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Virtual Self
The design features a central, glowing blue crystal. Surrounding it are various geometric lines and circles, resembling a complex mystical diagram. The background is dark with faint text and symbols. The album title, "Virtual Self", is displayed vertically on the left side in a stylized font.
EP by
Virtual Self
ReleasedNovember 29, 2017 (2017-11-29)
Genre
Length20:33
LabelSelf-released
ProducerPorter Robinson
Singles from Virtual Self
  1. "Eon Break"
    Released: October 25, 2017
  2. "Ghost Voices"
    Released: November 8, 2017

Virtual Self is the debut extended play (EP) by the American electronic music producer Porter Robinson under the alias Virtual Self. It was self-released on November 29, 2017. After releasing his debut studio album Worlds (2014), a deviation from his earlier sound, Robinson struggled to create a follow-up; he underwent a period of writer's block that was intensified by depression. He then started planning the Virtual Self alias, using electronic music and Internet webpages from the early 2000s as main sources of inspiration.[a]

Virtual Self is a trance and neotrance EP. Robinson tried to recreate sounds from the early 2000s while incorporating modern song structures. The alias is represented by two characters created by Robinson: Pathselector, with mid-tempo songs, and Technic-Angel, with faster ones. Virtual Self's visuals present cryptic messages and a mysterious atmosphere.

Two singles were released ahead of the EP: "Eon Break" and "Ghost Voices"; the latter was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards in 2019. Robinson toured as Virtual Self in support of the EP beginning in December 2017, and later in 2018 during his Utopia System tour. The EP sold a thousand copies in its first week of release in the United States and charted on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Album Sales and Heatseekers Albums.

Background

[edit]
On a distant stage, many lights shine outward, and Porter Robinson is silhouetted against a screen depicting the sky and floating cuboidal structures.
Robinson performing in 2014 on the Worlds Live tour

Porter Robinson was initially known for his "aggressive" electro and complextro sound, with releases such as the 2010 single "Say My Name" and the 2011 extended play (EP) Spitfire.[1][2][3] In 2012, he released "Language", his first song with a more melodic sound.[2][4] Two years later, Robinson released his debut studio album, Worlds, a further departure from his earlier sound.[2][4] It was acclaimed and had an impact on the electronic dance music scene.[2][5][1]

Following Worlds's release and its positive reception, Robinson set high expectations for himself.[6] Initially, he thought he could continue producing the sounds of that album[7] and felt pressured to release a similar follow-up.[1] He locked himself in his studio for about 12 hours a day[8] and produced a hundred demos for what would be a follow-up to Worlds; he described these demos as "the music of a person who was depressed and uninspired and scared and unhappy".[1] Ultimately, Robinson resisted this idea,[9] as he could not come up with new ideas or create anything he was satisfied with.[1][8] Robinson attributed these struggles to depression and self-doubt.[5]

After these attempts, Robinson realized that musical tropes from the early 2000s, albeit obsolete, were still interesting to him. He was also tempted to write music using a pseudonym, as that made him feel less pressure.[10] Later in 2015, he started planning the Virtual Self alias.[7] In August 2016, Robinson released "Shelter",[11] a collaboration with Madeon that Robinson believed to be successful. He admired Madeon's output of the period and drew inspiration from it, while also seeking to distort that influence into something unrecognizable.[7] In 2017, Robinson moved to London to work on the Virtual Self alias.[12]

Concept and inspiration

[edit]
An arcade game machine for "Dance Dance Revolution Extreme". The machine has a screen on top displaying the game's title, with speakers on either side. Below the screen is the control panel, and in front of it is a dance platform with colored arrows, used by players to follow the dance moves. Two red handrails are attached to the platform for support.
Dance Dance Revolution (example cabinet pictured) was Robinson's first contact with electronic music.

