This is the story of 2 rogue scientists on a space travelling adventure to save mankind…err, wait, this seems familiar, haven’t we seen this before? Rewind.

Somehow Dr. Mantis Quade survived the VECTORWOLF attack of 1988. He retreated to Venus where he spent the following decades rebuilding his galactic empire. He maintains a totalitarian control through a sentient A.I. known as the Hypervisor which has society locked into an algorithm grid of mindless servitude. This A.I. is housed in a virtual cyberspace known as The Battle Program. Despite this, Quaid is left unfulfilled and wants his old life back. He plans to build a time travel machine that will enable him to return to 1988, rewrite history, restore his beloved original empire, and reconnect with his lost love, Syntrina, an android, who unbeknownst to him is a double agent. In reality, this is an extremely risky endeavor that will likely cause the destruction of the universe.

To power his time travel device, Quaid will need to amass a large quantity of one of the universe’s most powerful resources, Nostalgia Crystals. Quaid’s chosen base, the planet Venus, just happens to be home to the largest Nostalgia mines in the known galaxy.

Our heroes from the last story, the 2 rogue scientists, have spent this time under the control of the Hypervisor and have grown jaded and disillusioned. Thankfully, Syntrina underwent a stealth mission to enter The Battle Program and untether them from the algorithm grid and alert them to Quaid’s potentially catastrophic plan. Unfortunately, their key weapon, the mysterious and immensely powerful “VECTORWOLF” device was badly damaged during the first attack on Quaid back in 1988. To repair this device, the rogue scientists will also need to get their hands on some Nostalgia Crystals. They must travel to Venus and infiltrate Quaid’s base and its Nostalgia mines. Once the weapon is repowered, our heroes can use it to unleash an oscillating wave beam that will annihilate Quaid and his empire once and for all.

Can our heroes mine enough Nostalgia to save mankind, again?

If the band’s plot summary isn’t enough to sell you onto the wild ride that is Forgotten Future 2, I don’t know what is. Perhaps… the fact that the album even features Darksynth-lord Gost and Highway Superstar? Though the album will undoubtedly polarize Retrowave purists, VECTORWOLF’s latest will definitely go down as 2022’s boldest most noteworthy releases. For those about to embark on the rollercoaster ride: strap in tight.

VECTORWOLF ‘Forgotten Future 2’ is out now via Rosso Corsa Records on Bandcamp.

« Ikigai is the story I went through, the meaning that music took to me, the power and the magic that it can have on you. Ikigai is also an invitation to travel to another world, to another era. I wanted to find the right compromise between rich and distorted sounds while keeping a soaring atmosphere, a changing rhythm and while honoring as best as possible the Cyberpunk aesthetic. Ikigai means in Japanese “reason to live” and I believe that this album is also what allowed me to hold a good path in this world which becomes more and more crazy. »
– Natsukime

The album also includes features fellow artists STRNGR, Aelehx and ALEX, who lend their talents and sounds on remix tracks and guest spots. If you’re a Retrowave fan with a soft spot for traditional Japanese sounds and a sweet tooth for thumping Darksynth bangers, you know what to do…

Favorite Tracks : Blur, Distant World, Embryo (Natsukime Remix)

Ikigai (生き甲斐) is out now on Bandcamp and on all major streaming services