#343 - SIDE TWO VERSUS SIDE ONE

#343 - SIDE TWO VERSUS SIDE ONE

From Metal Nerdery Podcast by Metal Nerdery Podcast

March 19, 2026 · 48 min · Episode 344

About this episode

The episode discusses the evolution of music consumption from vinyl and cassette to compact discs and the implications of this shift.

Ever since compact discs came out in the mid-1980s, the concept of SIDE 1 and SIDE 2 on an album sort of fell by the wayside. And with this new quantum leap in technology, the entire process of consuming music began to transform. By the late 80’s and early 90’s, CD sales began outselling vinyl records and cassette tapes, due in large part to convenience and technological innovation, as vinyl records (albums) were limited to a maximum of 20 minutes or so per side and cassette tapes maxed out at around 30 minutes per side. But prior to compact discs, consuming music was (at a minimum) a two-step process which involved inserting the cassette into your tape deck and pressing play or placing the album on your turntable and dropping the needle to begin your music enjoyment experience. With the advent of compact discs, the maximum recording space jumped to 74 minutes, far exceeding the limitations of records and tapes, and bonus: you didn’t have to flip anything over and repeat the process as all of the album tracks were included on one side (so to speak) as one complete, seamless work that systematically eliminated the technologically imposed intermission which required ejecting the…

Topics covered

  • music consumption
  • compact discs
  • vinyl records
  • cassette tapes
  • album sides
  • technological innovation

Keywords

  • music
  • compact discs
  • vinyl
  • cassette
  • album
  • technology
  • sides

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Reign In Blood

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