no idea .. seems to be part of the rules of the outrun genre.
i had never heard of outrun until this thread, and from a quick dig around, it appears to be very specific subgenre with narrow parameters both in sound and vision.
― mark e, Tuesday, 28 February 2017 15:25 (seven years ago) link
ahh .. as per the reddit link by calstars upthread !
missed that earlier.
― mark e, Tuesday, 28 February 2017 15:26 (seven years ago) link
and : https://www.reddit.com/r/outrun/comments/33r5mi/what_is_outrun/
― mark e, Tuesday, 28 February 2017 15:27 (seven years ago) link
sure but it makes it impossible to take any of it seriously
― a self-reinforcing downward spiral of male-centric indie (katherine), Tuesday, 28 February 2017 17:08 (seven years ago) link
sorry for the irrelevant post upthread -- I thought this thread was a catch-all for old-school synth revivalism, but it looks like you're after a specific aesthetic. this outrun stuff wasn't on my radar until now, so thanks for that!
― ridiculously dope soul (unregistered), Tuesday, 28 February 2017 17:28 (seven years ago) link
This is super thread and is possibly the king of all music to accompany exercise for that Rocky Balboa running up the steps feeling
― the article don, Tuesday, 28 February 2017 20:41 (seven years ago) link
lol I mean it's just fun music it's not a thinkpiece
― a but (brimstead), Tuesday, 28 February 2017 23:54 (seven years ago) link
not if every time you listen to it you are conscious that the art makes it seem as if it was conceived as a shitpost
if you present your music as a meme it will be treated as such
― a self-reinforcing downward spiral of male-centric indie (katherine), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 01:37 (seven years ago) link
also it is quite a feat for not a single person involved in that reddit thread linked upthread to mention the name Giorgio Moroder
― a self-reinforcing downward spiral of male-centric indie (katherine), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 01:39 (seven years ago) link
surely you mean sergio valente?
― calstars, Wednesday, 1 March 2017 01:50 (seven years ago) link
yeah i hadn't considered kids making memes and stuff. it does straddle the "are you kidding me" line a lot of the time. i just revel in the neon vibes,
― a but (brimstead), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 02:19 (seven years ago) link
man all subgenres come with non-musical signifiers, some of which are really shitty. yeah you can judge synthwave by the crappy cover art memes just like you can judge disco by the bell-bottoms, and you're not wrong to do so, but sometimes enjoying music involves deliberately turning a blind eye to some of its worse non-musical signifiers.
― increasingly bonkers (rushomancy), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 02:35 (seven years ago) link
This stuff deserves no discourse whatsoever. Just listen and enjoy, that's really all there is to it. Popcorn VHS fantasy music.
― larry appleton, Wednesday, 1 March 2017 02:50 (seven years ago) link
Trans Am's synthier stuff and aesthetics feel like a precursor to this stuff
― blonde redheads have more fun (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 05:01 (seven years ago) link
this is it for me.
i know i will tire of it, but at the moment, it's pure ear candy.that said, the releases on blood music are a step away from the outrun material, and often use different visual templates (mainly heavy metal espeically GoST/Perturbator)
― mark e, Wednesday, 1 March 2017 08:38 (seven years ago) link
― blonde redheads have more fun (upper mississippi sh@kedown)
I completely agree... Futureworld could easily be called a synthwave album. And even Kavinsky was doing his thing before the genre really had a name.
― Frobisher, Wednesday, 1 March 2017 19:54 (seven years ago) link
yeah the french were on this early i feel.. see also: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41KhJgxEFFL.jpg
― a but (brimstead), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 19:59 (seven years ago) link
I also would agree, there is no discourse needed. It's nostalgia fluff, mainly. It's about your futuristic muscle car and your homemade spaceship that really works and the first love your life that dumped you and that feeling you got when you read Neuromancer for the first time.
You could tie it into late stage capitalism and the crumbling legitimacy of neoliberalism and a desire to return to simpler, more clear-cut geopolitical narratives such as those of the 80s, but I think that's overthinking it!
