Album Review of "Secret Levels" by L a z u l i _ y e l l o w and Vivi Vulture

Hi everyone! It's Ramen here and I have a new album review for you all! You can read the name of the album in the title of the review, but, who are these artists?
Well, L a z u l i _ y e l l o w is a vaporwave project by Paul G. Marchesani, who started expeimenting in the years before 2020 with vaporwave music, to be a little more precise, he published his first piece in 2014.
And, Vivi Vulture is a vaporwave project that has started out in early 2020 and it was created by Matt Patrick.

The first track of this album is names Superior Graphic Processing Power, it is a piece that has many vaporwave elements but, a lot of synthwave elements as well. It repeats a chill melody, which is the main theme, while the rhythm of the drums changes, giving us a piece that is perfect for when you are relaxing or when you need to concentrate, in the ending, the main melody slowly fades away.
Bodega-Mega, is a piece that is a little bit more uptempo and has a nostalgic synth melody in it, it reminds me of some 80s commercial music, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT.
Forthenight.song is the third piece of the album and it really gives me chills, it is very particular, of course it is uptempo and has maaaany synthwave elements and influences, the nostalgic feel is always there and it won't go away during the whole song, but, it's a very very good nostalgic way of feeling.
The fourth track is names H I G H W I N D S and it still has those 80s influences, and, even here, you can hear more synthwave than ever. The instrumental is very catchy and it gets even better when halfway through the song, everything gets a little bit faded, the sounds, the melody, everything. It then restarts again but it's even more slowed down and reverbed, it is an unexpeced change and this is what makes this song so special.
s u p e r s e g a _ b l u e is a very short piece that starts downtempo and then becomes a little bit more uptempo, and in the end in just fades away, I liked it but the length was unexpected.
Going on with the sixth track of Secret Levels, ELITE 4, an uptempo piece where you can hear more vaporwave and it changes midsong, becoming a videogame inspired melody, and, there is the occasional faded effect, I like it.
Gameshark.bite has a bit more of a dramatic sound and it is noostalgic in a kinda sad way, but, it is very different from the other songs so this is why I really appreciated it.
-moon- starts out with a very rhythmic melody, I wouldn't define it uptempo and I wouldn't define it as downtempo. Almost t the end, the volume of the track turns up and it stays almost at the same speed as the rest of the song.
-community center- is absolutely a mallsoft song, something that you would hear on an elevator, but, it also has some guitar parts, and, even some flute parts.
the-movies still gives us mallsoft vibes and, it is kinda similar to -moon-, very nostalgic, very 80s, and it respects and reflects the intentions of the album.
Inferior Operating Hours, is again, a downtempo song, and it feels like a fever dream, in the best way as possible, it is a little bit repetitive but it is something that everyone can appreciate.
Time-Capsule.corp, short but cool piece.
Breaking Everything Down to Tiles and Sprites, it is a little bit more cinematic than other songs, and with many techno influences, I like it, I would just suggest you to just listen to it in order to understand it.
Dolphinbird has got a weird vibe with some flutes at the beginning, and a constant melody that repeats during the song.
Joja Mart, great reference to Stardew Valley, I love it and I love the game, the song is very good and I like the fact that it is pretty much downtempo and I am in love with the reference.
Santana Sun is pretty much repetitive and downtempo, I (of course) like the song.
John Madden VS. Tiger Woods - Golf Ball 1990 is vaporwave, it is basically what you would expect from a classic vaporwave song especially because of the sounds and the rhythm, and, because of how drums sound.
Ballad (admin).temp, is a vaporwave ballad, or better, both because of the title and because of the rhythm it is what it made me think about, it sounds very romantic.
Choco Baco's Paradise has got many vaporwave influences and it is downtempo, at the end it gets more cinematic and nostalgic, I really like it.
A Corrupted Save is a mix of vaporwave and more electronic and technical elements, and I wouldn't say it is video game music.
Final Bundle is again very cinematic and it is a very cool way to end an album, it is kinda confusing if someone isn't used to this kind of sounds.

Overall, this album is a good one, it has got many tracks, to be more specific, there are 21 tracks on the album, and my favorite one is absolutely Joja Mart.

Spotify link:
View: https://open.spotify.com/album/71zMxMTe8NhERX472XnQT3?si=CcXy4ycvTBWJwwS5ryv1jw&utm_source=copy-link&dl_branch=1


Bandcamp link:
View: https://globalpattern.bandcamp.com/album/secret-levels
 

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