The Top 10 Synthwave Albums of 2023:

10. Along by demin

9. Slow Tapes by l y n x

8. Rogue by Wice

7. Axiom by PYLOT

6. First Person Shooter (Original Documentary Soundtrack)
by Various Artists

5. Premi​è​re Anthologie by Adieu Aru

4. Data Fire by Korizon

3. Between the Moon and Stars by Futurecop!

2. Unicorn by Gunship

1. Wavefinder by Sferro & Makeup and Vanity Set

Honorable Mentions

TRIFECTA by A.L.I.S.O.N, VIQ, Krosia

Katarsi by Katarsi

(Not really synthwave, but this is just too good to ignore!)

Evenings 夕​暮​れ Vol. 1 by Hotel Pools

On the face of it, you wouldn’t expect a collaboration album like “Wavefinder” to be so brilliant. Sure, both Sferro and Makeup and Vanity Set (MAVS) have honed their superb synth skills for over a decade – but their production styles are vastly different.

Sferro’s work is decidedly digital, featuring brilliant melodies driven by a disco heartbeat. MAVS, on the other hand, has honed his analog feel – slicing through soundtracks and albums alike with a keen edge of atmosphere.

So, I expected “Wavefinder” to be good – even great, given the sheer experience and quality of musicianship from these two artists. Truthfully though, I also expected some fragmentation – a certain disjointed feeling that is frequently noticeable with similar collaboration albums. It’s a sad fact that often when artists collaborate, there is a clash. Sometimes it’s ego, sometimes it’s production style, or wanting to go in different conceptual directions. Sometimes the final tracks just seem out of order. After listening to dozens and dozens of collabs, I can tell you there’s always something…

“In a lot of ways… the music sort of… tells me what it needs, you know? Then I just sort of let it happen.”

But then, as the first remarkable ripples of “Wavefinder” washed over me, I realized this record is something special. There is no clash – in fact, the opposite is true. The diverse styles of Sferro and MAVS complement one another in a unique way, merging into a gestalt of splendid sonic bliss that neither producer would have likely created on their own. From the initial vox-like trill of ‘Cursors’ to the final 90s-infused ambient decay of ‘Do You Really Want An Answer,’ every track on “Wavefinder” is truly exceptional.

MAVS + Sferro Wavefinder Vinyl From Stratford Court Records

Between syncopated kicks and stuttering hi-hats, there is a tangible atmosphere that pulls you in, demanding your attention. Brilliant polyphonic melodies emerge in perfect counterpoint to thick, juicy basslines – all punctuated by eccentric synth stabs that give the tracks an intense sense of movement and groove. And, of course, all of these elements are masterfully mixed and mastered. All of these different elements complement one another perfectly – much like Sferro and MAVS – and the end result sounds magical.

Throughout the album, there is a pervasive 90s nostalgia feel – which makes sense considering Sferro revealed during our interview that several of the tracks were actually outtakes  “Emotion Engine.”  Often the synth leads or stabs are also just slightly detuned, filtered with the analog wow and flutter warble of a VHS cassette in a very similar technique used in MAVS’ latest EP, “Gradient Ultra.” (Both of those releases made our yearly top 10 lists in 2021 and 2022 – and you should absolutely listen to them if you haven’t already!)

But, for MAVS and Sferro, that lush analog sound was not infused into “Wavefinder” for the often-cited stereotypical reason of feeling “warm” or “fat” – but instead to add a sense of organic decay and randomness. Chance.

“Anytime I can add unpredictability, I’m surprised by what it’s doing…” MAVS related in the same interview. “In a lot of ways, [through analog effects] the music sort of… tells me what it needs, you know? Then I just sort of let it happen.”

Makeup and Vanity Set at Human Music 2

Surprisingly, Sferro also related that although his workflow is digital, chance plays a large role in his production as well. “I can’t really explain it, but it happens to me digitally as well, because my computer sold. Like every render, dude… every render is different.”

“I don’t want to do the typical synthwave stuff anymore. I’ve done that beat and that to death… so the early 2000s, late 90s kind of thing – that’s what seemed attractive to me.” – Sferro

Perhaps most surprising is that MAVS and Sferro had never created together before, in spite of growing up within a few miles of one another in northern Ohio. In fact, the closest they had come to working together was when they both independently created tracks for the Demin’s “Initiate (Remixes)” – which happened to be very important to the genesis of “Wavefinder.”

Demin’s work sounds a lot like a sort of shimmering Com Truise. In fact, when “Initiate” was released, it led many to speculate that Demin may actually be a side project of Seth’s. This rumor is false, of course – as MAVS related perfectly in our recent interview, “…having talked to Seth over the years, I know that he’s into drum and bass and other stuff…. it would be weird for him to just do another thing that sounds like Com Truise.”

In fact, that sound – the Com Truise sound – is quickly becoming it’s own small microgenre called “Datawave,” Similar to how HOME’s work spawned Chillsynth. After working on the Demin tracks seperately, MAVS and Sferro thought that datawave sound would be perfect for “Wavefinder.”

“I didn’t want to deviate in the remix too much from [Demin’s] sound because I liked the sound. I was curious about the ‘datawave’ space…. so I just sort of leaned into that for the remix…and… it felt good. [Later] when I started to dig into the stuff [Sferro] had sent me, it just seemed like the logical progression, like the place to go. You always want to do something that’s exciting to you…and in that moment, that was what was exciting.”

Sferro at Neon RetroFest

But, in spite of finding inspiration in the Com Truise / datawave sound, no part of “Wavefinder” feels pastiche. Instead, the entire sound feels somehow new again – like re-experiencing your favorite movie for the first time. (Or, in my case, my favorite album.) That… genuine feeling – I think that’s what makes “Wavefinder” feel so special. At times it feels like so much synthwave today has been over-produced and polished into nothing but a rose-tinted mirror. It’s so incredibly refreshing to hear two old-guard synth artists creating sounds so new and fresh.

Like I said in the beginning of this review, it’s rare to find a release that reminds me of why I started writing about music in the first place. Those are nice words, sure – but what does that really mean? Well, the reason why I started writing about music was because I wanted to share the music that I loved with as many people as possible – and that sort of sums up how I feel about “Wavefinder.”

I love it.

