SFX Cassette Magazine

SFX Cassette Magazine was a short-lived British music magazine published in the very early 1980s (not to be confused with SFX magazine, a best-selling science fiction magazine published continuously since 1995). The distinguishing feature of SFX was its format: rather than traditional print media, the magazine was distributed in the form of a one-hour cassette. Magazines were sold as cassettes twist-tied to an 8-1/4" x 11-3/4" cardboard backing. The tag line of each issue: "The Only Music Magazine on C-60."

The format of each issue was similar to a radio show, featuring news and interviews with pop stars (mostly but not exclusively British) and others involved with the music industry; reviews of record releases given by other musicians and artists; previews of upcoming album releases; unsigned band demo recordings; occasional features on culture, fashion and football (soccer); and three or four commercials per issue.

The concept was conceived and developed by Hugh Salmon, then an account executive at Ogilvy & Mather, and edited by the NME journalist Max Bell. Notable interviews included Paul McCartney talking for the first time about his feelings of the murder of John Lennon, and SFX provided the first opportunity for Jools Holland, keyboard player of the band Squeeze, and Paula Yates talking about her relationship with Bob Geldof. They both went on to present the TV programme The Tube.

The publication was short lived, running from November 1981 through the summer of 1982. There were at least 19 known issues published. Taken as a whole, the SFX cassettes capture a narrow slice of music and pop culture as the punk/new wave movement was becoming more mainstream in content and performance.

Creators
Max Bell continued to write for publications including The Daily Californian, LA Weekly and Rolling Stone. Hugh Salmon went on to manage Ogilvy Thailand, and wrote his first play, Into Battle, which was premiered at Greenwich Theatre in London in October 2021.