THE CASSETTES [26:03:08] ‘NEATH THE PALE MOON’ If you already guessed from their name that The Cassettes were a retro-minded punk group, then touché to you. But what I bet you didn't know, is that their sound actually originates from the 80's (the era of vinyl). I caught up with front-man Shelby Cinca who recalled the bright, boisterous flavor of history's musical legends, some of which have contributed to their inspiration. “I think we look to a lot of different places and artists for inspiration. In some ways I would say we resemble elements of The Beatles, or possibly even Tom Wade. We're kind of all over the map really”. Despite their influences, these boys ooze originality. The genius of The Cassettes can be heard even throughout it’s early origins, in the four-track side project of Shelby Cinca, leader of the chaotic DC hardcore band Frodus. When asked about choosing their band name, Shelby made it sound as easy as pie. “It's just a name. I always wanted to a find a name that's simple and sounds good. There was no one else called The Cassettes at the time, so it was perfect. I thought, you know, it's simple, like 'The Beatles'. So that was it. I trademarked it and then just stuck with it” The four-piece punk band has come a long way since their newest addition, Arthur Harrison, joined The Cassettes in 2003. Mind you, their sound wouldn't be quite as unique without the addition of drums and bicycle horns from Saadwat Awan and the rockin' sounds of the squeezebox and mouth-harp from Stephen J. Perron Guidry. If their latest album is anything to go by, I'd put my money on their concert being well worth my dollar. And by the sounds of it, The Cassettes have already proven themselves to be great rockers. “We've had a lot of really great gigs. I'd say there are two that are quite notable. One is where we totally rocked out with the 'steam-punk' aesthetic. We said, 'Okay let's really take these people on a journey'. We were opening for British Sea Power and it was a show where we hit this moment that made everyone in the audience so attentive. When we finished playing our set, we received such a great response. People started leaving even before British Sea Power went on stage. We had a bigger crowd than them! We were like, wow!” To top off their performance chops, The Cassettes have even managed to make a splash in the punk-rock pools of Europe. “A funny moment was when we played at a festival in Slovenia, (back when we were more of a three-piece band). There were two main stages with metal bands headlining them. Strangely enough, people came to our stage when we had just finished our set and were like 'You have to keep playing! Everyone's coming to your stage!' It was completely absurd. I mean, we were in Slovenia!” After making their mark in Europe, their latest album ‘Neath the Pale Moon’ is the hard proof that The Cassettes have undeniably created their own genre of music. “We generally like to say that we're 'steam-punk'. We often try to simplify it though, comparing it to The Beatles ‘The White Album’. But we rock a little harder at times”. However, Shelby reveals that his musical background growing-up might also have something to do with their success. “My mum was always a big fan of The Beatles and my dad was a jazz musician in the 60s. When we lived here in the US, dad just played at home. He didn't play shows or professionally so just having music such as Herbie Hancock's records around the house really inspired me. My parents were always just really supportive on top of that, especially with me not finishing college and playing in a punk band for six years instead”. Steph Rea. The Cassettes ‘Neath The Pale Moon’ is available through Inertia. back to top ^

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