[URBAN NOTE] "Cassette Comeback: tapes and weirdo music go hand in hand"

[rfmcdonald]

NOW Toronto's Benjamin Boles profiles a musically-interesting exhibition downtown by OCAD.

MUSICWORKS: THE CASSETTE YEARS reception at the Music Gallery (197 John), Friday (March 11), 6 pm. Free. Exhibition at Open Gallery (49 McCaul), Monday to Friday (March 14-18). See listing. musicgallery.org.

As part of the Music Gallery's ongoing 40th anniversary celebrations, the Toronto experimental music institution teamed up with OCAD U's Open Gallery for an exhibition of cassettes originally distributed with issues of Musicworks Magazine in the 80s and 90s. The Music Gallery founded the magazine, and both entities played a large role in shaping experimental and electronic music in Canada.

"The Music Gallery identified that tapes are experiencing a resurgence in popularity in certain communities, so they thought it would be kind of fun for people to get back into [these]," explains Emily Cluett, who helped curate the show with Ariel Sharratt as part of their curatorial practices studies at OCAD U.

The comeback of cassette tapes isn't a mirage. Online music database and marketplace Discogs recently released data that showed a 38.62 per cent jump in the number of cassettes added to their database in 2015, far higher than any other format. Discogs also saw a 37.14 per cent rise in tape sales in 2015.

Collectors are helping fuel interest in the obsolete medium, both on the vintage market and when it comes to newer boutique labels embracing the format. While most people prefer the convenience of digital files, a tangible art object still appeals to many.