by Rauf Fadzilla
Pix Credit: http://scottboms.com/2007/12/the-tips-of-my-ears/ |
Remember those wind-up sticky labelled mix tapes back when backstreet was
back and Warren G was regulating?
Those were the days of Atari
consoles and 8 track players, back when ingenuity and innovation was a part of
everything, way before the simple 'download to playlist' and 'click to burn'
tools of today's pampered generation Y'ers.
The mix tape embodied the
culture of DIY (do it yourself) and even today, contain so much more
personality than those soulless CDRs.
You could cry to them (on
rainy days), rewind them and forward them until the magnetic tape rolls tore
and began curling out of the little holes.
You could also lug them around
with you and listen to them on those old school Sony walkmans (remember
those?).
Pix Credit: http://diaridrsepet.blogspot.com/2012/01/peristiwa-yang-merubah-dunia-siri-3.html |
The mix tape was the preferred
choice for showing affection, for breaking up, for dissing the popular girl (or
guy) at school, for sharing, for remembering periods and times in your life.
These tapes were used to
express friendship, hatred and if you were entrepreneurially inclined you could
even make a business out of them by creating your own compilations to sell to
the other kids at school.
You would however, have to
keep your venture on the down low because schools and enterprising kids with
businesses generally don't mix (no pun intended).
Still, selling mix tapes sure
was a much more legal way of making moolah than beating up smaller kids and
taking their lunch money.
Creating the perfect mix tape
is a delicate art, tailor made with the recipient's taste's in mind and
including splices of the creator's personal qualities thrown in for good
measure.
It allowed you to speak with
someone else's voice/ music (or even your own), to another person and express
your inner most thoughts.
Mix tape culture began in the
80s and was a defining feature of the era all the way up to the early 90s.
Aspiring artists and rock
bands such as the Smashing Pumpkins broke into the scene by creating and
pushing mix tapes containing demo versions of their songs at gigs, concerts and
street corners.
These tapes featured custom
artwork and remain collector's items until today.
Wanna make your own mix tape?
Here's what you'll need:
Ingredients
1) Sticky tape labels: You can
get these at any corner shop or music store and they usually come in strips.
2) Pair of scissors: Just in
case you need to customize sticky tape label sizes.
3) Felt tip pen/ magic marker:
For labelling your mix tape.
4) Blank cassette tapes- These
come in a variety of sizes including full size, micro, and mini cassettes and
can be purchased at any music store. Some of the brands available include
Olympus, Maxell, and TDK tapes. The standard available lengths are 60 minutes,
90 minutes, and 120 minutes. There is a small square on the top of the tape
that is removed when a tape is non-recordable, so you want the square to be
intact.
Pix Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_Cassette |
5) Cassette tape case- These
usually come with the empty cassette tape and can be purchased at any music
store.
6) Compilation album
cassettes- The most popular ones back when I was a kid were 'NOW, that's what I
call music!' and the 'UK top 40' compilations.
7) Stereo with multiple tape
slots. These can be purchased at any electronic equipment store. Popular brands
include Sony and Panasonic.
Pix Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_Cassette |
Instructions
Step 1 - Write on the label
first before you tear it or pull it out. Call your mix tape anything you want.
Example: Slow jams, Gangsta rap tunes...etc. You can label the individual
tracks on your tape as well.
Pix Credit: http://www.refinedhype.com/hyped/entry/donwill-lauras-tape-mixtape/ |
Step 2 - Paste the label onto
the top most part of the cassette tape housing.
Step 3 - This step may take a
little more equipment and effort. Using the dual slot stereo, insert the two
tapes, find the track on the store bought compilation album (the one to record
from), slot the blank cassette (the one to record to) into the other bay, hit
the play and record buttons at the same time. Once the track is finished
playing, you should have a complete replica on your blank tape. Don't worry
though, if anything goes wrong you can always re-record/ dub over the tape by
repeating the process as many times as you have to.
Step 4 - Jazz up your creations
with a cool design. If you've got a simple image editing software installed on
your computer like Photoshop (hyperlink), you could easily design and print
some cool graphics for your mix tape. Alternatively, you can spend abit more
money and order a professional design from websites such as mixtapedesignz.com.
After printing, carefully fold
up your new cover art and slip it into the cover nicely.
Voila! Your mix tape compilation is now ready to be enjoyed. Take good care of it though. Don't leave it exposed to the elements (rain or heat) and be sure to put it back in its case once your done listening.
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