A couple weeks ago I stumbled across the coolest podcast called bitpunk.fm. Ok so your obvious question is “why is this the coolest podcast?” because the producer rips all the pods on analog and records to cassette tape. The episodes are weird and awesome.

Fast forward to this week, I’m searching Twitter for cassette decks, now I have a sudden urge to learn everything about recording to tape and I don’t even have a pod to record. Along my way searching the timeline, I found a hashtag #casettefuturism. Instant click.

I found an aesthetic category I didn’t even know was a thing. Cassette Futurism is a throwback to how people in the late ’70s and early ’80s thought the future would look. It’s all about chunky tech—think cassette tapes, big buttons, and early computers with mechanical switches. Instead of the sleek, minimalist designs we see today, it focuses on a future where everything is analog and physical, with gritty tech that’s still hands-on.

Examples in Pop Culture

1. Alien (1979) In Alien, the spaceship Nostromo is filled with bulky computers, flickering screens, and keyboards that look straight out of the ’70s. It’s a vision of the future grounded in old-school tech.
2. Blade Runner (1982) Blade Runner shows a future packed with advanced tech, but it’s all worn down and analog. You see mechanical gadgets and clunky machines everywhere, fitting that cassette futurism vibe.
3. The Matrix (1999) The Matrix mixes modern ideas with old-school tech—keyboards, chunky screens, and physical hacking gear all nod to that cassette futurism style.

Cassette futurism is the idea of a future where tech is gritty, hands-on, and a bit rough around the edges.

Long live analog!