Los Angeles, New York City based label Dais Records have proudly announced their collaboration with analog innovators and product design studio Retrospekt. The collaboration only reflects their mutual respect and the common motto: “Reviving retro tech for a new generation.” This union brings its first product, a stylish, white, rose-adorned, limited-edition release of Retrospekt’s CP-81 portable cassette player. The package will also include an exclusive 19-track compilation cassette of unreleased material from the label’s roster, titled DAIS223.
Dais Records co-founder Martin is adamant about the format’s enduring potency. He says:
“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-founder Adam says:
“These vintage machines aren’t obsolete—They still provide pleasure and enjoyment. More and more people today realize this, and they want to have an organic, intentional experience without their metadata being tracked by some corporation.”
DAIS223 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)
According to the press release:
“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-branded headphones and the DAIS223 compilation tape. Presale for the one-time run of 1000 units begins October 25th, in stores December 15.”
Follow Dais Records on their official website.
Follow Retrospekt on their official website.
Photo courtesy of Dais Records and Retrospekt
