Aadam Jacobs has spent decades preserving live music. Since the 1980s, the Chicago resident has recorded concerts he attends, building a collection now exceeding 10,000 tapes. Many of these recordings capture performances that were never officially released or broadcast, making them rare documents of their time. Jacobs began the project as a personal hobby but later decided to digitize and upload the tapes to the Internet Archive, a nonprofit digital library.
The archive includes performances from artists who played in small venues across the U.S. and Canada. Some tapes feature well-known acts from the era, while others document underground or local bands that never gained mainstream recognition. Jacobs estimates that about 30% of the recordings are from venues in Chicago, including historic spots like the Metro and the Empty Bottle. The rest come from tours that passed through the Midwest, Northeast, and West Coast.
Digitizing the tapes posed challenges. Jacobs had to clean and repair aging analog tapes, some of which showed signs of mold or degradation. He partnered with volunteers at the Internet Archive to transfer the audio to digital formats, ensuring the recordings remain accessible for future listeners. The project has already attracted attention from researchers and musicians who use the tapes for study or inspiration.
The Internet Archive now hosts over 2,000 of Jacobs' recordings, with more being added weekly. Users can search by artist, venue, or year. The collection includes genres ranging from punk and indie rock to jazz and blues. Jacobs says the response has been overwhelming, with listeners sharing stories of discovering long-lost performances by their favorite artists.
Source: techcrunch.com