Top tracks: “Hit Bit,” “Rubber City,” “Memory Screen,” and “Wavefinder.”

But, believe it or not, this brilliant collaboration almost slipped through the cracks of history. Heck, even this interview almost didn’t happen!

“…would it be possible to reschedule the call for tomorrow? Eric’s been out of commission today with a migraine…” – Makeup and Vanity Set (hereafter referred to as MAVS)

My heart sank. I’d been interested in interviewing these two “reclusive” synth pioneers (separately) for years. But the truth is, in spite of MAVS infamous robber mask and Sferro’s disdain for being photographed, neither of them are truly reclusive. They’d just rather focus on what really matters – creating music – instead of being a “brand.” MAVS is also notoriously busy, often working on multiple film soundtracks and albums at once.

Sferro’s Only Known Photograph – Trust Me, I looked!

All that work and a surprise bout of COVID almost stopped this album from being produced. Thankfully, sometimes the stars align even in this, the darkest of timelines. Never say never.

Looking back it was kind of like a very nice,  “…you blew it.” – MAVS

So, what was the genesis of the album? How did you two come to work together?

Sferro: “I reached out to Matt just to see if he was busy…. if he had time to maybe do a track. I thought it was just gonna be a single track…and yeah, he’s a very busy guy so it took a while.”

MAVS: “I had a million things going on – and I just sort of sat on it. It was totally my fault. He had followed up a few times, and I said “I still want to do it!” but… it just kept slipping to like the bottom of the stack.”

I’ve loved Eric’s stuff for so long – and we have the Ohio connection – and I thought this would be super cool to do. So finally I scratched out some time and I sat down one day and did a track…and immediately after, I got COVID. So I was bedridden for a week, and Eric DM’d me on Instagram and said, “Hey, man if you’re not gonna do anything with these tracks, I think I’m just gonna… uh, finish them.” Looking back it was kind of like a very nice,  “…you blew it.”

Sferro: *Laughter*

MAVS: “So I replied back and was like, “NO no, no, no, no – I did one! I did one!” and I sent him a dropbox link and he was really into it. I got better from COVID, and we just… kept going. After that the record itself came together super fast. I mean, it took like three weeks.”

That’s a great story! But what’s this “Ohio connection”? I’m from Ohio myself.

MAVS: It’s funny, Eric and I have never met in person – but he actually lives in [Northern Ohio,] which is where I’m from. He’s actually super close to where my family lives.

Sferro: We had no idea until he posted a picture while visiting and I was like, “Oh Shit you’re like two minutes away from my house!”

MAVS: *Laughs* “Yeah, so we had flirted a few times by having our remixes featured on the same album. More recently we were both on the Demin Initiate (Remixes) album – but yeah we’d never worked together properly before this one.

A lot of people seem to think Demin’s work is actually a Com Truise side project.

MAVS: “I don’t know man…Having talked to Seth over the years, I know he’s into drum and bass and some other stuff. It would be kinda weird for him to just do another project so close to his sound, sonically.”

That tracks. So, other artists have started making more music in that “Com Truise” style and calling it “Datawave” – and your new album “Wavefinder” definitely seems to fit that category. Was that intentional? what’s your take on that?

MAVS: “Don’t get me wrong, I love Seth’s work – and the idea wasn’t just to make something derivative… But we had just finished the Demin remixes, and…man, I really loved Demin’s track. I didn’t want to deviate too much in the remix… because I just liked the sound. I was curious about it. I had never done anything in the sort of “Datawave” space.

The last couple records I’ve been working on have also been masted by Ben Braun – Hotel Pools. I’m a big fan of his music. So, I started listening to a lot more chillsynth… and one of the things I thought was really interesting about it is that the tempos are way slower… I started to think about the fact that it really took my back to my roots-roots. Like, as a kid, finding Autechre… you know, all those guys were Hip Hop guys. And I feel like, chillsynth, datawave, these kinds of artists have a similar root. They have one foot in that genre – that kind of “head nod” feeling. There’s something appealing about that.

So no, it wasn’t like, “Hey this sounds like datawave” – that was the last thing on my mind. It was more that I just enjoyed going back…so I thought, “How can we slow this down even more?” And then the when you slow things down, the resolution gets a little wider. So you can suddenly like, bit more, you know, interesting things and have more interesting sort of syncopation happening musically.

So later on when I started to dig into the stuff Eric had sent me, it just seemed like the logical progression, like the place to go. You always want to do something that’s exciting to you – you know? And so in that moment, that was what was exciting.”

I also felt like there were some strong 90s references in “Wavefinder,” and you seemed to have really delved into the 90s vibes on “Emotion Engine” too. Was that move away from the 80’s intentional – or a sort of spontaneous occurrence like the “datawave” sound?

Sferro: “I will say that at least one, maybe two of the tracks were actually “Emotion Engine” outtakes I had sent over…but [in general, it does feel like a progression.] I definitely don’t want to do the typical synthwave stuff anymore. I’ve done that, beaten that to death. It just kind of felt right and it’s what seemed attractive to me: an early 2000s, late 90s kind of thing.

I don’t think the next Sferro album will be datawave though. I think “Wavefinder” is really awesome, and I think it’s awesome as a collaboration – but I don’t think I’ll explore that direction myself. It’s not the direction I want to go. I think I’m going to lean more heavily toward the early 2000s kinda… well, you’ll see in the new Hyperlinked Dream Sync album! It’s more like, Portishead-y.

“I definitely don’t want to do the typical synthwave stuff anymore. I’ve done that, beaten that to death. It just kind of felt right and it’s what seemed attractive to me: an early 2000s, late 90s kind of thing.” – Sferro

BUT, I do think datwave is awesome. The term is still kinda fresh to me… honestly I only recently heard of it when we started making [Wavefinder.]”

Eric, you’ve mentioned in interviews that your workflow is mostly digital – and Matt, you seem to mostly like analog – or as you like to say, “Play with the noodles.” Did those difference cause any conflict?

MAVS: “First of all, in spite of the room around me, I’m not an analog purist. Whatever works, you know? If you can make cool stuff in GarageBand, go for it. I’m not precious about that. What’s exciting to me is figuring out new ways to approach a workflow.

