Calypso Now
Encyclopedia
Calypso Now was part of the cassette culture
movement.
Calypso Now was founded in 1983 by swiss musician and concert promoter Hotcha alias Rudi Tüscher, located in Biel/Bienne. Until 1989 about 200 cassette releases were produced, mainly from Switzerland, Germany, UK, USA and Canada. After a long pause the label has been reactivated in the autumn of 2010, with reissues and new cassette releases.
Calypso Now followed a licensing politics and often copied the cassettes on demand from master tapes of foreign labels, thus keeping the investment low. There were also bigger productions, mainly compilations of swiss indie bands, targeted at record shops, with printed covers in the LP-sized 12" format, "This Is Guitar Town" with bands from Geneva or "Chart Attack", or a series of cassingles. Calypso Now also compiled tapes with swiss underground artists for release by other label; "Der Politische Katholizismus" (1985) came out in Japan, Germany and the USA simultaneously, "Sonique Suisse" was initiated and released in 1988 by Carl Howard (at - Audiofile Tapes) in the USA, and the "Starspot Compilation" was made in 1989 for Bi-Joopiter in the UK.
Cassette culture
Cassette culture, or the cassette underground , refers to the practices surrounding amateur production and distribution of recorded music that emerged in the late 1970s via home-made audio cassettes...
movement.
Calypso Now was founded in 1983 by swiss musician and concert promoter Hotcha alias Rudi Tüscher, located in Biel/Bienne. Until 1989 about 200 cassette releases were produced, mainly from Switzerland, Germany, UK, USA and Canada. After a long pause the label has been reactivated in the autumn of 2010, with reissues and new cassette releases.
Calypso Now followed a licensing politics and often copied the cassettes on demand from master tapes of foreign labels, thus keeping the investment low. There were also bigger productions, mainly compilations of swiss indie bands, targeted at record shops, with printed covers in the LP-sized 12" format, "This Is Guitar Town" with bands from Geneva or "Chart Attack", or a series of cassingles. Calypso Now also compiled tapes with swiss underground artists for release by other label; "Der Politische Katholizismus" (1985) came out in Japan, Germany and the USA simultaneously, "Sonique Suisse" was initiated and released in 1988 by Carl Howard (at - Audiofile Tapes) in the USA, and the "Starspot Compilation" was made in 1989 for Bi-Joopiter in the UK.