haro/no/koi/proudfather: Tellus Cassette Magazine: 1983-1993

Cassettes, in their own way, have always been a novelty. It celebrated it's first birthday at the Berlin Internationale Funkausstellung of 1963. I don't think they ever got the respect cd's did

(at least cassettes begin to sound cool before they break)

(They can be used to record video as well as audio, fun fact)

In 1983, a group of artists and musicians from the Lower East Side began distributing a magazine showcasing the music going on around them. Outside of the confines of "No-Wave", the magazine showcased artist from all over the globe, with a different musical theme for each issue, ranging from compositions for new school theatre and dance to pieces created by visual artists (few with classical training).

The magazine, however, was only on cassette. Their was no printed counterpart.

Tellus was not the first Casette only publication. Computer hobbyists had released magazines on cassette as early as 1974. These were memory recordings that the computer would recognize as binary, and format into a readable source. Tellus, however, was all about the audio.

I find it extremely important to note that they were also extremely supportive of both female and gay composers and non-musicians during a time where it wasn't uncommon to hear "open minded" hardcore songs rallying against homosexuality and glorifying the benefits of "brotherhood" and violence towards women.

While tellus is long gone, the above atrocities are still happening in all forms of music