Cassette Store Day 2017: Interview with Bucket of The Toasters

For the third straight year in a row, Jump Up Records is participating in Cassette Store Day--which is this coming Saturday, October 14, 2017. Jump Up is issuing twelve cassettes (!) from acts like The Toasters, The Slackers, Mephiskapheles, Green Room Rockers, Roger Rivas, Danny Rebel, CeANNE (of Mighty Fishers and Pannonia Ska Orchestra), Flying Vipers, The Drastics, as well as a Jump Up compilation titled Pressure Hop (a detailed list of Jump Up CSD releases can be found at the bottom of this post).

In anticipation of Cassette Store Day 2017, Bucket of The Toasters was kind enough to answer a few cassette-related questions for us from San Antonio, Texas, where he was in the midst of getting a new diesel engine installed in one of his vehicles and keeping a sharp eye on some mechanics who were attempting to scam him by sneaking in some old parts amongst the new...

The Duff Guide to Ska: Back in the 80s and early 90s, cassettes were standard issue for all releases and I remember Moon selling respectable numbers of them--what do think about the resurgence of this format and why do you think it is happening now?

Bucket: "When we debuted the label, the standard release format was 12" vinyl and cassette--starting with the now legendary NY Beat release. The last Moon release to have a cassette format was Dub 56. After that time, distributors wouldn't take them. You may recall that we started that collectors' series of see-through 7" vinyl singles in order to have a different format than just straight CD."

DGTS: Jump Up has released several Toasters releases on cassette--"Dub 56," "2 Tone Army," "Skaboom"--will the rest of the back catalogue be issued on tape eventually (like "NY Fever," "Thrill Me Up," and "One More Bullet")?

Bucket: "That's the plan. I would ideally like to have all releases in all formats. But that's quite an epic task at the moment, given the poor turn around times for vinyl especially. We are increasingly turning our eyes to Eastern Europe in search of vinyl production capacity. For example, we are doing some releases with a Polish label. Expect One More Bullet vinyl from them, a release of Thrill Me Up on digipak, and more.

DGTS: Do Toasters cassettes sell well at the merch table and if so, who's buying them--old timers or the kids?

Bucket: Mostly old timers who drive old trucks! Some kids pick them up. Frankly, they have sold much better than I thought they would. Chuck was pressing me to take them and he has proven to be correct (once again, he he!).

DGTS: Do you still have a working tape deck (or Walkman?!) somewhere?

Bucket: "Actually, I don't. Having moved to Spain and back over the last 12 years, most of my old tech got sold/disposed of as, of course, no US gear works on that voltage grade there. I was thinking of heading over to Goodwill and picking up an old boombox. They have loads there..."

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Jump Up Records 2017 Cassette Store Day Releases:

The Slackers: “Wasted Days” (Limited to 150 copies; includes bonus tracks, never before on cassette.)
The Slackers: “Red Light” (Limited to 150 copies; first time on cassette, includes three rare bonus tracks.)
Mephiskapheles: “God Bless Satan” (Limited to 150 copies; first time on cassette, blood red shell).
The Toasters:  “2 Tone Army” (Limited to 150 copies; on black/white split shell.)
The Toasters “Dub 56” (Limited to 150 copies; back on cassette.)
Various Artists: “Pressure Hop” (Limited to 200 copies.)
Green Room Rockers: “Sweat Steady” (Limited to 100 copies; on clear green shell.)
Roger Rivas: “Last Goodbye"/"Autumn Breeze” (Limited to 100 copies.)
Danny Rebel: “Boombox Sessions Volume 2” (Limited to 100 copies.)
CeANNE: “Ukesteady” (Limited to 100 copies.)
Flying Vipers: “The Shadow Tape” (Limited to 50 copies.)
The Drastics: “MJ A Rocker” (Limited to 75 copies.)

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2016 Cassette Store Day @ Jump Up Records with Releases from The Toasters, King Stitt, Reggae Workers of the World, Danny Rebel, Rude Guest, Indonesian Ska, and an Incredible CSD Event in Chicago!