MAVS In His Studio

Anyway, Eric had sent me fully formed ideas… that I thought was really cool, I dug it. But, it was different that what I’m used to and I had to totally reorient my thought process. I had to come out of that comfort zone and be challenged a little bit by someone else’s thought process – sonically.”

It was awesome trying to experiment while still being reverent to it too. It was it was fun – I had a blast working on it!”

“I’ve put out a lot of records, and when you go through that process, there’s always at least one thing that totally shits the bed….but with this one, none of that happened.”

Sferro: “That reminds me – at one point Matt was saying, “I think we need a couple songs in here without drums…” So I’d send some stuff over without drums… and then drums ended up on it. It just had to have it.”

MAVS: “Right? …Other times he would add stuff on the back end and send it back…. It was a total democracy the whole way through. We were just trying to make something that was exciting to the two of us.”

It sounds like perfect match! Was there anything that caused conflict? You know, caused some sort of problem?

MAVS: “The thing came together in a way that was the least forced, you know, like it, it all happened really fast, it all felt really good!”

Sferro: “That reminds me of one track in particular, I sent a demo over and said “Uh…I don’t know if this will work…. And Matt said “Never say never!” and then sent it back – and it sounded sick!”

MAVS: “Right? I gotta say… I’ve put out a lot of records, and when you go through that process, there’s always at least one thing that totally shits the bed. You’re forced to work with an artist you don’t want to work with, or you can’t release on a certain date, or there’s a huge backorder on vinyl…”

Right? Thanks Adele! 

MAVS + Sferro: *Laughter*

MAVS: “…but with this one, none of that happened. We went back and forth and thought, “Okay, we have an album here.” Then we sent it off to Ben Braun [Hotel Pools] to get it mastered, and that guy just knows how to make bass happen in ways that, well, I’m both comfortable and uncomfortable with! Then we started talking to Andrew from Stratford Court. Stratford Court was almost a shot in the dark… [I’m] a huge fan of the label. It’s so well curated. We waited a while, and then Andrew reached out and said he’d love to do it!”

And honestly, I was floored. I hadn’t sent it anywhere else, but I had a list of [labels]… I just figured you know, Stratford Court to me was like swinging for the fences…and there’s no preorder. It’s all ready to go on Friday.” [Today]

MAVS + Sferro Wavefinder Vinyl From Stratford Court Records

Sferro: “I really love how “into” the record [Andrew] seems. Every time he replies to an email he says how he’s like… ‘really excited about this.’ It’s so cool – it’s awesome!

I’m excited too – and not to spoil the review, but I really think this album is special. Do you two think you’ll be working together in the future?

MAVS: It’s funny with this record, this is the most PR I’ve done for a record in a long time. But I think it’s just because I’m proud of the thing we made, you know? I want to make sure that we do our due diligence to Stratford and present it to the world in the right way.

Really.. I’m just, I’m happy to make music. I’m happy to be able to process the all of the shit that’s happening around us through music…and I’m super happy to have somebody like Eric to collaborate with…

Sferro: “Likewise!”

MAVS: “…and to you know, to see it, see it go out into the world man. It’s all good at this point. So I’m just happy to be here.”

Sferro: “I mean, I have ideas for the future. Things I’ll bring up to Matt eventually, in due time.” *Laughs* But I’m just super stoked we got the opportunity to do this. Matt’s fucking awesome. He’s a super chill dude. I’ve loved his music forever. And it’s cool that some OG’s Got to work together. So… I’m stoked.

So perhaps this isn’t the end for this dangerous duo?

Sferro: “Never say never.”

Editors Note: There is so, so much more to this interview. Both MAVS and Sferro discussed their creative evolution, how they came to find electronic music and two kids stuck in Ohio, and how the digital age affects nostalgia, and their own approach when it comes to organic-feeling synthesis. For more of that, keep an eye out for my upcoming review of “Wavefinder” after it drops!

Makeup and Vanity Set ‘Sentinels’ is out now via Bandcamp and Spotify

10. Night of the Dark Prince by Jessie Frye

9. Youth by ALEX

8. Resurgence by Lyde

7. My Soul Burns As My Consciousness Is Uploaded Into The Virtual Afterlife by Trevor Something

6. Night Life by Sunglasses Kid

5. Nights by Droid Bishop

4. Ident by Baldocaster

3. Gradient Ultra by Makeup and Vanity Set

2. Pressure Point by Eagle Eyed Tiger

1.  Multiverse by Timecop1983

TOP PICKS

Acryl Madness – Kaidan

Bandcamp

Emil Rottmayer – Deflection

Bandcamp

Makeup and Vanity Set – Heart of Batman

Spotify

Mitch Murder – Then Again

Bandcamp

Lukhash – We Are Stardust

Bandcamp

Timecop1983 – Faded Touch

Bandcamp

CRYSEHD – EP IV

Bandcamp

Downtown Binary – Memoir

Bandcamp

The Starfighter – Simulation EP

Bandcamp

glitbiter – Glass & Steel

Bandcamp

Honorable Mentions & Singles

Cadet – Blu Magic

Bandcamp

HKE – More Electric Swill To Fill Up Your Stupid Heads

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQuVwtQxHsw

Bandcamp

LA Nights – The Call

Bandcamp

Kagami Smile – Secrets Between

Bandcamp

Millenium Falck – Fall of the Titans

Bandcamp

Mythical Vigilante – Erase Your Mind

Bandcamp

Tangerine Truckstop – Tangerine Truckstop

Bandcamp

OSC – Yume No Machi

Bandcamp

Bandcamp

Lebrock – Hearthstrings (Single)

Bandcamp

Michael Oakley – Is there Anybody Out There (Single)

Bandcamp

Though their appearances have been fewer and further in-between as years have gone by, fervour and interest in the duo remained unwavering. From talks about an ‘Alive 2017’ live tour, a new album in 2021 to the most recent rumours about a possible appearance during The Weeknd’s Superbowl Halftime Show, not a year has gone by without some form of speculation about the French duo’s return.

To begin to describe Daft Punk’s impact would amount to enumerating several generations’ worth of musical evolution, from the French Touch movement to modern hip-hop. Needless to say, the debt owed by the Retrowave scene is immeasurable, outweighed only by the legacy the group will have left behind. With aching hearts and decades worth of cherished memories in our minds, NewRetroWave reached out to some colleagues and friends in the Retro scene to pay tribute and share their testimonials about what Daft Punk’s music means to them.

