Dais Records, the LA/NYC based label representing sonically expressive, and visually dynamic artists, has teamed up with analog innovators and product-design studio, Retrospekt. The legacy and lineage of Dais dovetails naturally with the mission statement of Retrospekt: “Reviving retro tech for a new generation.” The fruit of their first collaboration is a chic, white, rose-adorned, limited-edition release of Retrospekt’s CP-81 portable cassette player containing an exclusive 19-track compilation cassette of unreleased material from the label’s roster, titled ‘DAIS223’.
Dais co-founders Gibby Miller and Ryan Martin both came of age in the cassette era and remain champions of “the sacred nature of the analog object.” The medium’s customizable, affordable, and portable nature empowered generations of subcultures to document and disseminate their creations. Although the compact disc dominated much of the 1990s, tapes never went away. Martin is adamant about the format’s enduring potency: “Cassettes aren’t nostalgic, they’re relevant. Making a mix tape for a friend or love interest is a talismanic offering. It’s a reaching out, a sharing of discovery.” For Miller, too, cassette culture was seismic; he continues to see singular strengths in the limitations of older technologies: “Having a device solely dedicated to music may seem unique to a person today, but there’s also a purity in it. The ritual of hitting play. Feeling the hum of the machine. Flipping at the end of the side. Tapes changed everything for me.”
Retrospekt co-founders Adam and Kori Fuerst share a similar ethos. Although they initially started the company refurbishing vintage cameras, it has since expanded into tape players, radios, headphones, typewriters, Game Boys and beyond. Their passion for physicality, aesthetics and direct connection mirrors that of Miller and Martin: “These vintage machines aren’t obsolete – they still provide pleasure and enjoyment,” says Adam. “More and more people today realize this, and they want to have an organic, intentional experience without their metadata being tracked by some corporation.”
Dais in-house creative designer Nathaniel Young reimagined the CP-81’s standard presentation for both player and packaging. The white Dais edition of the cassette player comes packaged in a white box with black text, plus a set of white Dais headphones and the ‘DAIS223’ compilation tape. The device features all of the core cassette player functions, Play, Fast-Forward, Rewind, Record and is packaged with adjustable Dais headphones. The Dais x Retrospekt tape player is limited to 1000 units – tape is not sold separately and is in stores today, just in time for the holidays.
Features Include:
Play, fast-forward, rewind, record
Microphone jack
Headphones jack
Type-C USB power supply
Battery operable
Contents Include:
Portable cassette player
DAIS223 Cassette Tape
2x AA batteries
Dais adjustable headphones
User guide
The ‘DAIS223’ compilation includes unheard tracks from High Vis, High-Functioning Flesh, RIKI, Private World, Helm, Tor Lundvall, CoH, AURAGRAPH, ADULT., Drew McDowall, SRSQ, Cold Gawd, remixes from SPICE and Cold Showers plus demos from Body of Light, Choir Boy, VR Sex and Xeno & Oaklander. See below for a full track listing.
D223 Tape + Digital Compilation track list
SIDE A:
High Vis – Forgot To Grow
High-Functioning Flesh – Down To Sense
Riki – SAS (For Those Who Speak And Spake)
Private World – Through The Distance
Body of Light – Out of Season (Demo Instrumental)
Helm – Evil Ceramics
Choir Boy – Happy to Be Bad With You (Demo)
Tor Lundvall – Black Fly Day
CoH – Vow a Vow
SPICE – I Don’t Want To Die In NY (Remix)
SIDE B:
VR SEX – Runway Runaway (Demo)
Xeno & Oaklander – Hoplite (Demo)
Tempers – Camino Del Sol (Antena Cover)
Cold Showers – Sliver (Inner City Remix)
AURAGRAPH – No Control
ADULT. – Few Warnings Are Important (2003)
Drew McDowall – Animals Will Sing
SRSQ – Phantasmata
Cold Gawd – Gin (At The Mountain)
C'mon why don't you leave a comment here