Return of the walkman

Much like every other twitchy, tech obsessed, nostalgia chaser, I’m always looking for my next fix - or perhaps flight of fancy. I'm never interested in following the latest trends, but I often find my self trying to revisit the past, to a time where life was slow and so simple. Whether it’s playing an old game, toying around with an computer or a piece of tech like a Walkman, this hit of nostalgia brings me so much joy, at least for a short while.

I was feeling a sort of digital fatigue and really needed a way to listen to music that didn’t involve my phone. I have some records, but I needed the portability. I have an iPod, which I frequently use, but I still find myself just skipping through tracks or not putting on a full album.

About 2 years ago, I decided to pick up a walkman, the same walkman I had when I was a kid. Inevitably, it didn’t work, which was almost fortunate, as I love tinkering with electronics, so cracking it open, replacing the belts and giving it a good clean was nearly as satisfying as the next part.

I grabbed a few cassettes on eBay of bands I really love, and I instantly felt connected to the music. We all know that a cassette isn’t exactly the highest quality audio, but I was very surprised at just how good it can sound and there’s a warmth that isn’t present in other mediums.

I’ve found that putting a cassette in my walkman, popping the headphones on my ears feels very intentional and for the first time in years, I can just listen to an album from start to finish, without skipping through tracks and it feels right.

I felt myself actively listening to music again, not just as something passive, in the background or filling silence. I was hearing parts of the music that I hadn’t really noticed before.

I’m still listening to cassettes - not with the same regularity as I was, but it’s something that I keep going back to, which surprised me. Now I have a pretty good library of cassettes of some of my all time favourite albums - and at the very least, it’s comforting to know that they’ll always be there for me.