Robinson's main inspiration for the Virtual Self alias, including its sound and visuals, was the early 2000s.[a] This was the period where Robinson discovered the Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) and Beatmania rhythm games, where he first heard electronic music;[1] DDR was what motivated Robinson to produce music in the first place.[13] The Virtual Self alias has deep roots in nostalgia, and Robinson wanted to help define how people remembered the early 2000s.[1]

Robinson felt reinvigorated from working on Virtual Self. He became highly fixated on the EP and devoted large quantities of time to making it; his passion supplanted his feeling that he should focus on projects with commercial potential, which he believed Virtual Self did not have.[7][9] In particular, he became "obsessed" with the general feel of the early 2000s present in The Matrix (1999), DeviantArt visuals, forum signatures, and rhythm game backgrounds.[13] Robinson wanted to combine the idea of "cyber, sensibility, technology" from that time—which he felt was associated with the "Eastern European vibe" given by grunge, Linkin Park, and t.A.T.u.—with "the sense of magic", which he related to the Final Fantasy franchise and the video game Phantasy Star Online (2000).[13] With the help of The Wayback Machine, Robinson spent three years revisiting forums and websites he frequented in that period, which helped him compose a mood board for Virtual Self's sounds and visuals.[9] However, Robinson said that Virtual Self was "not purely an homage", as he was not trying to recreate a specific concept, but rather his memories and feelings surrounding the era.[9]

Robinson described the music under his name as his most "authentic and sincere soul", while, according to Billboard, Virtual Self was about "shattering his own habits, perhaps even his image".[9] He said that Virtual Self could be seen as an alienation attempt.[7] According to Robinson, the project was far from being an attempt to please his fans; he wanted it to be something many of his fans would reject, as "[t]hat's a sign of success".[1] He also stated that he wanted to separate music made under his own name from that which was made under the Virtual Self alias; he does not play both in the same shows.[9][1]

Visuals

[edit]

According to Robinson, one of the first things he did for the Virtual Self alias was gather much imagery that evoked a "feeling of Virtual Self", which served as a basis for the album cover's appearance. He also wanted to gather dynamic graphics with a similar style to reference when working with video artists. Ultimately, the intros for the Beatmania IIDX video game series, in particular 6th Style (2001) and 7th Style (2002), were directly referenced in the video artists' work.[14] Robinson also cited the 1998 anime Serial Experiments Lain as one of Virtual Self's biggest influences.[14]

Virtual Self's music videos and website contain cryptic messages and questions.[7] Robinson stated that he did not want to convey specific meaning for these;[7][13] he said Virtual Self is about creating a mysterious atmosphere.[13] He described the Virtual Self's methodology, especially its visuals, as "chaotic".[13] His techniques to obtain these messages included translating sentences many times through Google Translate, for which he became inspired by the grammar changes and added words, as well as Markov chains.[7] Robinson also cited influences from a design trope in digital abstract art of the year 2000 "where people would put tiny text everywhere — little floating sentences that are partially blurry and transparent. You feel like they're being whispered to you by a robot." These sentences were just "atmospheric" instead of conveying a specific meaning.[7] Some of these "nonsensical sentences" were taken from arcade game boxes Robinson used to read in the early 2000s.[9]

Composition

[edit]
"Ghost Voices"
"Ghost Voices", a song by Pathselector, includes elements of trance and deep house.[15]
"Eon Break"
"Eon Break", a song by Technic-Angel, includes elements of happy-hardcore and hardstyle.[16][17]
Problems playing these files? See media help.

Media outlets described the sound of Virtual Self as trance[17] or neotrance.[1][14] They identified inspirations from early 2000s genres such as speedcore,[7][3][18] trance,[3][15] jungle,[7][14] rave,[7][3] hard trance,[17][18] eurodance,[17] house,[18] progressive house,[14] intelligent dance music,[7] hardcore,[3] J-core,[7] breakbeat,[15] garage,[18] and electro.[18] Sources noted similarities to rhythm game music,[14][17] such as Dance Dance Revolution music,[3][17] and keygen music.[17]

