#everydayisamixtape

OUT 4/2 ON EMT

SPIRIT KID - INNOCENT BLUES b/w WHERE DID YOU SLEEP?

THIS TIME LAST YEAR...

I was fumbling through my first full day at SXSW; one that involved 9 venues, 15 bands, running into just about everyone I knew from Boston, and generally having the time of my life (until we slept in the car... but that still resulted in the infamous "OH MY DOG THERE'S A DOG IN THIS CAR, AND A CHILD" incident).

One of the most enjoyable parts of my journey with EMT has been sending tapes to other countries. A few people in Italy dug the SUNRAM tape. People in Finland, Argentina, Australia, Japan, and many others bought Pretty & Nice tapes. When I swung by the post office to ship Birthdays pre-orders, I came face to face with what I had been dreading since USPS rate hikes were announced, it costs A LOT more to send a tape internationally. While the up to 50% increase hurts everyone shipping physical media, the addition of the mandatory tracking flat fee REALLY hurts those shipping lighter packages (i.e. tapes). Last time I shipped to the UK, it cost about $6, which is the same price as the tape. Now it costs almost $10 to send that tape. Assuming that mailers are free (which they are not), the recipient has to pay two and a half times the list price to get it in their hands across the pond. It's not like any of us are in the tape business to make money, but these rate hikes make it harder to just break even and offer our product for a fair price.

We've finally got the utopia we've been begging for since we were misspelling Metallica in Napster searches; we can stream almost every song ever recorded via Spotify and Bandcamp for free. We can also pay money for that same music if we feel so inclined. It's never been easier to record music and have people all over the world discover it, and it's never been easier to put your music out in a physical format. However, increasing international shipping rates loom over all of this; are we transitioning into a period of physical media isolationism? Has the internet made the import redundant? Is it more important for us to support domestic labels and give a higher percentage of our money to the people making/putting out music rather than to the USPS? 

MIXTAPE CLUB, VOL 1

Reviewing music in the digital age is a lot of fun, as you can find new music with just one click, leading down infinite spirals of sound discovery. Today, I thought it would be cool to introduce a different approach. As my cassette tape collection has steadily grown (exponentially over the past year) i have come to find their is nothing quite like the warmth of noise on magnetic tape.

My idea is to dedicate each Friday to reviewing and discussing certain tapes from the collection. I really want bring to light the art and time put into making cassettes and the music that inspires it all. I will try to lead you to the outlets to procure the music in hard-copy, if you so choose. However, i should state, that many of these tapes are no longer in print and finding them may prove to be quite difficult. But always remember that you should support the music in any way you can, even if it's just with your words, continue to spread the love! 

All that being said, welcome to Classic Magnetics and i hope you find some things you will enjoy!

The first installation comes in from the fresh Everydayisamixtape crew. Just got a wonderful package in from these guys and i just love their spirit and presentation. Their first official release is the cassingle for SUNRAM's "Eaglekiller b/w Pyramid Chute". An excellent psych-jammer that's rock in it's center but drone-y in spirit. Sludged out and slimey but equally uplifting and spacey. Plenty of room to wander around and get lost in but the right of amount of positive energy to keep you on track. Check out both tracks, and order here (3 copies left!)

<a href="http://everydayisamixtape.bandcamp.com/album/eaglekiller-pyramid-chute" data-mce-href="http://everydayisamixtape.bandcamp.com/album/eaglekiller-pyramid-chute">EAGLEKILLER / PYRAMID CHUTE by SUNRAM</a>

SUNRAM - PYRAMID CHUTE