yea that was sort of the "lost" Vektroid album for a long time. I think it was supposed to be released on some other vapordude's label but it never happened, so it just floated around on mp3 for a while. I grabbed it from Bandcamp a few months ago, it's nice but not quite as striking as Polytravellers. the sound design on it is really something though, can't quite pinpoint another album that hits that "taped over 1000 times" aesthetic
― frogbs, Tuesday, 16 May 2017 13:55 (six years ago) link
I couldn't get into Polytravellers , at least the windows safari and sphinx bits. And not familiar enough with starcalc yet (though it was one of the first of hers I bought) to be able to isolate the polymind tracks.
― calstars, Wednesday, 17 May 2017 00:59 (six years ago) link
ah dream castle is awesome :)
― nxd, Wednesday, 17 May 2017 10:07 (six years ago) link
There are big gaps in my hearing of her entire output, but Initiation / Avalon seems to be her most consistent enjoyable
― calstars, Monday, 29 May 2017 18:01 (six years ago) link
haven't heard the Avalon edition but I believe that one adds in bits from the ESC 不在 albums if I'm not mistaken. btw fun fact about Black Horse, nearly half the tracks sample Chris DeBurgh, including one which samples "The Lady in Red" but cleverly cuts around the "nobody here" bit. considering this was before even Floral Shoppe it's amusing how meta this genre got right off the bat.
― frogbs, Thursday, 1 June 2017 20:59 (six years ago) link
ok so I've played Color Ocean Road about ten times in the past week, holy hell is this pushing all the right buttons
― frogbs, Monday, 12 June 2017 20:05 (six years ago) link
Never heard that one. Will look it up (and down)
― calstars, Monday, 12 June 2017 20:06 (six years ago) link
I think Initiation Tape; Avalon is her best. "Cold Water" is a real stand out for me. Haven't heard the original yet.
― calstars, Friday, 29 September 2017 02:32 (six years ago) link
She seems to very proud of / pushing the new one (seed and synthetic earth) pretty hard. Highlights for me are Hostage Earth and Endless Jump
― calstars, Saturday, 11 November 2017 06:54 (six years ago) link
it's a banger alright
she's teasing like 4-5 different albums at once and then just out of nowhere releases something totally different, it's pretty awesome
― frogbs, Sunday, 12 November 2017 04:42 (six years ago) link
yeh this album rules'we need to talk' is my personal fav but 'hostage earth' so good too
― nxd, Monday, 13 November 2017 09:56 (six years ago) link
man 'moebius blue' is such a joyi really wanna listen to it on a bouncy castle
― nxd, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 14:49 (six years ago) link
The 7-note quote on that one of “love is all I have to give” throws me off
― calstars, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 15:20 (six years ago) link
Currently obsessed with Shader, this album is really doing my head in. It kind of brings together a lot of the disparate threads in her work - samples from old Japanese commercials, OPN-style Juno synth work, a bouncy take on "Sushi Plaza" from Color Ocean Road, and a 13 minute long dark ambient deconstruction of the Mac Plus "420" track. It's great how Vek's stuff is so sample-heavy and usually follows the lead of Lopatin or James Ferraro but at the same time sounds so utterly unique - like in some way this is a counterpoint to OPN's Replica but it's also its own thing, no one else could have made an album quite like this. It's such a great late night slip-into-the-negative-world kinda album.
And then the next thing she puts out are the PrismCorp albums, which I believe are drawn directly from the demo tracks of an old Yamaha. She really is amazing.
― frogbs, Thursday, 21 December 2017 14:23 (six years ago) link
^^yes, love shader, it a really eerie album, and i agree it's a great original fusion of her different strands
― brimstead, Thursday, 21 December 2017 15:52 (six years ago) link
like in some way this is a counterpoint to OPN's Replica but it's also its own thing, no one else could have made an album quite like this. It's such a great late night slip-into-the-negative-world kinda album.
really well put, i think it's daring and exciting how DEEP it goes into this sort of extreme-Replica dream zone
― brimstead, Thursday, 21 December 2017 15:54 (six years ago) link
Hypnagogic for sureShader vs Shader Complete - which is better? I have both but have yet to do a deep dive comparison
― calstars, Thursday, 21 December 2017 16:06 (six years ago) link
Cosmorama is my OPO on the album
― calstars, Thursday, 21 December 2017 16:07 (six years ago) link
oh man, these look cool. probably gonna have to pick up Shader.
