Streaming made playlists disposable. The Cassette Club in Jalan Besar is betting that people miss the opposite feeling — a single, physical, hand-made collection of songs you can hold, label and gift. It bills itself as Singapore's first interactive cassette recording studio, and it runs a guided workshop where you build a playable mixtape from scratch.
The session runs about two to two and a half hours, and no experience with old-school recording gear is required. You start by choosing a cassette shell from six colours, then pick a label sticker and a J-card sleeve. Next comes the tracklist: you plan which songs go on each side and in what order, the way people did it decades ago. When it's time to record, you plug your phone straight into the studio's equipment and play your tracks through it. There's room for voice notes too, recorded at the start or end of the tape — a small touch that turns it into a proper keepsake. Once you've played it back to check everything sounds right, you decorate the finished cassette with stickers and embellishments. Facilitators guide the whole thing step by step.
Pricing is straightforward: $89 per person for the workshop, which covers the tape, decoration materials and a free phone stand so you can film the process. Couples can book together for $178, which adds a cassette player and earphones to take home. If you want the gift to look the part, an extra $30 buys exclusive packaging with a personalised card, instruction card, portable player and earphones. Workshops come with a 30-minute grace period, so you're not penalised if life runs late.
Can't make it in person? The studio also curates cassettes to order through its website at $99, delivered in full gift packaging. Both local and international shipping are available, or you can collect for free if you're in Singapore.
For travellers, this is a genuinely different afternoon in a neighbourhood most visitors skip. Jalan Besar is an 11-minute walk from Farrer Park MRT and is one of those old-school Singapore districts full of shophouses, hawker food and heritage sport sites — ideal for pairing a craft workshop with a wander. And unlike a souvenir keychain, a mixtape you recorded yourself is the rare gift that actually travels home with meaning. Whether you remember rewinding tapes with a pencil or have never touched one, the format is simple enough that anyone can walk out with something playable.