As for me, Daft Punk was one of my earliest and fondest childhood memories.  In an age where vanity trumps substance, they are a reminder of all the miracles that music can achieve when fueled by passion and integrity. Having been shunned by French music executives too stubborn to dream, the duo has gone on to reach stratospheric heights that their naysayers still dream of even coming close to. More than mere commercial success, the story of Daft Punk is a musical tale unlike anything the world has ever seen, an intergalactic transmission of love and unity for the whole world to hear.

Favorite track : Something About Us.

To me, Daft punk were a huge influence on my music taste. Way back in the 90s before synthwave and even electroclash was popular they were doing retro (80s) inspired house music. They were a precursor for my musical tastes to come in the next 2 decades. With the Tron : Legacy soundtrack they really showed how versatile they can be making one of the best OSTs of all time.

Favorite track : Da funk

Marko Maric
(Synthetix Sundays host)

To me, Daft Punk is the mother of all epic French Electronic music. I have admired Daft Punk for years and beyond, especially as a teenager when I was lost and didn’t know which musical direction I should be heading. Then Daft Punk came along and made my heart dance. Releasing timeless songs that will stand the test of time. What an inspiration! All songs are safely stored in my random access memory.

Favorite Track : Around The World

NINA

To me Daft Punk is an Electronic Force that shook the world.

They really opened my ears to electronic music when I was younger. Sure, there were other electronic acts who were making music, but the Daft Punk sound really resonated deeply with me. Around the World was on constant repeat in my house that it would drive my parents mad! lol. They are a huge inspiration to many and ultimately have had a HUGE influence in music.

 

Favorite Track : Around the World

DJ Ten
(Artist, Founder of NewRetrowave & NRW Records)

I love the composer/director combo! I’m not a musician but I like to think that you kind of turn into one whenever you direct a film by guiding and influencing the work of the artist set with the task of composing the score.

With Daft Punk, I feel like these two worlds were intimately linked. You can obviously see it in their Interstella 5555 film that draws directly from their own repertoire, but this relationship also transpired through the robot personas that they portrayed in their music videos and in real life.

I think that the news of their separation had such a strong emotional impact on some of us because it felt like the end of a great film we’ve been sitting through for nearly 30 years…

In that regard, the ‘Epilogue’ video was a perfect way to end the feature film.

Favorite Track: Aerodynamic

Seth Ickerman

To me, Daft Punk is the real good reason to be proud of France. We once brought Kavinsky to headline an electronic music festival in Normandy. He mostly played his friend’s music, throughout his set with the occasional Rage Against the Machine track every now and then. That night, we were treated a 100% pure Kavinsky-type set. He also played some Justice and all1800 people went crazy! Being the organizer, I was busy sorting a bunch of different issues when I suddenly heard the crowd go even crazier and saw the pit go wild. Kavinsky had just followed up Justice with a Daft Punk track. It must have been ‘High Life’ or ‘Crescendolls’, I don’t quite remember. It was a song off of Discovery. We were in a small province of about 100 000 inhabitants, 15 years after the album’s release… The mere fact that one of Daft Punk’s friends came and played one of their songs made everyone lose their minds! That’s the power of Daft Punk, the legend. One year later, after diving deeper into Kav’s album, his history with Oizo [Mr.Oizo, aka Quentin Dupieux], Guy Man … I started Retro Synth Fury with Johann of Drive Radio [aka Absolute Valentine]. Since then, all of the artists we received at our RSF shows unanimously mention Daft Punk as one of their biggest influences.

To me, Daft Punk is my entire childhood. From when I was five, I was competing in gymnastics and I would hear Da Funk play every time during the intermissions. They would also play ‘Around the World’ and even some tracks by Jean-Michel Jarre!

Favorite Track : DIGITAL LOVE – Daft Punk represents my first love. When Discovery came out, there came a downpour of hits on every French radio station : there was obviously ‘One More Time’,  a more discrete ‘Aerodynamic’, then came ‘Digital Love’… Every day around 5pm, I’d sit at my windowsill and wait for the girl I had a crush on to pass by my street, and ‘Digital Love’ would play every single time she’d pass by.
I didn’t understand a word of English at the time, I didn’t even remember the name Daft Punk. But with time, I realized that the lyrics to the song were the exact reflection of what I was feeling at the time. It’s amazing to realize how universal their music is. Even without understanding their lyrics, their music manages to convey a message. Lyrics aren’t typically  all that important in electronic music, but even on that aspect they managed to hit a bullseye.

Anthony Retro Synth Fury

To me, Daft Punk is the best live show I’ll ever see. Seeing them in the Nîmes Arena was an unforgettable experience. I discovered their music through Homework and they made me realize that it was possible to make music at home, and that’s how my home studio was born. I also really loved the Tron Legacy Soundtrack, a great score from top to bottom that still influences me to this day.

Favorite track: Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

Absolute Valentine
(Artist, founder of Lazerdiscs records, co-founder of Drive Radio)

To me, Daft Punk is audio engineering that changed electronic music forever. Their use of filters and compression is unmatched and more influential than any other electronic sound in the last 30 years.

Favorite song: Crescendolls

Starcadian

To me Daft Punk is the genesis. As one of my earliest experiences with electronic music, their sounds were immediately captivating and set me on the path leading to where I am today. The friends I would meet, the interests I would develop… who I would eventually become. The Robots are partly responsible for all of it. Adieu my friends.

Favorite Track: High Life

Andrew Zistler (NewRetroWave Music Editor)

To me, Daft Punk is 1995, when I was 12 years old. I didn’t really listen to music at the time, but I’d occasionally skim through the radio channels on my parent’s old stereo system. One day, I came across ‘Da Funk’ on what must probably have been NRJ Radio. I remember being struck by the sounds, by the overdriven TB and the super heavy rhythm and bass section. Back then, we didn’t have Shazam or the Internet to identify songs, and it took me ages before I found out what I had just heard. It was one of my biggest frustrations at the time!

Favorite Track: I think that my favorite track is ‘Something About Us’ for its terrific bassline. I’m fortunate enough to own speakers through which they sound particularly good, and it’s always a pleasure to re-listen to that song. Furthermore, the song appears on one of my most cherished albums, an that album continues to inspire me to this day.

