Michael Cassette is definitely the most mysterious character in the Anjuna catalog. For starters, I'm not even sure how to refer to him/them, since by some accounts, Michael Cassette is a front for the Finnish duo (possibly trio?) Komytea. By other accounts, Michael Cassette is only one person (Erkka). For the sake of my sanity, I'll refer to Michael Cassette as if he was a real person. He's incredibly private, rarely tours, and honestly there isn't much information available about him.

With a name like that, it should be no surprise that his brand of progressive house is dripping with 80s vibes, synthesizers, and a beautiful neon glow. He broke onto the scene in 2010 with his first (and only) album Temporarity, which has achieved cult status, especially among Anjuna fans. He released a collection of "lost tapes" at the end of last year and has produced some other remixes over the years (including Oceanlab, deadmau5, and The Midnight), but for the most part, his catalog is defined by that one album.

Needless to say, when I saw that Michael Cassette was on the lineup last year, it became my top priority to get everyone in our extended friend group to go to that show and, oh boy, it was one of the most memorable experiences I've had at Explorations. The crowd was made up of two types of people: those who knew exactly what was about to happen (and were amped for it) and those who had no idea what was about to happen (and were blown away by it). Within 15 minutes, even the Michael Cassette "virgins" were screaming that we had to push to the front of the crowd. And the fact that he's Finnish was an extra bonus for the Finnish friends in our group, making the whole thing even more special.

All told, it was such a fun and incredibly unique experience. And a bit surreal too. He looked and acted like Coach Beard from Ted Lasso: serious and stoic the whole time, barely cracking a smile or acknowledging the crowd, cranking out this set like a synthwave psychopath. And every minute of it was pure joy.

1. Michael Cassette - ID

Original post: https://soundcloud.com/anjunadeep/michael-cassette-at-the-cove-anjunadeep-explorations-2023