― Frobisher, Wednesday, 1 March 2017 20:00 (seven years ago) link
huh went to spotify and trans am is back with a very synthy single!
http://www.stereogum.com/1927581/trans-am-alles-verboten/music/
― blonde redheads have more fun (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 1 March 2017 20:21 (seven years ago) link
"And even Kavinsky was doing his thing before the genre really had a name."
didn't click until this week that the genre name, outrun, was taken from kavinskys album.
that cant be something that happens too often i.e. a genre name lifted from an album name ?
― mark e, Thursday, 2 March 2017 10:23 (seven years ago) link
one that does not use arcade video stylings.
i've not seen this before :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCSWzt56CC0
looks like old 80s movie clips, but i dont think they are ??
warning : not for the faint hearted.
― mark e, Thursday, 2 March 2017 10:51 (seven years ago) link
Pretty sure "outrun" comes from the old car racing video game
― a but (brimstead), Thursday, 2 March 2017 16:29 (seven years ago) link
what I assume anyway, I don't really know
ahh, i have never heard of that game.i guess that's where kavisnsky got the album title from.
― mark e, Thursday, 2 March 2017 16:31 (seven years ago) link
yeah i think it's the game
this stuff feels like an outgrowth of chiptune stuff, maybe they grew tired of the limited sonic palette of chiptune stuff
― blonde redheads have more fun (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Thursday, 2 March 2017 18:13 (seven years ago) link
Step back a few more years to '02 and you've got Thomas Bangalter's singles on Roulé and the Irreversible soundtrack, one of the tunes from which is "Outrun," though it fits less on this thread than other tunes like "Night Beats" and "Paris by Night."https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhXrjQyT6ho
― andrew m., Thursday, 2 March 2017 19:49 (seven years ago) link
yeah that works .. not heard any of TBs material before.suspect some of the munich machine album by (dj) hell fits this groove now, but have to be careful that we dont drift into electroclash ..
― mark e, Thursday, 2 March 2017 20:05 (seven years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4CHNIfLPd4
I need to make an workout playlist with some of these songs
― larry appleton, Friday, 3 March 2017 04:17 (seven years ago) link
This stuff gets me pumped
― larry appleton, Friday, 3 March 2017 04:20 (seven years ago) link
Some precursors to the Synthwave boom
Ural 13 Diktators (2001):https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiAIor2knU0
FPU - Crockett's Theme (2003)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSdBTPoS_iU
and the granddaddy, Laserdance - Power Run (1984):https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak5P_FVbs9k"by 2017, the world economy has collapsed..."
― Siegbran, Friday, 3 March 2017 08:42 (seven years ago) link
why do synthwave people have such horrible taste in vocalists?
― clouds, Friday, 3 March 2017 13:58 (seven years ago) link
This is from 5yrs ago but fits the bill:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMPBXr5td0w
― Neil S, Friday, 3 March 2017 14:46 (seven years ago) link
I like that, you don't often hear this sort of stuff in lo-fi, but it works great.
― larry appleton, Friday, 3 March 2017 14:50 (seven years ago) link
Same sort of time, same ballpark, perhaps not as much Outrun
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6FD6t4lKKo
― Neil S, Friday, 3 March 2017 14:59 (seven years ago) link
I mean the most immediate precursor is the entirety of italians do it better
― a self-reinforcing downward spiral of male-centric indie (katherine), Friday, 3 March 2017 18:40 (seven years ago) link
yup.well kind of.the symmetry release is definitely part of this groove.
for those that like the more laid back neon sunset vs vangelis side of this, then the pre-blood music releases by tommy'86 and dan terminus are very worthy.
https://tommy86.bandcamp.com/ << includes some ILM fave Sally Shapiro collaborations
https://dan-terminus.bandcamp.com/
― mark e, Friday, 3 March 2017 18:52 (seven years ago) link
as someone who bought the neon pink Drive vinyl soundtrack, I think yes
― Neil S, Friday, 3 March 2017 21:16 (seven years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxs6YI4yfvE
― andrew m., Friday, 3 March 2017 22:10 (seven years ago) link
Search also: Tangerine Dream Thief soundtrack.