Robinson wanted to blend different styles of electronic music from the early 2000s, such as jungle, trance and gabber.[12] According to Robinson, he listened to "every" song from 1998 to 2003—a number he claimed to approach 100,000—tagged as trance, jungle, drum and bass, breaks, and techno on Beatport.[7] While he found many of them to be generic and unimpressive, he identified common sonic and structural traits that he could incorporate.[7] Robinson had to research how to authentically recreate sounds from PC Music's "hyper-modern, complex productions", by looking into early 2000s sample packs.[7] However, he also stated that he did not want Virtual Self to be exclusively made of references; he tried to include compositional turns that would not be expected in the genres and time period to which he was paying homage.[7] As such, while still using mostly early 2000s sounds, Robinson also tried to implement modern song structures,[7] stating that he wanted to "morph 2001 tropes into a 2017 production sensibility".[19] Robinson also particularly cited Calvin Harris's 2009 song "I'm Not Alone" as a heavy inspiration for Virtual Self.[20]

Songs

[edit]

The Virtual Self alias is represented by two characters created by Robinson, Pathselector and Technic-Angel; to establish them as characters, Robinson created a Twitter account for each.[1] In the EP, the white-dressed, gold-masked Pathselector represents the tracks "Ghost Voices" and "A.I.ngel (Become God)", while Technic-Angel is a fair-skinned, dark-cloaked harbinger that represents tracks "Particle Arts", "Key" and "Eon Break".[9] Robinson described Pathselector's songs as neotrance, mid-tempo, and adhering stylistically to trance, while he described Technic-Angel's songs as "maximalist, 170 BPM, crazy hardcore, speedcore, jungle, and drum and bass".[7]

The EP begins with the Technic-Angel track "Particle Arts", which Philip Sherburne of Pitchfork described as "a 175-BPM juggernaut of trance stabs and happy-hardcore breaks".[17] According to Andrew Rafter of DJ Mag, Robinson uses EDM-styled drum and bass with glitch elements.[15] The next track is Pathselector's "Ghost Voices", which combines deep house and trance elements[15] while, according to Kat Bein of Billboard, having "soulful, halftime garage vibes".[21] Sherburne described it as the most contemporary sounding track of the EP.[17] It is followed by "A.I.ngel (Become God)", also by Pathselector, which combines trance and big beat elements.[15] Sherburne said that it contains "carefully sculpted vocal synths" similar to the ones found in Garden of Delete (2015) by Oneohtrix Point Never.[17] The last two tracks, "Key" and "Eon Break", are by Technic-Angel. The EDM-like track "Key"[15] changes its key halfway through, a common pop music trope,[17] while the trance-like "Eon Break"[15] ends the EP with "a break-neck, glittering, happy-hardcore tune", according to Bein,[16] while Sherburne felt it "deals in hardstyle cadences and machine-gun snares".[17]

Promotion and release

[edit]
Porter Robinson performing on stage, standing behind a table with equipment, raising his hands. Blue beams of light radiate from the stage.
Robinson performing as Virtual Self in Brooklyn, New York on December 8, 2017

On October 25, 2017, Robinson released the EP's first single, "Eon Break", announcing his then-new alias Virtual Self via his Twitter page. A music video for the song was released, containing cryptic messages.[16] The EP's second single, "Ghost Voices", was released on November 8, 2017.[21] On November 18,[22] Robinson announced the Virtual Self EP, making previews of its tracks available on a new website announced on Virtual Self's Twitter page.[23]

The EP was released on November 29, 2017.[24] In the United States, Virtual Self sold 1,000 copies in its first week of release and appeared in two Billboard charts, peaking at number eight on Dance/Electronic Album Sales and number 21 on Heatseekers Albums.[25] Robinson first performed as Virtual Self on December 8, 2017 in Brooklyn, New York.[24][26] Shows continued in 2018, with Robinson playing in U.S. festivals such as the Ultra Music Festival in Miami.[19] On January 11 that year, a music video for "Particle Arts" was released,[27] alongside one for "Ghost Voices" on February 28[28] and one for "Key" on April 18.[29] Robinson released "Angel Voices" on July 20, 2018, a happy-hardcore infused remix of "Ghost Voices" which he described as the "Technic-Angel remix".[30] Virtual Self shows continued in August 2018, with the two-month North American Utopia System Tour.[31] In 2020, Robinson announced a Virtual Self artbook and fashion line in collaboration with the Japanese brand Chloma.[32]

