mp3: “Don’t Go Away Ahumpf Acgroomf” - Free Cake for Every Creature

How sweet is it when two of your favorite things are able to come together for a really great cause? Such is the case with Quiet, Constant Friends - a compilation of literary themed songs from Wake the Deaf in support of the global literacy charity Worldreader. The tape will hit shelves on 10/17 in celebration of Cassette Store Day, and ahead of that release we’re happy to bring you a feature on one of our favorite tracks. Cassette curator Jon Doyle was kind enough to provide his thoughts on the release, as was Katie from Free Cake For Every Creature. 

“I don’t want to sound like an old-fashioned teacher or dewy-eyed idealist, but I think books (and reading as a whole) are really important. Not only do they develop basic skills key for health and wellbeing, they also help us see how unimaginably different and amazingly similar the lives of others can be to our own. This allows us to 1) be more empathetic towards the things we would otherwise fail to understand, and 2) feel less alone; two things that would improve the state of any world. As Charles William Eliot (who I paraphrased for the title) said: “Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counsellors, and the most patient of teachers”.

When you realise there are 757,000,000 illiterate people in the world, that’s 757,000,000 people missing out on some pretty cool and helpful friends. So I thought, how better to try and make a tiny dent in this problem than to enlist the help of the indie/DIY/underground music scene I’ve discovered through Wake The Deaf, a scene built upon collective effort and borne out of a desire to connect with other people and feel less alone? So I sent some hopeful emails and look what happened, I found some pretty constant (but not always quiet) friends.” - Jon

“I wrote “Don’t Go Away Ahumpf Acroomf” about two years ago and it’s still one of my favorites… it’s about me working things out, my relationship, my fears, my identity as a book nerd, and in the end trying to stay positive by juxtaposing my concerns with a pop-y melody.  I’m happy to share it! “ - Katie