Contributed by
Melanie Findlay
Music Fan, Art Conservator/Restorer

Selection by Guy

Creator: Guy Blackman
Date: About June 1990

So this tape transcended magnetic media and turned into a cd - The charm of digital? Ok, I'm not buying it either, but what to do when the original is mouldering in a tropical Queensland garage? Existential digital crisis vs. permanence? You decide.

I first met Guy on the school bus and this is the first mix tape that he made for me when I was about 15 (1990). It's important because it had a pretty big impact on my music taste at the time. Borrowing his records and listening to his mix tapes was the start of realising that there were local and independent options past the radio and what I was watching on MTV and Rage.

As I listen to this tape again now I guess there's a nostalgia because of the way that these songs locate me in relation to my former 15 year old self. I know I'll still be listening to some of these band in the Retirement home: the Dunedin bands, Galaxie 500, Syd Barrett, the Pastels etc. - kind of funny to think I'll be remembering the Dante's inferno of spilt beer, sticky carpet and loud music when its all I can do to stop the food from dribbling down my chin.

This tape led to a lot of the music that I listen to now, mostly because it started to give me an ear for hearing past the limitations of musical styles to find out what else was going on in songs. Guy went on to do radio shows, be in bands, organise gigs, run the Chapter Music label etc. I'm still really grateful that he was so interested in sharing the music he loved with other people.

I hearby bequeath my subsequent collection of Television Personalities tapes to my eternally ungrateful brother. At the time, I think we agreed on liking just about every other band on this tape.