GAJOOB Review by Bryan Baker, :
There’s something undeniably comforting — and exciting — about holding a zine that’s this tuned into the pulse of cassette culture in 2025. Copy This Cassette #3 is the third installment of Blake’s cassette-focused zine, and it might be the most robust yet. Clocking in at 64 digest-sized, black-and-white, saddle-stapled pages, this issue is a throwback in format but forward-looking in spirit.
The interview with Jerry Kranitz is worth the zine alone. While Kranitz is well known in cassette circles for Aural Innovations and his role as a chronicler of space rock and underground DIY music, this interview dives into his personal history in a way that felt fresh — even for someone like me who’s followed his work for years. It’s an inspiring look at someone who has stuck with documenting outsider music through the decades.
The piece by Lama Toru on modern cassette playback options is another standout. It’s an exhaustive article that explores what’s available in terms of decks, walkmen, and portable players today — whether you’re looking to preserve a precious tape collection or dive in for the first time. It’s refreshingly practical, and maybe the most current state-of-the-format breakdown I’ve seen in print in recent memory.
Of course, the real meat of Copy This Cassette! is in its “snapshot reviews” — concise, passionate, and plentiful write-ups of new cassette releases from across the independent music spectrum. These are not long-winded dissections; they’re fast, punchy capsules meant to spark your interest and send you down a Bandcamp rabbit hole. There’s a certain joy in seeing so many tapes getting attention in one place. It reminds you that cassette culture is not a niche—it’s a living, breathing scene with momentum.
Blake’s motivation is clear: to fill the gap left by inactive blogs like Cassette Gods and to supplement long-running projects like Tabs Out with something tactile. In that mission, Copy This Cassette succeeds with gusto. It’s a zine by and for cassette heads — and whether you’re a lifelong tape freak or a new convert, you’ll find something to love here.
Media: Zine.
Bandcamp URL: https://copythis.bandcamp.com/merch/copy-this-cassette-3-zine