I was skeptical at first thinking it was solely a nostalgia-chasing trend, but I found out quickly that tape cassettes can sound really great! I think the lo-fi bias comes from our collective memory of car decks that were never cleaned and tapes that baked on Toyota Corolla dashboards for years. I was able to find a decent used Sony player, and then I realized the real benefits:
1. A lot of bands still release cassettes. It's cheaper for them to make, which means you don't have to drop $25 just to support a band you like
2. Used cassettes are SO CHEAP. It's a bit of a gamble on the quality, but when we're talking a couple dollars for a decent copy of your favorite album, it's a no-brainer. I have a local shop where I'm able to get them to check out whether they look ok or not.
3. It's the perfect middle ground between the frictionless aspect of streaming (where we fall into that "analysis paralysis"), and the slow, purposeful ritual of listening to a vinyl record from front to back. When you pop a tape in, you still get to bring it wherever, but you'll likely commit to it all the way through.
I can say so much more about the technical aspects, but maybe I'll save it unless people have questions.