― andrew m., Friday, 3 March 2017 22:18 (seven years ago) link
^precursor city
amazed that the Stranger Things soundtrack hasn't been mentioned in this thread yet
― boxedjoy, Friday, 3 March 2017 23:07 (seven years ago) link
*mentions things*
― a but (brimstead), Saturday, 4 March 2017 00:59 (seven years ago) link
Italians do it better aren't as garish and unapologetically maximalist though.. most synthwave has more in common with big room trancey house, just with 80s synth/drum soundz
(IMO/e)
― a but (brimstead), Saturday, 4 March 2017 01:08 (seven years ago) link
Or you know the loads of hooky spacesynth instrumental cheez that's been churning out of Europe/Russia uninterrupted through the late 80s/90s/00s...
― a but (brimstead), Saturday, 4 March 2017 01:10 (seven years ago) link
it's not clear to me that groups like Laserdance, Proxion etc ever went away
now it's the kids' turn!!
― a but (brimstead), Saturday, 4 March 2017 01:12 (seven years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcXh7SIB76A
not officially in the synthwave realm, but this track fits nicely alongside it I think.
― larry appleton, Saturday, 4 March 2017 04:58 (seven years ago) link
Laserdance did disappear for fifteen years or so, but resurfaced a few months ago. They sound exactly like they did in 1987:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A1agXLbn9c
― Siegbran, Saturday, 4 March 2017 09:27 (seven years ago) link
That Ural 13 Diktators track posted above has sent me down a rabbit hole of dark, dramatic techno from the early 2000s. I would've gladly swapped out EBM for that stuff if I had known it existed.
― larry appleton, Sunday, 5 March 2017 04:30 (seven years ago) link
game precursors:
top gear: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAMvfv6X8xs
skyroads: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjNEtDl0Z4g
― a self-reinforcing downward spiral of male-centric indie (katherine), Sunday, 5 March 2017 05:03 (seven years ago) link
wow that Skyroads one is heady
― example (crüt), Sunday, 5 March 2017 05:18 (seven years ago) link
blood music is back in action, and pushing the metal vs synthwave groove hard.the aforementioned GoST album followed up by the Hollywood Burns, and MASTER BOOT RECORD releases are now up for grabs.not totally sure re the MBR album as its very metal/vocals at times, but i may succumb.
― mark e, Sunday, 22 April 2018 19:32 (six years ago) link
np: Replicant - The Reckoning. pretty good!
also zoned out to a whole afternoon of 'dungeon synth' which is a whole other thing but adjacent maybe?
― goole, Wednesday, 9 May 2018 19:58 (six years ago) link
link ? and WTF is "dungeon synth".sounds awful.in other news.
this is the best proper synthwave album i have heard in a long time :
https://deadlyavenger.bandcamp.com/album/everyday-is-kill
massive budget production levels as this was made while making crap for high profile tv shows etc.
― mark e, Wednesday, 9 May 2018 20:15 (six years ago) link
ok the vocals are a little silly on the vampire tip:
https://open.spotify.com/album/3kSCSwWkDmGUQeImiOiNnc?si=-VjUNR39TkimE7ybr-ifXA
― goole, Wednesday, 9 May 2018 20:22 (six years ago) link
here's a whole channel of dungeon synth stuff
http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChmm356a5qe1luUsoatAgjA
as with all things bm-related, i have no idea if these guys are nazis! be careful
― goole, Wednesday, 9 May 2018 20:24 (six years ago) link
another impressive bundle for a few quid :
https://groupees.com/synth12
looking forward to hearing quite a few of these albums (scandroid, occams laser, and facexhugger).
― mark e, Thursday, 31 May 2018 17:45 (five years ago) link
https://open.spotify.com/track/7osXqK8lh9HmSyi9LY6yq3?si=-tYOIgKZTr-AYY6fqCBNDw
Advisory Circle - be seeing you
― calstars, Sunday, 3 June 2018 02:09 (five years ago) link
dont have spotify, but isn't Advisory Circle Jon Brooks (aka King of Woolworths) ?
oh, and that bundle I linked to recently, turns out it has Richard X involvement.one of the albums is by Nina, and it has the Richard X produced track, Beyond Memory on it, which is very lovely electro-pop vs neon sunsets track.also, the latest facexhugger album, 'sci-fi violence' is a massive step up in sound/production values, so he clearly has learnt a few tricks over the last year.in fact, of what I have heard so far, (scandroid, gregorio franco, meteor, facexhugger, nina, cloud battalion), its a bloody cracking bundle, even better than the last one.and there is more to be unlocked should things go to plan.
