, Bella Union, Transgressive, 4AD and Domino.

Inspired by the success of Record Store Day, which takes place every April, this nostalgic offering gives music lovers the opportunity to purchase some rare, limited edition recordings and compilations from all sorts of bands, musicians and labels.

Whilst vinyl has proven to be a valuable asset in the music industry over recent years, the humble audiocassette has also been steadily creeping its way back into the limelight and onto the shelves.

These tacky plastic vessels may be considered to be obsolete by the general public, but in the background they have been allowing DIY bands and labels to distribute their music for next to nothing in cost. We are now unfortunately at a point in time where the music industry is battling with online piracy and companies are losing millions of pounds each year as a result.

But with the ability to record onto cassette, along with its low cost, many artists have been returning to the format as a way to distribute their music, which means that now is the perfect time to celebrate such a versatile, much loved platform.

So if you remember buying your first tape, or recording your own unique mixtape for that special someone, make sure your batteries are charged and you have a pencil at the ready.

In addition to its London launch, there will also be similar events run in record stores in Los Angeles, New York and Tokyo amongst other UK, US and EU cities.

For more info head over to: www.cassettestoreday.com