the last cassette tape label in the world

These days Cassette tape culture is almost completely lost. In the so called digital age, "mixtapes" don't really come in tapes, but in cd-rs or in downloadable files like our popcasts. Most people (including me, sadly) don't even own a working tape player/ recorder anymore and it's been years since i saw a tape section at a record shop.

I don't mind the new formats of music storage, actually, i have to admit i love having my entire music collection accessible thru my itunes. And thankfully there's still a lot of people out there keeping the whole DIY ethos still alive by making handmade cdrs. But, still... I think it's a shame tapes are almost gone.

So, even though i don't have a tape player anymore, I couldn't resist any longer and i placed an order at Lost Sounds tapes, probably one of the last tape labels around. And, wow, it was so worth it!

Lost sounds tapes is run by Jon Manning, who also plays in the Blanket truth and does some other awesome stuff in Seatle, US. His releases include watercolor paintings, red pony clock, iji, blanket truth and an amazing ukulele compilation.

What I got in the post the other day tho, was his newest work - The seasonal Splits - a boxset containing 4 coloured cassettes, each representing one season of the year, with music by 8 different artists: Blanket Truth, Milly Geronimo, Shelby Sifers, Rian James, Super Famicom, Jellybean!, Watercolor Paintings and Iji. They come in a VHS style case that holds the 4 tapes (and a bunch of cards with info on the songs and bands) perfectly.

Those familiar with Pop monster collective, know what you should expect from the music: low fi, acoustic, home recorded songs, a lot of ukulele strings, toy instruments and super-sweetness.

If that's not good enough, just so you have no excuse at all not to go get it right now, Jon included a CDR with all the music, for convenience, and, to quote him, "for the analogically challenged".

Visit Lost sounds tapes here.