Conventional Tapes

About

Conventional Tapes, active from 1979 to 1984, was a crucible of experimentation, where sound became sculpture and the cassette was its pedestal. In the liminal spaces of the UK's burgeoning DIY scene, this label carved out a niche for lo-fi cassette aesthetics and interdisciplinary collaboration. With 19 cassette releases, it wasn't just about the music but the act of recording itself — a process-driven exploration of what sound could become when unfettered by expectation. The label's catalog reads like a fractal map of the era's experimental fervor. "The Long And Winding Song Album" (1984) stands as a hallmark, a compilation that captures the zeitgeist in its magnetic coils. Each tape, from New 7th Music's "Starting With Silence" to The Cardiacs' "Etc," speaks its own dialect of the unconventional. The Door and The Window's playful "plays Squeakybop Jugband" (1983) and the homage in "A Tribute to Jo Change" (1982) highlight the label's commitment to both innovation and community — a nod to the past while forging new paths. Conventional Tapes embraced a sculptural approach to sound, where the format was as crucial as the content. Each cassette wasn't merely a distribution vehicle but a tactile object, an artifact of its time. The label's choice to also dabble in magazines and a singular photo release underscores its interdisciplinary bent, weaving a narrative that extended beyond auditory experience into visual and textual realms.