.@Vektroid reissues New Dreams Ltd. and Sacred Tapestry albums on vinyl via @AguirreRecordshttps://t.co/A9fRtOl8Yv pic.twitter.com/CeTGBlMB3d— Tiny Mix Tapes (@tinymixtapes) October 17, 2018
― frogbs, Friday, 19 October 2018 03:26 (five years ago) link
did you get macintosh plus on white vinyl
― the late great, Friday, 19 October 2018 03:41 (five years ago) link
floral shoppe w/ 22 x 22 commemorative poster
― the late great, Friday, 19 October 2018 03:43 (five years ago) link
vektroid is brilliant
― Trϵϵship, Friday, 19 October 2018 03:45 (five years ago) link
Print article on Ramona from a Portland weekly:https://www.reddit.com/r/Vaporwave/comments/9p0g02/vektroid_article_in_portlands_wweek_paper/?st=JNFNRWG9&sh=d3a162ff
― calstars, Friday, 19 October 2018 06:55 (five years ago) link
That's a good interview. About a year ago she announced that she had like six albums in development, I kinda wonder where that's at now. I don't blame her for wanting to branch away from music for a while, she definitely feels like a "multimedia artist" with a pretty clear aesthetic that she's trying to nail down. On the other hand she feels like someone who could drop something insane and revolutionary at any time. In light of some of her recent stuff like Midnight Run and Seed & Synthetic Earth it's kind of amazing that she doesn't actually know how to play anything. But that's kind of what makes her work fascinating, isn't it? It's more curation than composition. Wasn't that part of the appeal behind Macintosh Plus - "anyone could do this" ?
btw I did manage to get one of the Floral Shoppe vinyls - took like six months to arrive but I got it. I'm not particularly fond of the album but it felt like a very cool thing to have.
― frogbs, Friday, 19 October 2018 13:48 (five years ago) link
On the other hand she feels like someone who could drop something insane and revolutionary at any time.
Yeah. I personally don't care much for video/3d art and would much prefer new audio material from her, but I can see why she'd want to venture into new terrain. And perhaps while her music is very much appreciated being a curator of music rather than composer - as you put eloquently - it's just not that satisfying to keep on doing? Idk.
― lbi's life of limitless european glamour (Le Bateau Ivre), Friday, 19 October 2018 13:56 (five years ago) link
oh dear, here's a version of that interview that's more readable
https://www.wweek.com/music/2018/10/18/vaporwave-pioneer-vektroid-can-do-so-much-more-than-music/
i think it's good that she's taking a step back and developing in new directions, she's obviously very talented but it's easy to hit a dead end in that kind of creative work (i would say eno, for instance, who also characterizes himself as not a musician, has hit a creative dead end).
the show tomorrow sounds interesting but i probably am not going to go
― dub pilates (rushomancy), Friday, 19 October 2018 14:04 (five years ago) link
im sure i ordered one of the floral shoppe records but have no idea if itll ever come haha
― nxd, Friday, 19 October 2018 14:12 (five years ago) link
I would love to see her live, just for the vibes. But I doubt she’ll ever “tour”
― calstars, Friday, 19 October 2018 16:56 (five years ago) link
from a FB post. looks like a lot of new stuff is coming...next year
4) Beyond all that, I just wanted to give a huge thank you to everybody for being so patient while I bring all of those upcoming Vektroid projects up to the level of polish they deserve. That's ultimately the biggest reason you didn't see a new album from me in 2018, and I cannot express how excited I am about the state of this new material as we move into the new year. That means Midnight Run 2, No Earth, the 'Neo Cali sequel', four 'secret' albums, the EP followup to Seed & Synthetic Earth, and a few experimental projects as well. It'll most likely be Midnight Run 2 or the EP that arrives first. Either way, don't count me out too soon y'all. 🙃✌️
still weighing whether or not I wanna dump $40 on the vinyl copy of Shader. I feel like it's a really cool thing to own but that's a lot of money for a record album
― frogbs, Monday, 10 December 2018 21:43 (five years ago) link
Looking forward to it. Has anyone seen her twitch stream?
― calstars, Monday, 10 December 2018 21:59 (five years ago) link
I did check in once and she was playing this bizarre 3-D platformer where you were a chicken
― frogbs, Monday, 10 December 2018 21:59 (five years ago) link
haha good prep for untitled goose game!
and good news to that, ordered a copy of floral shoppe what must have been nearly a year ago and no sign of it haha
― nxd, Tuesday, 11 December 2018 10:18 (five years ago) link
someone actually tracked down a bunch of the Sleepline samples, wow
https://www.whosampled.com/album/New-Dreams-Ltd./Sleepline/
this album is such a cool trip. first time I heard it was on a long drive and I honestly thought it was only like 25 minutes (maybe confused it with Eden)...I remember checking and being like, "damn, I'm only on track 7?!?"
