Photo: Press
It's not just vinyl making a comeback it seems. The Cassette tape format could also have an unexpected revival, with exponential increase in sales.
Sales of albums on tape were 129,000 copies sold 2016 - up from 74,000 across the previous year, Billboard has reported.
The spike in popularity is due to current popular artists' albums becoming available on the format. Justin Bieber's Purpose, The Weeknd's Beauty Behind the Madness and The 1975's I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It were all released on tape, as well as classics such as Eminem's The Slim Shady Show and Prince's Purple Rain.
Sales were also boosted by Cassette Store Day, which celebrates the format around the world. Seemingly inspired by Record Store Day, the event featured one-off releases and in-store shows at independent retailers. Last year's Cassette Store day took place 8 October.
Though there has been a large increase in popularity, Cassette album sales are small in comparison to vinyl, which reached a record 3.2 million in the UK in the UK last year, and outstripped digital downloads.
It's the superior sound quality of vinyl which appeals to audiophiles however, together with their aesthetically pleasing packaging and artwork. We're not convinced cassettes hold those same qualities - weren't they always a bit...naff? Still, it beats that 00s phase of people wearing them as necklaces.
How long until CDs are inevitably cool again?