Reception and legacy

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Pitchfork5.9/10[17]

Kat Bein of Billboard described the Virtual Self alias as "high concept musical nerdiness" with a strong Final Fantasy influence and that the entire EP "plays like a killer soundtrack to the best mid-2000s RPG Nintendo forgot to release".[24] Philip Sherburne of Pitchfork described Virtual Self as an effort to evoke the aesthetics of the turn of the millennium whose rhythms are "funkless" and "hyperactive", reminiscent of Dance Dance Revolution soundtracks. He said that Virtual Self focuses on the fanciest aspects of Robinson's influences, eliminating any chance of subtlety "beneath a billion-watt gleam". Sherburne finished his review by saying that Virtual Self's revamp on trance meant "the boundaries of taste are always in flux" and that, in the end, "nostalgia will rehabilitate even the shaggiest underdogs."[17] Andrew Rafter of DJ Mag praised that Robinson was experimenting with new influences and sounds, but lamented that some of the tracks didn't fully meet his expectations.[15]

Billboard staff chose "Ghost Voices" as the 32nd best dance/electronic song of 2017.[33] In an interview with the same magazine published in February 2018, DJ Calvin Harris stated that "Ghost Voices" made him enjoy dance music again.[34] The Fader staff chose Virtual Self as an "artist you need to know about" in 2018,[35] and chose the EP track "Particle Arts" as the 63rd best track of that year.[36] "Ghost Voices" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, marking Robinson's first ever nomination to the award. In a statement to Billboard in January 2019, Robinson said he had not even realized "Ghost Voices" had been submitted for consideration; being nominated made him feel like he won.[37] Billboard staff named it the 18th greatest dance song of the decade.[38] Robinson perceived that hardstyle and hardcore surged in popularity after the EP was released.[37]

Track listing

[edit]

All music is composed by Porter Robinson.

Virtual Self track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Particle Arts"3:54
2."Ghost Voices"4:26
3."A.I.ngel (Become God)"5:01
4."Key"3:32
5."Eon Break"3:40
Total length:20:33

Chart performance

[edit]
Chart performance for Virtual Self
Chart (2017) Peak
position
US Dance/Electronic Album Sales (Billboard)[25] 8
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[25] 21

