A talking-head documentary with the people from the Synthwave scene. Several composers and enthusiasts from different countries narrate their journey around Synthwave as a subculture and electronic music microgenre starting in the mid-2000s.
Synthwave (also called outrun, retrowave, or futuresynth[5]) is an electronic music microgenre that is based predominantly on the music associated with action, science-fiction, and horror film soundtracks of the 1980s. [wikipedia]
John Carpenter, also credited as the narrator in the documentary, contributes to the film with his personal story and ideas together with a retro-themed short story that marks the sections of the film. His films and the soundtracks he composed are mentioned as a major influence by the Synthwave music composers.
Some interviewees are the early musicians who were producing music that is put under the Synthwave umbrella today after the mainstream success with Drive (2011), Stranger Things (2016 -) or Thor: Ragnarok (2017). Most musicians mention sharing their music via social media networks such as Facebook or Myspace, working without music labels.
How the dominant/popular music genres evolved throughout the years and decades was an interesting part of the film. Also, some mention how different musical styles appropriate the musical instruments (synthesizers, in this case) and how the ‘coolness’ of the instrument is affected by this appropriation. Example: after using synthesizers in popular and low-quality content for a long time, these instruments started to be seen as devices to be avoided.
There are also remarks about Synthwave and electronic music in general about the production conditions. It’s a musical style where a single person can cover all aspects of music making from composing to editing, mixing, distributing, promoting, etc.
Spotify Playlist
Short Notes & Quotes
Narrated by John Carpenter.
Carpenter mentions how synthesizers helped him to create music for his low-budget films in a guerilla style. This is the story of underground creators producing Synthwave for over a decade. You probably heard it.
[Melbourne, Power Glove] didn’t have a name for a long time, just making music they like
[Nantes, Valerie Collective] started around 2006, woke up to the Synthwave tags in 2012-2013
[London, 80’s Stallone] I get freaked out with the genres, who cares man? Listen to the music, enjoy
[Austin, John Bergin] a certain type of electronic music, that recalls the music you might heard in the 80s.
[Paris, Pauline Putrescine (Tour manager)] “synthwave as the illegitimate child of Metal who met New Wave, who did also some shady things with Electro at the same time”.
[New York, Ten (NewRetroWave Founder & CEO)] people fall in love with it after listening 2-3 times
[Exeter, Ogre (composer)] Synthwave as a po-mo subculture, one foot in the past, one foot in the future.
“Is it possible to feel nostalgia for a decade you did not really live in?
People find it fresh because they never heard it before.
[London, Nina (singer & songwriter)] Always wanted to do 80s inspired music but was afraid people don’t listen to it. But now…
[Undisclosed location, Gunship (Band)] It sounds like 80s (I don’t agree with that) but it’s new music. 80s were magical times for films.
[Lleida, Nightcrawler (music composer)] synthwave is a catalyst of nostalgic music and the visual aesthethics of the 80s and the cinema as well.
[San Diego, Dance with the Dead (band)] Not just the music, but even video games etc. – everything started to look like 80s. The movie Drive (2011).
[Brussels, Fipip Galetic (Synthwave TV founder)] “The catalyst for me was Drive. I wanted to stay in the universe of the film”
Many people mention Drive as a major inspiration.
[Toronto, Electric Youth (band)] The creator of the song in Drive, mentions that it was not synthwave, it was a misunderstanding 🙂
[Grenoble, Carpenter Brut (music composer)] He doesn’t show his face. It’s not new to make music with synths.
[Antwerp, Jurgen Desmet (playmaker media group) ] was not expecting that much attention. I don’t want to sell purist or snobbish but for me it took a lot of fun part away.
“When we first started, there wasn’t many bands, maybe 6-7, a small community. There were hundreds of others in the next few years.”
“I’m probably too old and stupid but I hate the Internet. In a way, it has killed the concept of criticism. I mean, everybody says what they think in the Internet…”
[Victoria, Miami Nights 1984 (music composer)] Mentions a Facebook group called Synthetix that was a community platform.
How will the popularity affect synthwave?
Social media played an important role, many comments about Facebook, Twitter but also other platforms.
Jump to 2009
[Austin, Holodeck Records (record label)] 2006-2007, it was stale in terms of music, we looked at the past. We first looked at Italo-disco and krautrock.
We started bumping into each other on MySpace, the internet geeks. Some people say that it all began in MySpace, best era. But it contradicts with some earlier comments.
[Undisclosed location, MPM Soundtracks (music composer)] I had no idea about the scene, I just started making music with no knowledge, downloaded an old software (Making Waves).
[Los Angeles, The Midnight (band)] I grew up with 80s music, it was like a wake up call for me.
[Austin, Lazerhawk (music composer)] We weren’t the first but there were not much bands on MySpace. We advertised each other.
The first people who really were doing it were Kavinsky and Valerie Collective. In Europe, in France.
[Undisclosed location, Gost (music composer)] “The French! They do electronic music better than everyone.” 2007 – Kavinsky. Not that retro, but important.
27:56: Discodust – the german blog, important for electronic music industry. College’s first release Teenage color: game-changer
Facebook – many musicians are talking about facebook – the medium to spread your music, promoting the music is felt like something to be ashamed of, people uploading songs without faces
[Toronto, Mecha Maiko (music composer)] artist as a bundle of self-doubt, artists existing on internet, not showing themselves (“especially as a woman”), musicians without faces
Daft Punk as an inspiration for hiding the identity
Is it a fashion statement to hide the identity? Is it the same as dressing like Lady Gaga?