― mark e, Thursday, 7 June 2018 17:43 (five years ago) link
Enjoying the Midnight today :https://open.spotify.com/track/51gfE7P4Ewjwjab4Xe9HmC?si=LDSQ7N2YQGKqF-CKlbirvA
― calstars, Thursday, 14 June 2018 15:06 (five years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1wKa7TjVV4
Diggin' this one pretty good
― funzone76, Thursday, 21 June 2018 04:53 (five years ago) link
Midnight features on a really good track with Timecop1983.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYh4yxDqpqI
― mark e, Thursday, 21 June 2018 08:19 (five years ago) link
Mellow one from FM-84https://open.spotify.com/track/1znnwRl4cNhCNCfz7NjtAO?si=N0FngnF4RuqcVrwPyaXV6A
― calstars, Friday, 13 July 2018 15:32 (five years ago) link
https://mindspringmemories.bandcamp.com/track/a-6
― calstars, Sunday, 15 July 2018 02:51 (five years ago) link
The drop at 12:15 kills
― calstars, Sunday, 15 July 2018 03:00 (five years ago) link
facexhugger has made all his stuff for 'name your price' :
https://facexhugger.bandcamp.com/
also, Carpenter Brut and GOST are coming to a town near me later this year.I may have to get off my sofa to see this show.however, I suspect I will look like the taxi service for those in the moshpit.
― mark e, Thursday, 16 August 2018 20:42 (five years ago) link
New Midnight album is a little cheesy and upbeat but I like it https://open.spotify.com/album/49ItLbfOzgYIVOeIdxxrnn?si=hSMwT6pART2Ip5GsPYU2tQ
― calstars, Thursday, 27 September 2018 16:11 (five years ago) link
looking forward to the forthcoming perturbator 2 volume retrospective release before he moves on from synthwave.that said, his 'new model' ep from last year was still in the same sonic world albeit with extra bass noise in the mix.
― mark e, Thursday, 27 September 2018 18:39 (five years ago) link
America 2 and Kids(Reprise) on The Midnight album are great!
― the article don, Thursday, 27 September 2018 22:01 (five years ago) link
New Futurecop! album is full of collaborations and sounds really good. Very positive vibes, fresh!https://open.spotify.com/album/4cEg5mb75YugZ9fZn2P5yn?si=9Z_GuadkQayBXIx05ADI5Q
― Frobisher, Tuesday, 2 April 2019 18:23 (five years ago) link
Yes, very nice, if not very ambitious. Thanks for posting
― calstars, Tuesday, 2 April 2019 20:02 (five years ago) link
https://youtu.be/xGLbx52KMKs^Super cool synthwave mix
― calstars, Friday, 5 June 2020 00:51 (three years ago) link
https://synthwave.hu/
― calstars, Sunday, 21 February 2021 18:52 (three years ago) link
https://daily.bandcamp.com/big-ups/perturbator-james-kent-big-ups
the new album is very goth vs synths.
― mark e, Friday, 28 May 2021 18:40 (two years ago) link
being going through and thought i'd add some favourite synthwave stuff I was listening to from 2015-2018ishTek.Lun - From abovehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzPCGvlyiK8Evil Needle feat Sivey - Next Genhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njEjBYhGTZwHudson Mowhawke - Bluetoothhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xD7YfXufBUJoss Ryan - A dark talehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_w-JkP2asVUGeotheory - Desiree (Aye)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUruLIHL-4gJ-E-T-S : pyrite bluehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_kstFtns8UPrymdplaza - Dreamhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2ous6WXjmg
― Swanswans, Thursday, 4 November 2021 16:18 (two years ago) link
The Midnight's latest tour sold out a few 2000+ capacity venues, they seem to have surpassed their synthwave peers in commercial success. An interview where they talk about breaking out of the synthwave sandbox
― theo, Thursday, 14 December 2023 04:15 (five months ago) link