I think I just stumbled upon some Happy Hauntology in the wild. Or at least some HH adjacent stuff. This guy named Michael Hearst has an album of songs for ice cream trucks, an album of songs for weird vehicles, an album of songs for unusual animals, etc.
It certainly sounds to me like the kind of aesthetic you're describing. He seems to largely be using analog instruments and not digital replicas thereof so perhaps that's a disqualifier. Thought it was worth a mention at least.
I've been trying to come up with an HH project for my band to have a go at and I think I figured it out. I'm going to try and craft the soundtrack for a psychedelic sixties sci-fi b-movie!
Oh my god, finally someone else who has had this same idea in their brain, but articulates it much more clearly. I've been calling this type of music "EPCOTcore" in my brain. I think the one thing that differentiates in my mind from say, other retrofuturism genres is probably the *wistfulness*. Many of them are valid critiques of unfettered technoutopianism, but too much of that feels so depressing. I want more media that channels the inner child back to what it felt like as an 8 year old going to a science museum, all these weird wonders that we as humanity are using our collective effort in order to figure out [1][2].
Tangentially, I feel like the same emotions surface in genres such as MIDI Music[3]. Instead of the deconstruction of 90s corporate music that Vaporwave was, it's a celebration of the "Ringtone Bangers"[4] - your catchy ringtones that upon another listen, are actually quite joyful.
I LOVE EPCOTCore as a name - I guess I see that as a perfect term for one of the two main subgenres of Happy Hauntology, ie. the synthier Jean Michel Jarre-influenced retrofuturistic end of the spectrum as opposed to the frontier/exotica/fantasy music that I also want to include?
thanks loads for the links too - that Darius album is wonderful. Instant fan conversion.
I think I just stumbled upon some Happy Hauntology in the wild. Or at least some HH adjacent stuff. This guy named Michael Hearst has an album of songs for ice cream trucks, an album of songs for weird vehicles, an album of songs for unusual animals, etc.
https://michaelhearst.bandcamp.com/album/songs-for-ice-cream-trucks
It certainly sounds to me like the kind of aesthetic you're describing. He seems to largely be using analog instruments and not digital replicas thereof so perhaps that's a disqualifier. Thought it was worth a mention at least.
I've been trying to come up with an HH project for my band to have a go at and I think I figured it out. I'm going to try and craft the soundtrack for a psychedelic sixties sci-fi b-movie!
Wish me luck!
Awesome - will very much be giving this a listen. Love the B movie idea too. Thank you!
Oh my god, finally someone else who has had this same idea in their brain, but articulates it much more clearly. I've been calling this type of music "EPCOTcore" in my brain. I think the one thing that differentiates in my mind from say, other retrofuturism genres is probably the *wistfulness*. Many of them are valid critiques of unfettered technoutopianism, but too much of that feels so depressing. I want more media that channels the inner child back to what it felt like as an 8 year old going to a science museum, all these weird wonders that we as humanity are using our collective effort in order to figure out [1][2].
Tangentially, I feel like the same emotions surface in genres such as MIDI Music[3]. Instead of the deconstruction of 90s corporate music that Vaporwave was, it's a celebration of the "Ringtone Bangers"[4] - your catchy ringtones that upon another listen, are actually quite joyful.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR0vRuZkxdw
[2] https://lapfox.bandcamp.com/track/welcome-home-2
[3] https://sexytoadsandfrogsfriendcircle.bandcamp.com/album/staffcirc-vol-9-midi-module-fanatix
[4] https://www.youtube.com/c/ringtonebangers
I LOVE EPCOTCore as a name - I guess I see that as a perfect term for one of the two main subgenres of Happy Hauntology, ie. the synthier Jean Michel Jarre-influenced retrofuturistic end of the spectrum as opposed to the frontier/exotica/fantasy music that I also want to include?
thanks loads for the links too - that Darius album is wonderful. Instant fan conversion.