//LUDOVICO-LTD// – Digital_Wave1.0
Recommendation: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (bumped up to ☀☁☁ if you’re a big fan of classic-style)
(Classic-style) vaporwave is dead! … Right? Well, probably not – at least, not if artists such as //LUDOVICO-LTD// keep making stuff. Digital_Wave1.0 is the fifth release out on Smirk Sounds, released in June 2016. This Swiss artist generally focuses on glitchy recontextualizations of muzak and adult contemporary music. Whereas most classic-style vaporwave artists revel in their tempo-/pitch-shifting and ability to navigate the equalization panel of editing software, //LUDOVICO-LTD// has a bit more fun in wringing out the decadence of digital design – of which Digital_Wave1.0 is a pretty good example.
Digital_Wave1.0 comprises a large body of music with tracks of varying degrees of agreement with conservative definitions of musicality. For example, “superstar” stutters along in true classic-style form with several repetitions of samples and jump-cut aesthetics, “memory” flows along pretty close to its source material, and “allright” hits the noisier side of ECCOJAMS by its latter half. Digital_Wave1.0 is something of a classic-style vaporwave mixtape, where individual tracks mainly serve as ways to explore the general idea of glitchiness and the jump-cut aesthetic. It’s similar in approach to DERELICTメガタワー by death’s dynamic shroud.wmv, albeit without the deep-fried memes aspect. A few of the tracks pull the “fast-medium-fast-slow-fast” trope that’s rather common in classic-style vaporwave, but for the most part they are drowned out by the quality of the rest.
This release is best experienced in halves. Ninety-six minutes is a lot of classic-style vaporwave to experience in one sitting, and it runs the risks of making excellent racks such as the decrepit “tomorrow” seem worn out in sound and idea. But with that admonishment out of the way, give Digital_Wave1.0 a try if you’re looking for more classic-style fun. It’s a worthwhile investment for fans of labels such as DMT Tapes FL and its imprint Verbatim Consciousness Recordings.
Tracklist
1. intro – (1:09)
2. comeback – (4:23)
3. hysteria – (2:22)
4. workout – (4:26)
5. goggles – (2:27)
6. journey – (4:25)
7. intermission – (3:42)
8. lucid – (5:15)
9. memory – (5:08)
10. groovy – (4:15)
11. luxury – (2:23)
12. nuit – (5:04)
13. enclave – (3:48)
14. safari – (4:11)
15. allright – (4:45)1
16. sunshine – (3:34)
17. sunday – (3:13)
18. break – (4:20)
19. mood – (5:44)
20. superstar – (3:42)
21. ramen -(4:26)
22. tomorrow – (2:06)
23. celebration – (5:10)
24. credits – (6:57)
1(sic)