The cassette culture refers to the practices associated with amateur production and distribution of music and sound art on compact cassette that emerged in the mid-1970s. The cassette was used by fine artists and poets for the independent distribution of new work. This article focuses on the independent music scene associated with the cassette that burgeoned internationally in the second half of the 1970s.
24-7 Spyz are an American rock band from the South Bronx, New York, formed in 1986, originally consisting of Jimi Hazel (guitars), Rick Skatore (bass), Kindu Phibes (drums), and P. Fluid (vocals). The band plays hard rock, heavy metal, funk metal and rap metal songs which incorporate elements of jazz, R&B, soul, reggae and hardcore punk. The fact that they are African Americans playing variations of heavy metal led critics to compare them to bands such as Living Colour and Bad Brains. After several lineup changes, the band broke up in 1998, but reformed in 2003 before releasing their first new album of original material in over a decade in 2006. As of 2021, the lineup of the band includes Hazel, Skatore, and drummer Tobias Ralph.
Alec Empire is a German experimental electronic musician who is best known as a founding member of the band Atari Teenage Riot, as well as a solo artist, producer and DJ. He has released many albums, EPs and singles, some under aliases, and remixed over seventy tracks for various artists including Björk. He was also the driving force behind the creation of the digital hardcore genre, and founded the record labels Digital Hardcore Recordings and Eat Your Heart Out Records.
Creation Records Ltd. was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Alan McGee, Dick Green, and Joe Foster. Its name came from the 1960s band The Creation, whom McGee greatly admired. The label ceased operations in 1999, although it was revived at one point in 2011 for the release of the compilation album Upside Down.
Anathema were an English rock band from Liverpool. The group was formed in 1990 by Vincent and Daniel Cavanagh, bassist Jamie Cavanagh, drummer/keyboardist John Douglas, and vocalist Darren White.
Fueled by Ramen LLC is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by 300 Elektra Entertainment. The label, founded in Gainesville, Florida, in 1996, is now based in New York City.
Deram Records was a subsidiary record label of Decca Records established in the United Kingdom in 1966. At the time, U.K. Decca was a different company from the Decca label in the United States, which was owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings were distributed in the U.S. through UK Decca's American branch known as London Records. Deram was active until 1979, then continued as a reissue label.
Virgin Black is an Australian symphonic gothic and doom metal band. The band was signed to The End Records and Germany's Massacre Records, through which it released four albums and one EP. A fifth album, originally planned for release in 2006, was released independently in 2018. As of 2021, they are signed to Australian record label, Dark Escapes Music. Formed in 1995 in Adelaide, they have achieved international acclaim during their career, receiving praise from such magazines as Orkus, Metal Hammer, Legacy and The Village Voice.
Trojan Records is a British record label founded by Jamaican Duke Reid in 1968. It specialises in ska, rocksteady, reggae and dub music. The label currently operates under the Sanctuary Records Group. The name Trojan comes from the Croydon-built Trojan truck that was used as Duke Reid's sound system in Jamaica. The truck had "Duke Reid - The Trojan King of Sounds" painted on the sides, and the music played by Reid became known as the Trojan Sound.
Riot V, formerly known as Riot, is an American heavy metal band formed in New York City in 1975 by guitarist Mark Reale. Achieving peak success and popularity during the early 1980s, the band has continued a long-running successful career. Riot's sound initially started out as straightforward heavy metal, but since their 1988 release Thundersteel, their musical style has shifted a little towards power metal.
Infernum is a Polish black metal band founded in 1992 in Wrocław by Grzegorz Jurgielewicz and Tom Balrog playing also in Oppressor and, at present, in Baphomet's Throne. Their debut, Taur-Nu-Fuin, was one of the earliest albums of National Socialist black metal.
Girlschool are a British rock band that formed in the new wave of British heavy metal scene in 1978. Frequently associated with contemporaries Motörhead, they are the longest-running all-female rock band, still active after more than 40 years. Formed from a school band called Painted Lady, Girlschool enjoyed strong media exposure and commercial success in the UK in the early 1980s with three albums of "punk-tinged metal" and a few singles, but lost their momentum in the following years.
Tristwood are an Industrial black metal band from Innsbruck, Tyrol in Austria. The band was founded in 1996 by Deimon and Neru who were the first two for forming under the name December. Their early MCD demo, Torment that was recorded in January 1997 managed to get great sales under their original genre of black metal however after recording they disbanded for several years until 2001 when Neru and Jegger decided to reform the band under the name Tristwood. Deimon came back to the band and together in 2003 they began recording the MCD entitled Fragments Of The Mechanical Unbecoming. The MCD contained far more technical advancements using additional programming and synthesizers causing the band's output to be categorised under the Industrial side of music.
Chain Collector is a heavy metal band from Norway that formed in 2003. Some of the members originated from other bands such as Green Carnation, Carpathian Forest, Trail of Tears, Dismal Euphony and In the Woods. In 2004, the Forthcoming Addiction demo, containing four songs, was recorded at DUB studio. The band signed a two album record deal with Sound Riot Records in September 2004, but due to the touring of some members with their other bands at the beginning the year, the production of The Masquerade was not finished until March 2005. In July 2005 the German label Massacre Records became interested in the band, and Sound Riot Records licensed the Chain Collector album to them. Massacre Records released The Masquerade in Europe, Canada, and Australia in November 2005, while Sound Riot Records released their edition in December 2005. The band parted ways with Sound Riot and released the second album, Unrestrained in 2007.
Svartsyn is a black metal band from Sweden formed in 1991 by multi instrumentalist, singer and lyricist Ornias.
Scarlet Records is an Italian independent record label based in Milan. It is most notable for featuring two side projects from Soilwork front-man Björn "Speed" Strid, as well as bands like Agent Steel, Royal Hunt, Skyclad, Eldritch, Hatesphere, Labyrinth, Dark Moor, DGM and more. Founded in 1998, Scarlet Records has released more than 400 albums. In 2011 Scarlet Records entered a distribution deal with Entertainment One Distribution for the North American distribution of its new releases and extensive physical and digital catalog. In 2021 become a limited company.
PIAS is a Belgian corporation that specialises in independent music recording, licensing, distribution, sales, and marketing. The company was founded in 1983 by Kenny Gates and Michel Lambot in Brussels, Belgium, and has over 250 employees, with 19 offices around the world. The group funds and partners with independent labels and artists.
Modestep is a dubstep and electronic rock band from London consisting of Josh Friend. Their debut album Evolution Theory was released on 11 February 2013, including its five singles: "Feel Good", "Sunlight", "To The Stars", "Show Me a Sign" and "Another Day". Modestep's second album, London Road, was released on 25 May 2015, marking the band's first album featuring Lundy and Deek as members. Between 2017 and March 2019, the band released four singles on record label Monstercat and three EPs on Disciple Records.
Bag of Bones is the ninth studio album by the Swedish rock band Europe. It was released on 18 April 2012 in Japan by Victor Entertainment and on April 25 in Sweden by Gain Music Entertainment. Bag of Bones is the first Europe album to chart in UK Top 100 Albums since Prisoners in Paradise in 1991 and also entered in UK Top 40 Rock Albums at number 3.
Solace of Requiem is an extreme metal band originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia. The group formed in 2001 with traditional death metal roots but began combining elements of technical death metal and black metal by the time of their 2010 release. Their 2014 album, Casting Ruin, is often referred to as part of the subgenre known as technical blackened death metal.
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