The commodification of internet in time, in the 2000s
A movement coming from artists, not from the labels: thanks to internet
Capital tries to appropriate synthwave
John Carpenter narrates: “Most of these guys were not even born in the 80s, or at least, they experienced the 80s through the TV shows and movies they saw as teenagers. It may not seem to be important but the 90s were a time where a lot of things were radically changing. And everybody was rejecting the 80s. Everybody wanted to move on from that decade. It was the mass introduction to digital and personal computers for households. Everybody could make music in their bedroom and no middleman was needed anymore. That was a lie, but we bought it. Analog wasn’t cool. Synthesizers weren’t cool. Get a guitar and play loud. And we moved on from the glossiness and carefree attitude of the 80s. No more leggings, crazy hair or cheesy music. Let’s do something else.
90s…
What people mention as 80s is actually a blend of 90s and 80s. 16-bit was not there in the 80s.
Films and music from the 1990s: Bad Boys, Last Action Hero, Under Siege, Terminator 2, 80s values
90s still looked liked the 80s, different people mention different years but mostly 1995-1996 as a point of change.
1997 – Daft Punk, Homework. Cornerstone.
[New York, Vehlinggo (music journalist)] in its roots, Synthwave is French. Mentions a friend listening to Daft Punk without the masks, while at high school. He thinks Synthwave came from there.
Too much loops, too much dance in the French version, a musician complains
[Detroit, Scandroid (music composer)] in the 80s, synthesizer music is everywhere radio, movies, ads… then people said, ok, we’re over it, what’s next? on the other side of the scale, something completely opposite was the grunge movement in the 90s. “It basically killed 80s metal, which we’re all thanking God for.”
“When punk finished and the grunge started, synth was just no cool. I mean, it was the enemy. It was a technological driven affair that were used by people that were, you know, fundamentally kind of intellectually poised. And you know, when Nirvana came along: “Fuck all that shit! I just want to make loud agressive, you know, music. And that’s why it went because it just became uncool.”
“Even Queen specified ‘No Synths’ on one of their albums. People were ashamed of using synths. But I think it was because there were so many pop songs done with the DX-7 synthesizer sound.’Boys boys boys’, ‘Sabrina’ … stuff like that … And suddenly I think, synths.. no body could take it anymore. We had to go back to something electric. That comes out of an amp. That’s badly played, and who smells like sweat… and piss.”
[Paris, Perturbator (music composer)] NIN in the 90s inspired as much as John Carpenter.
“Trent Reznor basically made fucking around with sequencers and drum machines cool again.”
A metal guitar player lost his band. Then started to make music alone: “And the best way to accomplish this, was to do electronic music”
Everyone was coming from metal and rock: correlates synthwave with metal (come on man)
More human aspect of guitar, representer of the previous music type
(this whole cycle of the musical styles replacing one another throughout the times is interesting)
Arrival of the computers…
1999/1989
Carpenter: started with keyboards and guitars, made his own music. don’t need too much talent, just makes you to watch the screen.
Musician from France mentions a blockage in the music: “People started looking back and said, there was something cool in the 80s, I really like neons … and the movies like The Goonies, Gremlins, Scarface, Rocky, Rambo, everything … There was something attractive.”
Ninja Turtles, the cartoon, at VHS.
Different people mention how they were affected by the US culture (tv shows, films) while they were kids in the 80s.
Videocassettes <3
[Aarhus, Dynatron (music composer)] nostalgia plays a huge role, audience is like me too. the sound that relates you to something you grew up with.
It’s mostly about the movies (soundtracks) and the TV shows.
Another synesthetes musician talks about music with film names: “The language that we share in the studio is almost never bands. It’s like ‘Put a bit more Goonies in, put a bit more Terminator in’. It’s all visual, isn’t it? That’s the language that we use and I haven’t even realized it until now”.
[Charleroi, Drive Radio (online radio channel)] I’m still a newbie. I wasn’t born in the 80s but I love it.
People mention that they love the music of the movies in the 1980s with a lot of film names, but when asked, none of them know the names of the composers.
Blade Runner OST as a reference
Giorgio Moroder as an influencer
[Stockholm, Waveshaper & Robert Parker (music composers)] Cat People, coming from the disco age to the soundscaping soundtracks
Everyone says John Carpenter. He’s really the rockstar of this genre, wow, wasn’t expecting that much influence.
Atmosphere is very important, taken from Carpenter: “Maybe that’s the introduction the synthwave: just watching John Carpenter’s movies”.
People who created the synthesizer sound were the people who were getting those early Moogs. Keith Emerson & Wendy Carlos, Giorgio Moroder, John Carpenter, Vangelis. Vangelis composing an orchestra of sounds, just him, on a synthesizer. Tomita, a japanese composer as well.
Tangerine Dream: live performances in cathedrals
Thief (1981) OST
Simple soundtracks on synthesizers were amazing in the 80s.
Goblin’s OST with Dario Argento.
70s music: Jean Michel Jarre, Kraftwerk.
There is generally a difference between people who make albums and people who make OSTs. But Moroder and Tangerine Dream were the first ones to show this model of being able to have presence in both of those worlds.
John Carpenter’s motivational art praisal speech and some other closing remarks.
