What would you give to relive the bygone era of the 80’s and 90’s? many of us who grew up in those years feel like only a decade has passed, with Walkman and Ninja Turtles and Squeezits so fresh in our memories.
Nielsen Music’s end-of-year report showed a surprising gem for 2017: cassette record sales spiked 35% from the previous year, totaling 174,000 sales. Guardians of the Galaxy and Stranger Things are the culprits behind this cassette revolution.
Guardians blazed the trail with the top three spots. The recent Vol. 2 soundtrack was in first place, followed by the Vol. 1 soundtrack and the Cosmic Mix Vol. 1 (from the animated series) took third place.
Stranger Things took on fourth place, with 3,000 sales. Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn shared the findings on Facebook, commenting on how he is changing the world…one Groot at a time.
80’s nostalgia is currently surfacing across the geekosphere with a vengeance. From the colorful look of the Guardians films, to the vital role that a Walkman (with its Awesome ) plays in the life of Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord, an 80’s influence is firmly stamped within the adventures of the ragtag guardians.
The Spielbergian/Stephen King vibe of Netflix’s Stranger Things also lends itself to throwback comparisons. The list of homages spread lovingly across the show can go on for a while. And one of the joys of watching Stranger Things is in identifying the references that pop-out to you.
A host of writers are feeling the nostalgic rush too. The recent film IT features a group of kids armed with bikes protecting their small town from one creepy-ass monster. It slightly emulates the Stranger Things style, even recasting one of its child actors Finn Wolfhard.
Cassettes also play a prominent role in Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why, though not in the most cheerful of circumstances.
The Stranger Things soundtrack is packaged in a case resembling a small VHS tape, exclusively by retail chain Urban Outfitters. Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein provide a creepily relaxing ambiance here.
Listening to it while writing this post, I felt like those government agents were just outside my window preparing to convert me into a radioactive superhero, thereby kick-starting my new crime-fighting life (update: sadly, I have developed neither superpowers nor even a third eyeball, but I do still recommend the soundtrack).
Though I’m a 90’s kid myself, I clung to my Walkman for dear life, even after I got my first CD-player for Christmas. No way was I willing to part with all those precious mixtapes I’d made off of the radio.
However, If your old Walkman is forever lost to the abyss that is your 80’s/90’s memorabilia in the attic, or if you’re still a CD purist, no need to fret.
Cassettes remain a novelty for now. The 35% spike did not make a dent, nor even a ding, in music sales overall, as it was a minuscule impact. Streaming prevails as the method of choice.
Or does it? would you like to revisit the days of crackly ambiance and be kind rewind? or are you just relieved to have survived the days of grueling Blockbuster fees?
If you enjoyed seeing Eleven having waffles over some old tunes with Groot, posted again below, it was provided by Instagram’s Lotopauanka. For more of her work, find her account here!
Written by: Michael Gonzalez
It still pains me to think of my walkman being stolen when I was in college. After that I moved on to cd’s, but there I do have a warm space in my heart for cassettes. VHS? Not so much.
Hi Marc! I remember sitting by the radio ready to hit the “record” button when my favorite song came on to make my mixtapes. Things are much easier now though! I still have most of the 90’s Disney movies on VHS.