Saturday, October 8, 2016 is Cassette Store Day (see a list of participating stores here) and Jump Up Records is releasing a slew of really interesting titles to help celebrate the recent resurgence of this format (and I'll be damned if I haven't started collecting cassettes again--just last week I picked up used copies of The Scofflaws debut on Moon, as well as Derrick Morgan's Tougher Than Tough and The Deltones' Oddball Boy, both of which were licensed to ROIR by Unicorn Records; and I've also fed my cassette collecting beast by mail ordering some great new cassettes from Jump Up, such as The Crombies Dance Crazee, The Specialized Dance Crazy comp, The Brooklyn Attractors' The Move, NST and The Soul Sauce's Heaven is Here/Song for Rico, and The Specials Live at the Lyceum).

Here's what Jump Up is releasing on CSD 2016:

The Toasters Skaboom: This is first time this classic and hugely influential American ska album has been re-issued on cassette (with cool, reworked artwork) since Skaloid/Moving Target/Celluloid originally released it in 1987.

King Stitt Cool and Copasetic Selector Set: Recorded live in 2002 at the Legend of Ska concerts in Toronto, Canada, this set features Stitt chatting over foundational ska riddims with Ska Nick The Trojan at the controls.

Reggae Workers of the World Reggae Workers of the World: For your listening pleasure, Jesse Wagner of The Aggrolites, Vic Ruggiero of The Slackers, and Nico Leonard of Moon Invaders and Caroloregians got together and recorded twelve new tunes of old school reggay at Pum Pum Hotel Studios in Belgium.

Danny Rebel Boombox Sessions: Re-released for CSD, this is rough and ready acoustic reggae (for fans of Chris Murray, Bob Marley, and Toots and Maytals) recorded live and direct to an old boombox by Canadian Danny Rebel.

Rude Guest Lost Chicago Ska 1982-1993: This Chi-town band kept 2 Tone ska alive in the USA in the 80s and this release compiles all 16 songs they recorded and issued on a series of limited-edition cassettes back in the day.

Various Artists Soundclash Volume 1: This is a collection of Indonesian ska imported from Jakarta that features three of that scene's top bands--D”Jenks, James Steady, and The Ska Banton--playing traditional jazz ska, skinhead reggae, and modern ska!

All of the aforementioned titles can be found at participating CSD retailers or pre-ordered from Jump Up. 

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Also, if you're in the Chicago area on Saturday, October 8, 2016, be sure to check out this really extraordinary Jump Up Cassette Store Day event at Logan Hardware Records from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm with acoustic performances from Vic Ruggiero and Jesse Wagner, and King Tony, a live cassette DJ set with Chuck Wren, a CHema Skandal poster exhibition and cassette painting(!), plus Ska Brewing tasting and Dark Matter coffee! 

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Jump Up Records' "Pressure Drip" Cassette Sampler

Over the past few years, I've been watching with some amusement as cassettes have been making a comeback, particularly in the indie rock scene (I'm also seeing loads more used cassettes for sale in second-hand record shops). Don't get me wrong, it's not out of audiophile snobbery or anything like that--more the recognition that everything in pop/music culture is cyclical. I was a teenager during the 1980s Walkman era and was grateful for a cheap, portable music format (and the ability to create my own mix tapes!) that allowed me to listen to Echo and the Bunnymen, The English Beat, The Clash, The Cars, The B-52s, and many other bands anytime and anywhere. Hell, I still have a fair number of New Wave and ska releases on cassette from the 80s and 90s that are stored under my bed!

And the cassette resurgence is now hitting the ska/reggae scene: I just reviewed my first cassette for The Duff Guide to Ska (see my review for the Flying Vipers' The Green Cassette here) and I'm very much looking forward to picking up Jump Up Records' upcoming cassette ska comp, Pressure Drip, which is being released, appropriately enough, on Cassette Store Day, October 17. 2015 (and will be available through Jump Up on that date).

This comp, released as a tie-in to promote Jump Up's and Dark Matter Coffee's "Pressure Drip" ska-themed coffee, boasts an incredible line-up of current Jump Up-related ska acts from all over the world (check out the track list on the cassette J-card to the right)! And marvel at CHema Skandal's always incredible artwork! At $7.00, this--obviously--is a great deal!

I still have my Fisher double-cassette deck from high school (!)--which is actually hooked up to my son's stereo--that will allow me to listen to this comp, but even if you don't have the gear to play Pressure Drip, it's still a highly-collectible ska release that you just may want in your collection...