A new EP and an instrumental/alternate version of The Fragile.
The EP seems interesting as you can get it with a “physical component” which remains unexplained. Based on the picture, it could be a cassette. I ordered that one.
I’d love to hear the alternate version of The Fragile, but at a ludicrous $80 I’ll just wait for some helpful pirate from Russia or someplace to post it online for me.
can someone explain the cassette resurrection to me? what’s the appeal of going back to THAT format?
It’s a hipster thing. To have the most obscure format possible because it’s just that much more exclusive that way.
That said, the “physical component” in this release may not be a cassette. The picture is just cassette-shaped. It could be a book or a box or a flash drive or any number of rectangular objects.
It is indeed a thing now. I wandered into urban outfitters the other day and they had a whole display of fuckin tapes. I just shook my head and left all the while berating myself for going in there in the first place.
I ordered the EP & the Fragile limited LP.
Cassettes have invaded Amoeba. Especially the metal section.
can someone explain the cassette resurrection to me? what’s the appeal of going back to THAT format?
Some people confuse “old” or “uncommon” with “better”. There will probably be an 8-track resurgence in the next decade.
What are you guys talking about? Cassettes’ awful sound quality and fragility were just loads and loads of fun.
/forever bitter about a tape deck eating The Little Mermaid soundtrack 26 years ago
/forever bitter about a tape deck eating The Little Mermaid soundtrack 26 years ago
Hahahahahaha!
I liked the little XLR high-pitched soundwave that would play at the start of my CODE and Cleanse, Fold cassettes (among others), like I was about to hear superior audio or clearer sound…
In high school, i would buy those Maxell TDK-90 10-packs that came in the soft vinyl zipper cases. I must have had 20 of those cases at one point. I loved making my own mixtapes and carefully labelling the tapes with nice text and graphics, using colored pens.
I gave all my good compilations away to girlfriends, ugh. I remember breaking up with my high school girlfriend, and her returning a bunch of my crap. She gave back a really good industrial mix tape of mine (basically everything ‘new’ on Wax Trax/PIAS/Nettwerk at the time), and I was immediately over the relationship, and just happy to have that tape back! 
1002
My awesome partner bought me The Fragile: Deviations 1 as a late Christmas present. Super stoked about that, The Fragile is my favorite NIN album, so I’m looking forward to the unreleased tracks.
I’ll be picking up the new one so somewhere along the line.
I like the physicality of vinyl, with the large artwork and all, but I can’t argue that it’s superior to FLAC or CDs. It’s a better physical product and more ideal for collectors and enthusiasts, but that’s about it.
Cassettes have invaded Amoeba. Especially the metal section.
Amobea has always had tapes tucked away in a corner… are there more now?
Yeah, the always had a rack of old tapes on that one wall.
New tapes are coming in now. In the aisles with the CDs.
Cassettes are coming back, just not in a big way like vinyl.
Unless I’m overlooking something, they really don’t have much to offer. The artwork is way smaller and vinyl has a better analogue sound, at least in my opinion.
Maybe there’s a ton of old cars on the second hand market with cassette players.
Yeah, the always had a rack of old tapes on that one wall.
New tapes are coming in now. In the aisles with the CDs.
well, at least Amoeba has an excuse since theyre a music store but i hope they don’t start pushing cool shit out to make room for these stupid tapes.
Listening to the new EP now. Very, very good. As always, it sounds like Trent is successfully evolving in dribs and drabs. Some of the music is much harsher than anything he’s done since “Broken”; the middle track, “She’s Gone Away,” is a slog on par with early Swans.
P.S. Anyone notice a lot more theatrics with Trent’s vocals on this release? He’s referred to the EP as a “story”… maybe it has something to do with that.
really like track 4 - the idea of you
It is indeed a thing now. I wandered into urban outfitters the other day and they had a whole display of fuckin tapes. I just shook my head and left all the while berating myself for going in there in the first place.
HAHA!!! But yea Cassettes oddly enough are making a comeback. First noticed it when my bro came home with a bag full of fucking cassettes thought it was the goofiest fucking thing and laughed. Soon enough I saw everyone following suit.
That format to me always sounded like shit. Flat and hissy. Outdone by vinyl and cd in every way. I wouldn’t mind collecting cassettes for the artwork alone, but i prob wont be playing them.
Listening to The Fragile Deviations 1 Hi Res…[tongue]
Cassettes died out because they were terrible in every way.
Anyone supporting the return of this format is the worst.
Sometimes things die out for a reason and they should never come back . . . . slavery, the Holocaust, Polio . . . any of these would be more welcome and beneficial to society than cassette tapes.