Maethelvin

To me Daft Punk, was some sort of melancholic tea cake of Marcel Proust. There was a bunch of stuff that annoyed me with Daft Punk, but the whole electronic and especially all the retro-driven electronic scene owe them a lot. They democratized electronic music to an audience larger than anything we saw before and largely popularized the concept of faceless musicians, which, as you can imagine, vastly participated in my vision for Carbon Killer. Their most melancholic tracks that I initially didn’t really like, are for years now, evocating the slowly fading memories of a warmer time in my life, and I do enjoy a lot to give them a listen as a way to time travelling to those moments… Godspeed, robots !

Favorite Track : If you want to travel too, listen to « Something about us »

Carbon Killer

To me, Daft Punk is my youth. The first track I heard was ‘Da Funk’, and then ‘Around the World’. I didn’t know what a vocoder was. Homework felt like a revolution. Discovery was an evolution.
Favorite Track : Veridis Quo

Makeup and Vanity Set

Daft Punk to me is music I’ve been carrying in my record bag since the release of Homework and Discovery. As a dj I love playing Daft Punk in my set. Whether it’s ‘One more time’, ‘Aerodynamic’, ‘Revolution 909’ or ‘Robot Rock’ to name a few.. for me each Daft Punk track is a gem. Play one of these or any of their tracks in a club with a good soundsystem at the right moment, at the right time.. you reach total euphoria. Daft Punk’s music gets the crowd going! People love it. Honestly I think it just feels right to me for them to close the book. They’ve done it all there’s nothing more to add, proof or show.. this is it and it’s epic!

As a club night organizer. “Daft Punk vibes” is what I tell people not familiar with electronic music, when describing our Night Arcade club nights in Amsterdam. Who doesn’t know Daft Punk!

Favorite track: Short Circuit

Devereaux 85
(DJ & founder of Night Arcade Nights at Melkweg Amsterdam)

To me, Daft Punk represents an era, a generation! I’ve always been drawn to their distinctive sound, it’s unique and instantly recognizable. I love all of their albums but the one that left the biggest impression on me was Discovery. Their collaboration with Leiji Matsumoto is simply magical and so organic. It was a big influence on me for my Supernova albums. I discovered Daft Punk in the Nineties when I was starting out as a DJ. I had heard a few of their tracks off of Homework that really left an impression on me, but ‘Rolling & Scratching’ is the track that got me definitely hooked! People would go wild whenever I’d play it live. The groundwork was set and that’s when I knew that I needed to follow in their tracks. I was lucky enough to see them onstage in Nîmes in 2007. It was simply fantastic… an unforgettable audiovisual experience. I also got to meet Pedro Winter in Cannes, who had a great role in their career and who is a terrific guy.

Beyond their musical input, the band were unanimously loved for doing what they felt like doing! They turned down huge deals and collaboration offers that any artist would go crazy over and they set their own rules. They didn’t follow anyone, they’re the ones that people followed. They left with beauty and class and the whole world is paying tribute to them. As for me, I thank them for their career. The world will have known a great (French) group whose music we’ll keep playing over and over and bobbing our heads to.

Favorite track: That’s really tough. I’m torn between Digital Love (the Supertramp gets me every time) and Too Long (And Romanthony’s magical voice on Discovery).

Morgan Willis

To me Daft Punk is the reason I got into electronic music and also into producing…heck even my mask is heavily inspired by them 🙂. They are and always will be my gold standard when it comes to electronic music, be it production, song writing or style.

Favorite Track…jeez, thats hard, but it has to be Robot Rock 🙂

Powernerd

To me Daft Punk is all about evolution. Constantly evolving their sound and changing the industry with every release. They were pioneers and true game changers, reviving long dead genres back into the mainstream for new listeners with fresh ears. It was the soundtrack to my youth. Beautiful memories featuring a Daft Punk backing track. It’s a sad feeling knowing I’ll never see them live. It’s been one hell of a ride. Thank you for the music.

Favourite Song: Technologic / Aerodynamic

James Secker
(Film Producer & Director, Organiser at Retro Future Fest)

To me, Daft punk is a duo that established themselves as an internationally recognized household name from the very start of their career. Through their combination of quality and simplicity, they paved the way for a number of French producers alongside Air, namely Justice and Kavinsky. Without Daft Punk and Pedro Winter’s management, these acts would have probably never made it outside France. When pretty much 95% of successful acts in France sound more or less like carbon copies of what’s going on in the U.S, it’s a real pleasure to see French artists making an international breakthrough and setting a precendent with their own style.

My first great memories of the band happen to be their first ventures on screen, namely with their all-round great music videos for Da Funk and Around the World. Through their slick, unconventional and very artsy visual aesthetic, people quickly picked up on their need to do things differently, to add a certain depth that was often lacking with most popular electronic music acts. They steered clear of pop music clichés where everything is about money and sex, whether implicitly or explicitly.

My favourite release of theirs is paradoxically one of their least popular ones, the Tron Legacy Soundtrack. I didn’t really like the film but the Soundtrack is sublime. I’ve listened to it hundreds of times and I will never grow tired of it. It’s definitely one of their most Cyberpunk and epic releases. Before I started Fixions, I’d spend a lot of time listening to that album as well as the first Fever Ray album, so those two albums are huge influences for Fixions.

Favorite track: Outlands

Fixions

To me, Daft Punk embodies the mystery, the coolness, the world-class musicianship, the groove in electronic music. Those instant hits you can’t help but dance to. Incredibly catchy tracks that effortlessly stay in your head for days and days.

Favourite track: Instant Crush (feat. Julian Casablancas)

LAU
(Artist & founder of Aztec Records)

The Gothenburg Synthwaver takes us on a night cruise through a majestic technopolis.

Listen to The Disk Hunter

9. Powernerd – Destroy to Create

Powernerd suits up in chrome battlegear and delivers an action-packed EDM-meets-Synthwave EP full of electrifying basslines and punchy beats.

Listen to Destroy to Create

8. Sierra – All About Love

Sierra’s existential angst reaches meets new depths of violence, lust and depravity.

