AOTW | 11 June – 17 June: POCARI COATING – Light Lines
After the last few albums of in-depth contextual releases on vaporwave history, Sunbleach is going to bring it back to simpler times and simpler creations with Light Lines by POCARI COATING. Don’t let the word “simple” fool you into thinking “dull” or “uninteresting” – in vaporwave, certain subgenres excel best when they are at their barest. Light Lines is a ten track signalwave album that is barely thirteen minutes long, with four tracks that don’t even surpass one minute in length. This album is created by repeating short jingles and instrumental muzak with just enough earworm to be simultaneously memorable and forgettable, occupying a rather curious position in the mind of the listener. Unlike mallsoft or faux-utopian albums where the idea of muzak takes on a sinister affect, Light Lines is produced to sound mousy. Each track features a blanket warm fidelity that, although not hi-fi by any means, makes audible each snare hit and bass line within the tracks (e.g. “Wave Runner”). The end result is a strangely nostalgic album that perhaps does better at achieving the welcoming yet unobtrusive climate that so much actual muzak back in the 90s tried and failed to accomplish. Give it a try next time you’re on-line shopping.
Read the Sunbleach article here, and check out the music below: