Dreampunk

Dreampunk
Stylistic origins	ambient electronic Film score Vaporwave drum and bass downtempo drone dark ambient techno dubstep jungle electro
Cultural origins	Mid-2010s, United Kingdom
Other topics
2814 Cyberpunk Surrealism Hardvapour

Dreampunk is a microgenre of electronic music characterized by its focus on cinematic ambience & field recordings, combined with various traits and techniques from electronic genres such as: techno, jungle, electro, dubstep, among others. Dreampunk emerged in the Mid-2010s, with many of its early artists drawing influence from film scores, the hazy tones of Vaporwave, and spacey drum & bass. The origins of dreampunk trace back to the breakout success of 2814, the ambient duo comprised of Luke Laurila (t e l e p a t h テレパシー能力者) and David Russo (Hong Kong Express).

Origins

On 29 January 2014, British future garage artist David Russo (Subaeris) launched the Dream Catalogue label, where he would release albums under his numerous aliases. Taking on the moniker, Hong Kong Express, the label boss explored ambient music, largely inspired by the films of Wong Kar-Wai. After befriending the American vaporwave producer Luke Laurila on SoundCloud, the two quickly released solo albums on Dream Catalogue, often times hidden behind anonymous aliases. After 10 months of fervent output from the duo and their labelmates, Laurila & Russo’s collaborative project, 2814, would release its self-titled debut album via Ailanthus Recordings. The album would largely be overshadowed by 2814’s second studio album, 新しい日の誕生 (Birth of a New Day). Described as “the soundtrack to the wandering, exploratory thoughts we have in our best waking moments”, by David James, Birth of a New Day (as well as 2814’s highly praised Rain Temple) exploded in popularity, all while inspiring a new generation of dreamy producers. Drifting from their predecessors, 2814 were steadfast about not using samples, atypical of the community at the time. Many independent artists would join Russo & Laurila, cementing Dream Catalogue as the go-to hub for experimental vaporwave on Bandcamp. Housing artists such as 猫 シ Corp., death’s dynamic shroud, Nmesh, and VAPERROR, the label gained traction online in the experimental music subculture. Despite their success in this community, Russo purged the label of many of its vaporwave albums, to avoid copyright disputes and focus on his self-described “dream music”. When asked about Dream Catalogue’s style, Russo responded, “I feel like the whole ‘dream music’ vibe is certainly fluid enough to encompass lots of different musical styles, while still retaining certain elements that make the label stand out as a whole - surreality, futurism, heavy concepts and story-driven projects, while ‘vaporwave’ as a term and an idea has become something of a burden to everyone involved with it.” After much fan backlash, Russo took his music & label in an entirely new direction, embracing wosX's [ironically named] hardvapour and the short lived ghost tech.

In 2013, after meeting each other in university, Pablo Salas and Gonzalo Silva opened up No Problema Tapes, a cassette oriented label from Chile. With early ties to Vaporwave (MindSpring Memories, Voyage Futur) and drone music (Rhucle, PJS, Keys for Eclipse), the versatile label naturally expanded into the realm of dreampunk. Backing some of the community’s earliest innovators, with Sangam, Renjā, and Origami Girl, Salas and Silva gradually expanded their interest in dreampunk, often signal boosting lesser known musicians. As a figurehead for the heavily phased “slushwave” genre, No Problema ended the 2010s with a tighter focus—supporting the up-and-comer dreampunk producers and their slushwave cohorts (such as desert sand feels warm at night & II nøthing II). On 17 October 2020, it was reported that No Problema Tapes’s headquarters had completely burned down (with their neighbors at Infinito Audio Network also receiving damage). The label was able to return to full operation quickly, with the help of a fundraiser organized by Nicol Brown (graphic designer, musician, and owner of Crystaltone / Livewire), outsourcing tape production to Canada’s New Motion label, and an impromptu compilation album hosted by The ATMO Collective.

With an expanding audience, cultural shift, and newfound internet community, dreampunk artists like Remember, CHUNGKING MANSIONS, KAGAMI Smile., and Thudwindow brought a darker edge to the genre's nebulous cinematic soundscapes. During this time, “dream music” doubled as “dreampunk” in casual conversation. The name derives from the word "cyberpunk", due to its frequent use of imagined metropolitan spaces in its sound design, evoking the experience of walking through a futuristic city.

In 2017, Laurila went on to team with Agia Mishazawa (the two of which make up the duo: Lovers Entwined) to create the Virtual Dream Plaza, an organization dedicated to releasing “love and dream music”. While the label is dedicated to emotion over genre, they were still able to find their otherworldly niche in the context of the scene.

In a period of growth, dreampunk artists like 輕描淡寫 (QMDX) and Sangam featured alongside Disasterpeace and Merzbow, on the now-defunct label: BLUDHONEY RECORDS. In its prime, BLUDHONEY's focus on vinyl & cassettes, along with its sleek design, brought a professional edge to the grassroots movement. In 2018, the label would go dark, breaking several deals with its artists. Some of those effected were Rashida Prime, QMDX, and the duo Kuroi Ame, the four of which would release physical records on VILL4IN, and would all eventually sign exclusively to Kuroi Ame's PURE LIFE ЧЖ label (which would release its first album in September 2018).

The term “dreampunk” was fully adopted by the community following [Dream Catalogue & BLUDHONEY alum] w u s o 命’s video essay, “Dreampunk: The Soundtrack To Dreams”, where he analyzed the history & stylistic features of the genre. With the style’s rise on emerging labels, such as PURE LIFE ЧЖ, VILL4IN, and No Problema Tapes, and a resurgence of virtual music festivals (Livewire, PURE LIVE, Enter The Void), new life was brought to the genre at the dawn of the 2020s.

Musical characteristics

Dreampunk primarily draws from sounds of the city, science fiction, surrealism, loneliness, love, and dreams. Musicians such as Vangelis, Burial, and Aphex Twin have been cited as inspiration for some producers. East Asian cinema, anime, and spirituality have also been known to influence dreampunk artists.

Rain is a frequent field recording choice, often used as a callback to the ambience of future-noir Blade Runner, a sci fi film that spends a considerable focus on palpable atmosphere and world building, rather than plot or action. This concentration on atmosphere gives the music an immersive and dreamlike quality. This quality is further heightened by the frequent use of tape in recording and distribution.

See also

• Cyberculture

References

Category:Electronic music genres Category:Microgenres Category:21st-century music genres