Metaculture Music Round-Up: Drums In The Deep
Broadway comes home, EDC hits get remixed, and the alligators return once more.
Our series of music round-ups covers sound you'll only find in virtual reality, produced by artists who socialize and work there. From acoustic to hardstyle techno, what's sonically relevant is being documented with us.
If you find an artist you like, click through the track information to give that person a follow (and buy something!). Your support is what keeps them making music--and we always love new sounds.
King Deluxe Releases Equilibrium
Our first selection for this music round-up is a new compilation from the King Deluxe label. Equilibrium is an effort of artists including Pìccolo, ryuuji!, Zero Tep, and VR-based musician WAKARAN GIRL.
King Deluxe has been steadily building their music releases with a roster of talented artists to enjoy music by, as well as hosting album release parties right in VRChat. You can catch WAKARAN GIRL playing at the King Deluxe-run VR venue, The Core, on August 6/7. The last album release party at The Core was highly praised by the general XR community, so it's highly advised to arrive at this show early in case there's a crowd.
As for the EP itself, it's a delight. Sharpened production with plenty of moments to get moving, it brings serious heat and plenty of attitude. Check out Equilibrium on Apple Music, or on the Spotify embed below.
Broadway Comes Home With Non-Player Character
As the music community grows in VR, it crosses paths and blurs its boundaries with other segments of the performance world. This time, acclaimed TV and VR actor Brendan Bradley has published an abridged version of Reprogram Me, a catchy tune from the VR production Non-Player Character.
And, actually? This song doesn't feel so far from the likes of Porter Robinson. We can easily hear a singer like Naku cover this, or it getting remixed by Laxcity.
CYNTHESZR Goes Heist Mode
We can pretty much set our clocks to betting that CYNTHESZR will become one of the biggest producers of this generation of online musicians. The proof? Repeater, another release of dark drums, fast tempo, and intense presentation. We also noticed this song being released under the techno label Heist Mode. Heist Mode has been hosting events in Los Angeles with some impressive names already, with one act linked to Detroit's Movement Festival. We hope this means more opportunities for CYNTHESZR to grow in the future.
Note: While you check out Repeater, you should also hit up their new collab with Ghozt, Yo Quiero Bailar.
The Alligators Roar Again In Chromatophores-02
The cranial side of the VR music scene rears its head once more with the return of Xenon Chameleon. His latest release, Chromatophores-02, is stated as a deeper dive "into Reaper and Renoise to make tracks heavily inspired by dub techno, jungle, breakcore, and IDM."
"On June 11th, we had a VR Chat release party for this mixtape at Ragehauz featuring a ton of talented DJs, both veterans of the VRChat scene and new performers," Xenon writes. "I am finishing a Masters Degree in a couple weeks, after which I will continue working on this series and likely diving into modular synthesis."
Chromatophores-02 features a smoother take on those familiar reptilian sounds. The blends are more sophisticated, and at times it's hard to tell what's a sourced alligator sample and what's actually a processed beat--which is pretty damn clever.
Pain Princess Introduces Club Lotion
The nights at virtual venue Concrete have been dizzyingly electrifying, with plenty of bangers gracing the speakers and transforming each performance to be outright iconic. Part of that is due to the guidance of Pain Princess, one of Concrete's resident DJs. Their take on pop remixes, paired with beautifully reminiscent visuals of early 00's RnB music videos, helps to create a dreamland where everyone on the floor is a diva.
Club Lotion brings some of those hits home for listeners to enjoy. Although it's always better to catch a DJ mixing in-person, this EP is a fresh assortment to what people have been dancing to lately, at one of the hottest clubs in virtual reality.
Glass Persona And The Edge Of The World
Glass Persona has been seeing some success in performing in VR and real-life shows in tandem, and it seems their popularity is growing. Their new offering is Psychotropic, heavy thumps and thoughtful melodic interludes.
"This EP is a 5 track exploration into a hypnotic melodic techno sound that I had never done before," the composer explains. "I spent a lot of time and energy on making this release as trippy and engaging as possible."
The result is uplifting and beautiful. Hear it below:
K1N Transforms An EDC Hit
We love a good remix at The Metaculture. Thankfully, K1N's supplied another opportunity to enjoy a comparison with his remix of Ray Volpe's Laserbeam.
Volpe's original track relies on melodic synth and kicks to lead in, and has a lighter sound overall despite the plentiful stomps throughout. K1N takes the track and adds real bass and volume underneath, giving it a much-worthy extra punch:
H4UNTER_ Takes The Initial Vow
A new musician joins the virtual fray, and his name is H4UNTER_. With Vow of Confidence, H4UNTER_ leads in with melodic synth and a story on his heels.
"This song was based on becoming who I am today and the challenges I have faced since then. All that stress and stuff builds up, but once you get the hang of things you bloom and break free. That's what this song is about," the artist explains.
We think he's got talent already, and look forward to more music in the future.
That's all for the music round-up this time! We hope you found something you liked here.