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Robinson has cited 1998–2003,[7][12] 1999–2003,[9][1] or the early 2000s as the periods of inspiration for Virtual Self.[7][9][13][1] For simplicity and consistency, "early 2000s" will be used, as it is the most mentioned by Robinson in interviews.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Ochoa, John (February 15, 2018). "Porter Robinson: DJ Mag North America cover feature". DJ Mag. Archived from the original on March 15, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Ochoa, John (January 22, 2019). "10 moments that defined Porter Robinson". DJ Mag. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Moen, Matt (August 24, 2021). "Let Porter Robinson Nurture you". Paper. Archived from the original on November 23, 2021. Retrieved August 29, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Larry, Fitzmaurice (August 11, 2014). "Porter Robinson: Worlds album review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Cirisano, Tatiana (July 6, 2017). "Porter Robinson's 10 best songs: Critic's picks". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  6. ^ Ochefu, Christine; Simpson, Dave; Snapes, Laura (April 27, 2021). "'If not hope, then what?': the musicians finding optimism in dark times". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Lhooq, Michelle (February 18, 2018). "Porter Robinson's ambitious, human Virtual Self". The Fader. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Chen, Juna (November 22, 2017). "Interviews：音楽界とアニメ界に激震を与えた DJ のポーター・ロビンソンが語る自身の'今'" [Interviews: DJ Porter Robinson, who shook the music and anime worlds, talks about his "now"]. Hypebeast (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Bein, Kat (April 10, 2018). "Porter Robinson talks writing a 'really sincere love letter' to the early 2000s with Virtual Self project". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  10. ^ Kocay, Lisa (February 28, 2018). "Virtual Self releases 'Ghost Voices' music video and discusses Ultra Music Festival". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  11. ^ Yoo, Noah (August 11, 2016). "Porter Robinson and Madeon release new song 'Shelter,' announce joint tour: Listen". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  12. ^ a b c Miller, Isabella (May 18, 2022). "'I don't take that lightly': Porter Robinson interviewed". Clash. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g iFLYER 2018.
  14. ^ a b c d e f Bulut, Selim (March 29, 2018). "The Y2K cyber worlds that inspired Porter Robinson's neo-trance project". Dazed. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rafter, Andrew (November 29, 2017). "Porter Robinson releases Virtual Self EP: Listen". DJ Mag. Archived from the original on February 6, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  16. ^ a b c Bein, Kat. "Porter Robinson unveils 'Virtual Self' alias with stomping, 'DDR'-inspired jam 'Eon Break'". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 29, 2017. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Sherburne, Philip (January 3, 2018). "Virtual Self: Virtual Self EP album review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  18. ^ a b c d e Bein, Kat (March 7, 2018). "Six new songs you need to know this week". BBC. Archived from the original on December 17, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  19. ^ a b Bein, Kat (January 30, 2018). "Porter Robinson confirms leaked email on Virtual Self, state of electronic music". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 5, 2023. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  20. ^ "Porter Robinson: 'Calvin Harris was really inspirational for Virtual Self'". DJ Mag. April 10, 2018. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  21. ^ a b Bein, Kat (November 8, 2017). "Porter Robinson takes Virtual Self into another dimension with new song 'Ghost Voices'". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 1, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  22. ^ Virtual Self [@virtual_self] (November 18, 2017). "Virtual Self EP coming 11/29" (Tweet). Retrieved March 20, 2024 – via Twitter.
  23. ^ Bein, Kat (November 27, 2017). "Porter Robinson announces debut EP as Virtual Self". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 26, 2023. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  24. ^ a b c Bein, Kat (November 29, 2017). "Porter Robinson's EP as 'Virtual Self' brings bright and dark together in a kaleidoscope of fun: Listen". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 30, 2017. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  25. ^ a b c Murray, Gordon (December 7, 2017). "Billboard dance chart upstarts: Lost Frequencies & Zonderling, Loud Luxury and Virtual Self". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  26. ^ "ポーター・ロビンソン、新プロジェクトとなるヴァーチャル・セルフの音源がリリース" [Porter Robinson releases the tracks of his new project, Virtual Self]. NME Japan (in Japanese). November 30, 2017. Archived from the original on July 7, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  27. ^ Bein, Kat (January 18, 2018). "Virtual Self's 'Particle Arts' is a trip through spacey zen gardens: Watch". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 28, 2024. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  28. ^ Bein, Kat (February 28, 2018). "Porter Robinson shares more about Virtual Self in 'Ghost Voices' video: Watch". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  29. ^ Ochoa, John (April 24, 2018). "Virtual Self releases new music video for 'Key': Watch". DJ Mag. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  30. ^ Bein, Kat (July 20, 2018). "Virtual Self releases Technic-Angel remix of 'Ghost Voices,' a.k.a. 'Angel Voices': Listen". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 13, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  31. ^ Bein, Kat (July 12, 2018). "Porter Robinson announces Virtual Self North American Utopia tour: Watch". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 24, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  32. ^ Fielding, Amy (January 29, 2020). "Porter Robinson announces Virtual Self artbook and fashion line". DJ Mag Asia. Archived from the original on May 28, 2024. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  33. ^ "Billboard's 50 best dance/electronic songs of 2017: Critics' picks". Billboard. December 15, 2017. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  34. ^ Bein, Kat (February 12, 2018). "Calvin Harris says Porter Robinson restored his love of dance music". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  35. ^ "13 artists you need to know about in 2018". The Fader. January 9, 2018. Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  36. ^ "The 100 best songs of 2018". The Fader. December 12, 2018. Archived from the original on February 18, 2019. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  37. ^ a b Bein, Kat (January 9, 2019). "Porter Robinson on Virtual Self Grammy nomination: 'I won the moment it got nominated'". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  38. ^ "The 60 greatest dance songs of the decade: Staff list". Billboard. November 26, 2019. Archived from the original on May 19, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2024.

Video sources

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