― frogbs, Thursday, 13 December 2018 15:46 (five years ago) link
My favorite V sample is probably the bridge to “Too Shy” by kajagoogoo, which became “Timecop” on Initiation Tape
― calstars, Thursday, 13 December 2018 16:59 (five years ago) link
I caught a bunch of her twitch stream last night. She was playing a bunch of semi obscure PS1 games. she doesn’t narrate, but she did occasionally pause the game to write in the chat to tell watchers who broached business (like “where’s my t shirt”) that the stream was not the place to discuss that stuff.
― calstars, Sunday, 16 December 2018 13:54 (five years ago) link
She has a very cool stream layout though. The centerpiece is this endlessly rotating translucent statue of David with a pig in place of a face.
― calstars, Sunday, 16 December 2018 13:56 (five years ago) link
Is this a new reissue? Might be wrong but seem to remember it was Calstars or Frogbs looking for an affordable vinyl version of Floral Shoppe?
― lbi's life of limitless european glamour (Le Bateau Ivre), Tuesday, 15 January 2019 17:22 (five years ago) link
Is this🕸 a new reissue? Might be wrong but seem to remember it was Calstars or Frogbs looking for an affordable vinyl version of Floral Shoppe?
― calstars, Tuesday, 15 January 2019 17:53 (five years ago) link
Olde English Spelling Bee is legit
― brimstead, Tuesday, 15 January 2019 19:39 (five years ago) link
That's what I thought but they seem to have some serious issues. Otoh if Norman Records has it in stock, which I assume they do, it should be ok?
― Uptown VONC (Le Bateau Ivre), Wednesday, 16 January 2019 12:29 (five years ago) link
promising a vaporwave album but it never arriving is v appropriate
― closed beta (NotEnough), Wednesday, 16 January 2019 13:41 (five years ago) link
That's what I thought but they seem to have some serious issues🕸. Otoh if Norman Records has it in stock, which I assume they do, it should be ok?
― brimstead, Thursday, 17 January 2019 00:26 (five years ago) link
sweet - cheers for this
― nxd, Friday, 18 January 2019 10:42 (five years ago) link
What are the chances that I’m rocking Pages on Spotify while I get a notification that Ramona is steaming on twitch?
― calstars, Sunday, 17 March 2019 23:33 (five years ago) link
f'in love "you need a hero", cheers my friend
― brimstead, Sunday, 17 March 2019 23:37 (five years ago) link
I like her music. I just found her Twitch thanks to you, calstars... and she's just playing a video game. Not even talking?
― maffew12, Sunday, 17 March 2019 23:50 (five years ago) link
Isn't that what twitch is?
― brimstead, Sunday, 17 March 2019 23:59 (five years ago) link
haha I'm not sure. Don't most streamers at least talk? Wondering the appeal here. That could be anybody.
― maffew12, Monday, 18 March 2019 00:02 (five years ago) link
Well half the appeal for me at least is the music selection , it’s like she djs random Midi sh1t wiith other choice cuts
― calstars, Monday, 18 March 2019 00:26 (five years ago) link
oh cool yeah there is music now. When I first checked, it was only game sound effects
― maffew12, Monday, 18 March 2019 00:30 (five years ago) link
She’s teased sequels to Neo Cali and Fuji Grid too, in addition to two triple albums. Plus some ambient album. Wonder when any of this is coming out? Is she just gonna dump it all in a weekend like old times?
― frogbs, Friday, 5 February 2021 02:06 (three years ago) link
“Need to rock you, and hold you all night long”
― calstars, Sunday, 11 April 2021 23:45 (three years ago) link
So, my partner and I are in a really bad situation with rent. On Oct 1st we're both getting evicted if we can't come up with $5700. Been totally starving ourselves to stay afloat, so we're setting the goal at $8K to cover bills and food. Anything helps.♥https://t.co/6gBzaJYTBW— RaRa (@VektroidLive) September 17, 2021
― ncxkd, Friday, 17 September 2021 23:33 (two years ago) link
HELLO!Today is a really special day for me.I am unbelievably hyped to finally present:"THE OFFICIAL VEKTROID PATREON"https://t.co/bnGiBFmUgbI'm going to be sharing so much stuff on here it's actually ridiculous. You'll really want to consider pledging at tier 3 or higher. pic.twitter.com/Kk0H0x14wt— Vektroid (@Vektroid) November 13, 2021
― calstars, Sunday, 14 November 2021 03:53 (two years ago) link
https://i.imgur.com/s9AB2sN.png
― calstars, Saturday, 27 November 2021 21:14 (two years ago) link
well, she finally put out something new - a sequel to Fuji Grid TV. intended as a video project but you can download the MP3s at her bandcamp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ccD-soZ4gM
similar to the first one and probably something she did a while ago but still seems like an indication that 2022 is gonna be *the year* if you know what I mean
― frogbs, Saturday, 1 January 2022 18:37 (two years ago) link
i fully believe in the cultural criticism and hauntology surrounding vaporwave (recommended reading: babbling corpse by grafton tanner - zero books), but i'm starting to feel like the VHS pastiche slowed down thing has really had its day, now... i want vaporwave that deconstructs modern telecoms.
