Utopian Virtual

A style of [Genre44068] music born out of [Genre32056] and influenced by [Genre32584] that emulates late 20th century futuristic and corporate aesthetics.


Utopian virtual is a style of [Genre44068] music which evolved as part of the [Genre32584] scene in the early to mid-2010s. The genre focuses on the sound and aesthetics of electronic music of the 1980s and 1990s, particularly corporate-associated background music such as [Artist240023], that vaporwave artists would also utilize. The genre takes inspiration from a variety of sounds, particularly the sonic moods of [Genre543], [Genre353], and [Genre78], with compositional influence from [Genre32056] and [Genre382]. This wide array of influences is brought together with a limited sound palette inspired by the "tacky" sound of late 20th century synthesizers, ringtones, and sample-based synthesis as found in [Genre35290] music from early game consoles and home computers.

The genre's name comes from the genre-defining 2011 album [i][Album3674600][/i] by [Artist191153] which built on the nostalgic atmosphere and technological utopian themes of previous Ferraro works within [Genre32056], specifically [i][Album2619249][/i] and [i][Album2923895][/i]. Although much of the same themes are shared between Ferraro’s hypnagogic pop and utopian virtual releases, the latter would eschew the lo-fi, repetitive, long-form ambience in exchange for hi-fi, layered arrangements that sought to emulate the sound of uncanny valley.

Though it evolved in parallel to vaporwave and utilizes similar aesthetics, utopian virtual does not typically focus on sampling recordings of the period wholesale, and its artists instead rely on emulation of this sound for their original compositions. Even as it remained a fairly niche style, prominent vaporwave artists dabbled in utopian virtual, like [Artist694022] under the alias [Artist925964], who built a nostalgic atmosphere by recontextualizing MIDI arrangements of actual corporate and easy listening music from decades past. Other artists like [Artist873417] and [Artist1106464] would take the sound in a more [Genre36]-oriented direction with influences from [Genre27390] and even [Genre320]. The genre would also leave its mark on the experimental and [Genre10035] music of the 2010s, particularly on [Label69772] and by artists like [Artist590289] and [Artist1089213].