Turnabout Records

About

Turnabout Records emerged in the volatile landscape of 1980s underground America, a brief yet intense flicker in the experimental cassette cosmos. From 1984 to 1988, its tapes circulated like secret missives among those attuned to the liminal frequencies of noise and non-conformity. A label resolutely cassette-centric, Turnabout's existence was both cryptic and collaborative, its catalog a sculptural array of projects that thrived in the shadows. The roster was a networked web of sonic provocateurs, each release a node in a larger experimental matrix. Oltre La Morte, with tapes like "La Tête Contre Les Mures," sketched auditory landscapes where action and dream collided. Gundel's "Macht Musik" and Alimentaire S.A.'s eponymous release inflected the archive with explorations into the aural unknown. Turnabout's format preference was non-negotiable: the cassette was both medium and message, a tactile artifact that stood defiantly against mass-market gloss. The label's singular magazine issue, a solitary departure from its tape-centric ethos, hints at an interdisciplinary ambition yet remains a footnote in its process-driven narrative. Collaborative compilations like "Phase Pervers Kompilation" and "Second Strike" functioned as communal vessels, capturing the zeitgeist of a scene that eschewed easy categorization. Turnabout Records was not about mainstream success; it was about carving out a space where experimental sound could breathe and proliferate.