― maelin, Saturday, 1 January 2022 21:43 (two years ago) link
When she announced that a sequel to a 2011 project would be dropping, I was really hoping it would be Initiation Tape…
― calstars, Sunday, 2 January 2022 03:32 (two years ago) link
Time is running out
― calstars, Monday, 3 January 2022 01:16 (two years ago) link
That was fun. And good for her releasing something!
― maf you one two (maffew12), Monday, 3 January 2022 01:19 (two years ago) link
I got news for you
― calstars, Monday, 3 January 2022 01:26 (two years ago) link
whu happen? I haven't watched a Twitch stream in a while.
― maf you one two (maffew12), Monday, 3 January 2022 01:38 (two years ago) link
I wish I knew what whu means
― calstars, Monday, 3 January 2022 02:18 (two years ago) link
ノ!ノ!ボ-イ!
― maf you one two (maffew12), Monday, 3 January 2022 02:21 (two years ago) link
Right
― calstars, Monday, 3 January 2022 02:25 (two years ago) link
― calstars, Monday, 3 January 2022 02:29 (two years ago) link
I guess it's nice to hear her destructive and very scatterbrained brand of editing again but I wasn't too into this, until the last 8 minutes where some crazy shit starts happening. if that's indicative of her new album it's gonna be nuts.
― frogbs, Monday, 3 January 2022 05:18 (two years ago) link
https://i.imgur.com/7WmgPci.jpg
― calstars, Friday, 20 May 2022 05:48 (one year ago) link
https://vektroid.bandcamp.com/album/crash-1
― calstars, Sunday, 5 November 2023 14:19 (five months ago) link
the paradox is that it makes me think of peace, and calm, and warmth
i've lived, off and on, in this chaos vortex thing
everywhere at the end of time is interesting but there are things more interesting to me than cognitive decline
i imagine i imagine vektroid traveling back in time to 1985 and playing marty mcfly this
and marty mcfly thinking she's the terminator
and maybe she is but really all she wants is for marty mcfly to start taking estrogen
i'm almost anxious and upset for a second but there isn't actually anything to get upset about
this is what we do instead of dying
this is the world they made for us, this is what it sounds like
this is how we're fixing our hearts
― Kate (rushomancy), Sunday, 5 November 2023 17:34 (five months ago) link
have only listened to bits and pieces but it sounds like barely musical chaos to me. will have to grit my teeth and bear it though because I definitely think everything she does deserves your full attention...at least once
not sure how I feel about her next several albums being released in "beta" versions which will be continually updated - I don't really like the idea of releasing music that way. for one I don't want her to be working on these things forever. for two I feel like the majority of listeners are just gonna stick with the first version. like the next Mac Plus album is a decade-plus out from Floral Shoppe, whatever gets released will instantly have a ton of instant hype, so like that's the version people are gonna listen to. if you make a 'better' version in 6 months are people gonna go back and get reacquianted? I dunno, maybe. I just don't really think it's a great idea.
― frogbs, Wednesday, 8 November 2023 01:55 (five months ago) link
i really like this!
― c u (crüt), Wednesday, 8 November 2023 02:20 (five months ago) link
'the next Mac plus album' came out in 2019
― calstars, Wednesday, 8 November 2023 03:13 (five months ago) link
New album and mixhttps://vektroid.bandcamp.com/album/777-pig-dangerhttps://vektroid.bandcamp.com/album/crash-2-mac
― calstars, Sunday, 14 January 2024 12:06 (three months ago) link
oooh thanks for the update i'll have to listen to this
― Kate (rushomancy), Sunday, 14 January 2024 16:03 (three months ago) link
Crash 2 sounds like Crash 1, kind of fascinating but idk how much I actually want to listen to it
Pig Danger probably worth a close listen, its not very musical but there's a lot of cool stuff in there
― frogbs, Sunday, 14 January 2024 16:28 (three months ago) link
Sounds like the first song on 777 samples “forever?” from initiation tape
― calstars, Sunday, 14 January 2024 18:36 (three months ago) link