I don’t know a lot about vaporwave, though I like most of what I have heard. Lots of people have written lots of words about the subgenre, many, if not most, derogatory, but I don’t understand the hate, which often seems directed at the aesthetics – many artist names and songs utilize symbols, non-standard capitalization, spacing, and other visual devices seem to piss people off. I suppose it could come across as slightly pretentious, but what is art if not the vision of the artist?
R23X is Marc Junker, a producer from Vancouver, BC., and he was fairly prolific for a bit, releasing six albums between 2014 and 2018. Veltahl was originally released digitally and on vinyl in 2016 and has been repressed by different labels twice since then, a testament to its success. Sonically it has the glitchy nature one would expect from vaporwave, disparate segments of sound merged together, sometimes artfully, sometimes abruptly. The overall vibe is a sort of anime chill, easily sliding into the background but occasionally bobing up the surface, capturing your attention for a moment before slipping back into your subconscious. I, for one, find the experience enjoyable – it’s not so ambient that it just disappears, but not so experimental that it twists your brain.
Veltahl is available for streaming on R23X’s Bandcamp page HERE. The vinyl is sold out, though you should be able to track down a copy on Discogs or eBay if you’re interested.