Listen to All About Love

7. Gress –  MMXX

Pure industrial dark synth Armaggedon made in Russia. The soundtrack to your neighbour’s moving out.

Listen to MMXX 

6. Nightstop – Stalking Danger

Night driving music full of scintillating synths and funky beats. Old tropes shine anew through brilliant execution.

Listen to Stalking Danger

5. Makeup and Vanity Set – Tesseract

The masked Synthlord teams up with cyberpunk artist Liam Wong for a short trip down the murky back-alleys of NeoTokyo.

Listen to Tesseract

4. Florida Skyline – Machinekore. (Demos)

A collection of tracks by a young prodigy from Russia, who tragically passed last December.
Blending Vaporwave, Synthwave and EDM, Sophia’s posthumous demo EP is an unrivalled display of sophistication and raw talent.

RIP Sophia

Note:  100% of proceeds collected from Florida Skyline’s Bandcamp are donated to Transgender Equality Related Organisations.

Listen to Machinekore. (Demos)

3. Mitch Murder – Artifact

A fantastic set of leftover tracks from the Swedish producers’ Cyberpunk 2077 sessions, compiled into an EP. Perfect to fuel up your shootouts across Night City.

Listen to Artifact

2. STRNGR – Bumping Uglies

A filthy couple of dark electro tracks by Cincinnati’s bloodthirsty STRNGR.
For those who like their Synthwave black and unsweetened.

Listen to Bumping Uglies

1. Sellorekt/LA Dreams – Back at the Office

A brilliant throwback to Office life in the 80s’ at the crossroads between Synthwave and Vaporwave.

Listen to Back at the Office

List Compiled with help from Andrew Zistler.

Dan Terminus – Feral

Danger – 04:42 Still Free

Jean Frais – Touch

Korine – Cruel

Top 10 Retrowave Music Videos of 2020

10. Trevor Something – Can You Feel it?

9. Meteor & Magic Dance – Ready to Fight

8. LeBrock – Interstellar

7. Jessie Frye ft.Timecop1983 – Faded Memory

6. Mecha Maiko – Phones

5. Betamaxx – Never Sleep Again (feat. Vandal Moon)

4. Gunship – Black Blood Red Kiss (feat. Kat Von D)

3. Gunship – The Drone Racers

2. Carpenter Brut – Fab Tool feat. David Eugene Edwards

1. Makeup and Vanity Set – Algorithm

]]> https://newretrowave.com/2020/12/19/top-10-retrowave-music-videos-of-2020/feed/ 0 https://newretrowave.com/2020/11/07/makeup-and-vanity-set-drops-tesseract-ep/ https://newretrowave.com/2020/11/07/makeup-and-vanity-set-drops-tesseract-ep/#respond Sat, 07 Nov 2020 14:11:52 +0000 https://newretrowave.com/?p=31059 Scheduling releases must be a tough undertaking when you’re an artist as prolific as Makeup and Vanity Set. With his last full-length album Endless Destiny on Bandcamp since September 25th, the Nashville Synth-bandit has dropped yet another release titled Tesseract. Created in collaboration with Art Director and Photographer Liam Wong, this latest effort serves as a perfect musical backdrop for the artist’s Neo-noir Cyberpunk visual style and is sure to conjure up endless visuals and storylines of solitary detective antiheroes and deep dark secrets resting under bustling electric blue neon-lit skylines.

Tesseract by Makeup and Vanity Set

Clocking just under 17 minutes in runtime, this latest EP is sure to have you spinning its tracks on repeat and thirsting for more. Thankfully, Makeup and Vanity Set has got you covered, as for those unaware or those who’ve just plainly lost count, this marks no less than the artists’ 14th project to drop on Bandcamp this year alone.

Be sure to check Makeup and Vanity Set on Bandcamp, Facebook and on his official webpage to keep up to date with the latest news and releases.

Earlier this month you released the video for Makeup and Vanity Set’s ‘Algorithm’. Can you give us a bit of a backstory behind the video’s story and themes?

Saman: Matt (MAVS) basically sent us the album around July 2019 and asked us to pick our favorite track to make a video. There were so many false starts and We had so many ideas for this such as live-action concepts with real people, but we couldn’t get it to work for the budget. Then came COVID around March and things stopped. We were like “What do we do now?”. At the time Justin and I were annoyed by the fact that evil Amazon was profiting off of the pandemic, so we thought of doing this spot with an evil chatbot from Amazon. We were really pissed at the time and we were getting very upset about the whole Black Lives Matter stuff. We felt pain for the marginalized and underrepresented, with both of us being POC and having dealt with racism ourselves. We just went further down the spiral with the Dark Web and things like that. It kind of escalated from there.

Justin: This is the second music video that Saman and I have directed together. The first one was the Meg & Dia video, which kind of explored a similar world. We naturally gravitated together towards this strange, amorphous fear of AI and its capabilities. We workshopped four or five different concepts and then we landed on this idea that we could do a whole video with just text. I was honestly a little unsure that we could pull it off but Saman was so gung-ho about it that I was down to try it out. It felt like an insane challenge where we could unload all of this stuff that has been causing us a tremendous amount of frustration, angst and sadness. We explored the whole QAnon phenomenon, the trolling on 4chan and 8kun, stuff that I had been researching anyway, simply because I wanted to understand what was going on. The video was a good way to explore and vent about all of this racism, misogyny and all these people who wander through our lives anonymously from the dark corners of the web.

I feel like you both have very distinct and somewhat diametrically opposing styles. The work I’ve seen from Justin seems to be more contemplative/organic, picturesque, whereas Saman veers more towards a more-action-based digital world. Do you agree with this? How would you qualify the creative process between the two of you?

Justin: I agree with that 100%. I think there’s something special about that dynamic. Saman and I aren’t just collaborators; we’re very close friends and we share a lot of personal time together outside of work. I respect his talent and abilities and I hold him at such high regard that there are certain things that I would be uncomfortable pursuing if it were just me doing it. Together, we have this combined force thing that gives us the freedom to play in each other’s world a little bit. It felt really natural while we were doing it. I’m always surprised at the results because obviously it’s a mix of our two brains and sensibilities, which makes things inherently different.

Saman: I agree with that. To me, Justin is very much an artist, an experimenter and explorer. He loves all forms of art and disciplines. He’s able to use his craft in so many different ways. I think that I’m very much a campfire storyteller. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that the storytelling is the most important part of my DNA. It’s nice to work with Justin because when you have another brain, you can try and stay objective with the story. Unlike with our previous video, we kind of played whatever role we needed to. A lot of that came from trust, I believe. It’s very hard for people to give up what they usually do. So there were times where Justin was taking the lead on the story whilst I was focusing on the technical aspect. I think Justin brought a lot to the table regarding the topic and the issues and he educated me on certain elements. It was a learning experience. I like that our projects are always about trying something new. They’re stories that we know we want to tell through experiments. That’s a very Justin thing. I’m experimental, but Justin just is an experimenter, so I feel a lot more confident with him because he does his homework. I just want to make shit up. I don’t like doing the homework.

Justin: That’s a funny way to look at it. I feel the exact same way that you feel about me. I thought that you were incredibly experimental. It was invigorating and fun. You also have this insane knowledge about the UI stuff. It is mindboggling. I guess we just leaned into each other’s traits and interests.

Saman: Yes! And the UI was unique for both of us because we’re so far away from motion graphics. I guess, if anything, I go into it a little bit more because I’ve done it a few times and I’ve used text in music videos before. I like doing unconventional music videos, but this was something new for both of us. We had to figure out how to make text interesting in a music video, which is a medium that is supposed to be very visual. It was a paradox of sorts, but we liked the challenge.

What have you learned from working during Covid?

Saman: It’s interesting because we technically finished the video in July. The label thought it should come out a little later and wanted to do some homework on how to implement the strategy of promoting it. During that time, Justin and I were doing other “pandemic jobs”. I shot two commercials remotely while I was sitting in my bedroom on a computer. I think this job had the same kind of feeling where I just miss people. I miss human interaction, and I think a lot of it bled into the work. I think the reason that there’s something really scary and sinister and sad about the video is that it feels lonely because that’s how we felt. It felt isolated. Even though Justin and I don’t like people like Jeff, the main character, we felt like him in the sense that we’re alone making this thing in a dark room. I think that the learning experience for me was that I know that I like people, as much as I say that I don’t, because I feel sad because I’m not able to interact with other humans. The other thing that came up is communicating ideas. You have to be very specific from note to note, which honed that skill down. You don’t have access to people as often and the way you normally would, so you have to turn on your brain to creative mode all the time. Justin and I would have to get on a call at all hours, dead tired, to get these assets handled on time. So there’s a lot of time management, creative management and expectations. We had to go with the flow, too, because we weren’t the ones doing the effects. It sounds like it’s all compromise but they’re actually reality checks and good lessons.

Justin: I feel like I learned a lot from this video because we’re living in a time that feels like planning seems obsolete or strange to do. I’ve done four music videos during the quarantine, and every time I’d start one I feel like it might not get finished, they might pull the plug on it. There are so many things happening that every time I released a video, some horrible tragedy happened. When we released this one, Ruth Bader Ginsburg died that same day. When I released another one during the pandemic, George Floyd had died that same day. There’s always these things where you’re wondering whether things are going to fly, whether it’s going to get cancelled or whether it’s even going to be received in the right way when it comes out. There’s this big void of what to expect. While we were doing this, I was always on the verge of wondering if they were going to can the project at any time. I don’t know if I even told you that, Saman.

Saman: No, you never did. That’s interesting! [Laughs] I love how you didn’t want to bring it up so as not to jinx it.

Justin: I didn’t want to “Incept” your mind with any doubt, because I love the project. But I was filled with uncertainty the whole time. It was a test of patience the whole time.

Saman: There’s such uncertainty in things dying so fast and so often that you really have to be zen about these things. I have meetings with big celebrities about a project that later dies within two days. I get depressed about it, then two days later this other project moves and goes forward. With this video, I had this carefree attitude throughout. I think the label loved it originally, but they were being respectful and concerned whether Matt was going to like it. After Matt came back to us and told us that he loved it, they were constantly there to make sure the video had the best “life” after its release. That’s been hard too. We’ve had a lot of publications that were very frightened by it, some people offended by it. As a society, because people don’t like feeling uncomfortable, they choose to not watch something. I think that a lot of people are just uncomfortable and we realized that it’s a shit-starter video. We know that we’re going to be provoking people, and we know the people who like being provoked will like it and spread it. We’ve been shadowbanned several times when we’d post it. It would get banned, taken down or flagged. It’s been a hell of a process releasing this video. It’s ironic because the song is called ‘Algorithm’ and yet the algorithm of the web is blocking our video and preventing us from spreading the word. I definitely learned that, sadly, as a society, we don’t want to face the hard truths. And it bums me out.

I assumed that you somewhat expected this reaction though, given that the video touches upon this very subject. It’s somewhat … fitting.

Saman: Yeah! What’s very interesting is that women tend to like the video, which we were initially worried about. Women seem to like it more. We thought that men would like it as well, but they seem a lot more frightened by it. I think it’s a lot of men probably see a little bit of Jeff in them, and it’s super sad that, rather than engaging with it and acknowledging it, they run away from it. My favorite responses are from people who just give compliments about how good the video looks. I always know the subtext of those comments is that they’re uncomfortable and didn’t have the words to express what they feel. We weren’t surprised, you’re right. We kind of knew what was coming. We just didn’t realize how delusional people are, how they’d rather have junk food at a time like this. Justin and I are big proponents of self-healing. We love meditating and spirituality and I was disturbed by how blocked people are.

Justin: I guess that if I can amend my answer, I’d say that is the most important thing I’ve learned. Men and women are very different in the way they perceive these things. When we were coming up with this Jeff character and figuring all of his flaws and kinks, I was basing my input on two of my good friends, one of which is one of my best friends growing up. He has this fetishization of Asian culture and Asian women, and that always disturbed me as someone who is mixed race. My mom is Japanese and my dad is white, and I’ve had white people and Japanese people being racist towards me. That’s something that’s overlooked and I wanted to make sure we incorporate those perspectives into this video. People can just anonymously fetishize, dehumanize and emasculate on the Internet. Jeff was very much that guy who feels like he can do whatever he wants and get away with it. Men, because they saw themselves in Jeff, were really disturbed. Women almost immediately saw a predator in Jeff. They’ve seen this guy before. They’re viewing it from two very different lenses. That was the most interesting thing to me. One of my good friends is, in my mind, a model for Vanessa Yi, this second-generation Asian person. She said that she longs for the day for an AI bot to take down these racist, misogynist trolls because she’s been terrorized by them. She knows Jeff and she can’t stand it. She’s a symbol for that. The guys see AI as a symbol of a force digging up stuff that they don’t want people to see. They are very much more protective of their perceived privacy. They want to keep what they do in the shadows. And that was disturbing. Instinctively, men were scared of the AI and women were scared of Jeff. That’s very telling and very sad. 

Social media and online means of communication seem to be quite a hot topic of debate as of late, namely with the release of Netflix’s The Social Dilemma.

Saman: We were just watching it as the video was coming out. The parallels were kind of interesting.

The documentary draws a link between social media business models and algorithms and the spread of racist ideologies and conspiracy theories, namely QAnon. How would you like our relationship to social media and tech to evolve?

Saman: Personal accountability is huge. One thing I feel is that the tech community is so invisible to lawmakers, politicians and people who’re in power. It’s hard to ask for accountability when the people at the top of the tech world don’t fully understand what they’re doing. It’s almost like empathetic autism, the inability to react to the damage that’s being caused. The word “regulation” sounds like censorship, but what I think of when I hear that word is just being accountable. I think it’s hard, because “empathy” and “accountability” don’t mean anything to data. It’s a little bit of a nihilistic view that I have right now, because I’m upset at it all and I’m still absorbing things, but I think that what’s going to happen is an implosion. I don’t think that we are going to be able to sustain this. I believe that madness will come. The thing that’s supposed to be connecting us is the thing disconnecting us the most as humans. I don’t know if there’s a way to stop it. I just think that people are going to have to rebel and stop using things or tax the shit out of tech people to take away power.

Justin: I agree with all of that. In a weird way, this is what it feels like to have already lost the battle. What happens when you open a portal to what feels like infinite amounts of human knowledge? There’s darkness and light that comes with that. I think I’m a more educated and more empathetic person because of the internet. I’ve learned so much about things I would have no access to. But there is also that dehumanization factor because you’re looking at something through this apparatus plugged into all of this other stuff. At a certain point, because of that disconnect between something  tangible like reading a book or talking to a person face-to-face and the online world, there’s an obfuscation of the truth, where people don’t even trust what’s coming out of them. They’re algorithmically fed information because that algorithm wants to keep a status quo. Then people start reinforcing these bad ideas that they stumble into, being incentivized to distance themselves from each other. They start not trusting people who are authorities in their field, and that translates to terrible, dangerous ideas that people can make money off of. That’s a real problem. People are making money off of this division. The wrong people are being incentivized to do the wrong things, and the right people don’t even know what’s true anymore. I can’t see us as a society coming back from that.

The video also deals with our relationship between humans and tech, in this instance AI. Do you find yourself buying into the humanization of tech?

Saman: What I want and what I think will happen are probably two different things. What I want is usage of technology as a tool and to be able to rely on it in some ways and to be able to control it in other ways. People don’t care about the truth as long as they get what they want, or rather what they think they want. I think that technology will not rule us but will be used as a way to manipulate people. As people get lonelier and stop talking to each other, I think that technology will become people’s friends to talk to. We don’t care if it’s real, because as long as it feels real to us, who gives a shit? And that’s how fake news works. When you turn on Fox News, they’re not news anchors anymore. They’re basically reverends for corruption. It’s the same thing. Where this video is a bit of a wish fulfilment for Justin and I is that we explore whether AI will see humans as sacks of waste and try to take us out, or rather take out the people that are hurting us. The idea of an AI vigilante is wish fulfilment is something I hope happens. Maybe AI will save us from ourselves. Who knows? We will accidentally create this technology that knows how to put us out of our misery and stop the disease.

Justin: In my current state, I see tech as useful tools. AI is in this weird early stage where it still can’t quite understand the features of the human face. It doesn’t quite get it yet, but I do think that AI technology as a whole has an actual evolution very much like organic lifeforms. It just happens to be that this evolution very much integrated with humanity. It’s in its best interest to continuously integrate with us and eventually become indistinguishable from us as lifeforms. I think we’ll just keep on moving towards that place where, at some point, people will stop wondering whether it’s a good or bad thing. It’ll just be a thing. It will be integrated with us in such a way that it’s indistinguishable. Right now it feels like a tool, at some point it will feel like a lifeform, and after that it will even feel like a superior lifeform. It won’t have the hang-ups of the body that kills them. I know it sounds very Sci-Fi, but I do feel that’s what it looks like. And I’m neither upset nor fearful or happy about it. It’s just a thing that’s happening and people will adjust and adapt to it as they adapt to any new circumstance.

Closing off, name one of your favorite albums, movies and books.

Justin: Journey in Satchidananda by Alice Coltrane is one of my favorite albums of all time. Maybe my favorite book is Wise Blood by Flannery O’Connor. Film-wise, I’ll go with Alien.

Saman: My favorite album is Daft Punk’s Homework. My favorite movie is Terminator II.  I’m not much of a reader, but I’ll go with the Steve Jobs bio [by Walter Isaacson].

What’s next for the two of you?

Saman : Our collaborations now are nothing to announce as of yet. I’m working on a few films that I’m either writing or developing and getting cast. I’ve got a science-fiction film. The movie I’m the most excited about is a Kung-Fu Romantic Comedy called Kung-Fu Love.

Justin: I’ve got a short film in the works and I’m also illustrating a book with my wife right now. It’ll come out next year.

Makeup and Vanity Set’s Endless Destiny is out now via Data Airlines

Saman Kesh is represented by Golden LA for commercial work.
Thank you to Justin, Saman and their team for making this interview possible.

Centred on a conversation between a human and chatbot, the video makes a dark, daring descent into the depths of human apathy in the Internet Age and is sure to wipe off any glimmer of leftover optimism you may have had after watching Netflix’s The Social Dilemma documentary.

(Makeup and Vanity Set – Algorithm / Directed by Saman Kesh & Justin Hopkins)

MAVS’ latest album Endless Destiny drops this Friday via Data Airlines and is available for pre-order.