hawaii '83 - 香港快運2083(Vaporwave Album Review by Red Scryyn of Death)

:Reportinggirl: This review was originally written by Red Scryyn of Death a.k.a T r i t v s 正気 on the main Agora Road website :Reportinggirl:

cover-hke.jpg

Greetings everyone and welcome to another album review. We will be looking at a recent and interesting release from HKE 2083: hawaii '83. It's a bit of a surprise how this came about. I had to begin a review right as I heard it!

Artist Description
HKE 2083 is an independent artist who makes chilled out jams. He's got a mix of vaporwave and hip hop vibes, even some chillwave as well. His discography is full of dark and beautiful tracks including this album. I will be covering the self-released version of this album, as there is a second version on Virtual Beach Club's Bandcamp page that I would also recommend listening to. Tapes will be out soon for this release!

arbys p
The cityscape is full, with no discernable spaces between all the brilliant lights and massive buildings. Blinking and zooming spots everywhere, the flickering of advertisement billboards and holograms dominate the reflections in your eyes.

There's no one else on the streets. Whether you are lonely or not is up to your perception. Maybe the site of the city and its glamour is all you need to feel whole, or maybe it irks you that there is no one to share your wonder, your view, and your wholeness with. The air feels as if you are right between two fronts, split into the coldness and the warmth competing with each other in waves.

The bridge you stand on, the cherry blossom trees shedding their pedals into the light, becoming one with the thousands of other lights flying in the sky. They feel like they are more than just trees, they are alive, and they are with you.

This track is an incredible start to the album, to say the least. It's got the ability to grab you as soon as you hear it. This is good, you're going to want to stay for the rest. The voices and electro-esque sounds are so comforting. It's a mix between something alien, but familiar at the same time.

this town is dead
Sun's up, people walk the streets now, the white buildings reflect the morning sun everywhere. It's much warmer now, but the breeze from the nearby ocean remains. The smell of the ocean water mist coming from the waves crashing on the rocks rises to your nose. Strangely, it's more lonely with everyone here. They're so autonomous, it's like they aren't people at all, just shells. Where is there to go?

Definitely not where everyone else is going, and certainly not to the violent waves. Maybe there's somewhere in between.

The title fits the vibe alright. There's something empty about this song, not just due to its simplicity, but it's definitely sending the feeling effectively. It's a good transition from the first track, it feels right, and it's tight.

それでも私を愛しますか
The snow-covered mountains call to you. The sky is blank white, a subtle but bright fog chills your skin, but it warms your soul. The snow is soft, it wanted you here. Sparse amounts of cherry blossom trees existed here. You've seen them before, are these the same trees that were with you in the city? Are they connected? Ancient, empty temples, forgotten lives, forgotten ideas, forgotten stories.

Your field of vision is slowly increasing as the light becomes brighter. Everything has a light glow, it feels like this is where you're meant to be. Not forever, but for now, when you need it most.

I cannot describe how calm this track makes me feel. It has an element to it that makes me want to focus and live. To not have thoughts, but to just act without stress. It's a rare vibe, it's powerful and entrancing.

leave me alone
You wake up, alone in your small apartment, only sounds of rain and thunder can be heard. You can't see out of your window because it is fogged up, and the rain and clouds are dense. There is nothing, but it's only an opportunity for you to create something new.

タイラーズエンド
After the rain clears, you notice the view outside your window is not the vast city you walked the streets of, but there are green fields, a small road, large tropical plants, and you notice the sound of waves.

When you leave your apartment and go behind the complex, there is a beautiful beach with people, walking, surfing, relaxing... you can either question or just accept that you're here.

I highly enjoy both halves of this track. It takes me back to my summer vacation in Maui a few years ago. It's an overall chill theme.

387387
After the sun sets at the beach, you turn around and the apartment complex no longer exists. In its place, there is a massive building, partially secluded in massive tropical vegetation. The bright lights call to you, a feeling of serenity washes over you, starting from your spine and moving throughout your body.

One last look at the horizon, the dark blue sky behind you is all there is. You approach the building, the architecture is a mix of modern and classical, the lights shift into all kinds of intensely vibrant and rich colors. The lights breathe with gradience. It's a mall, one step inside and you already feel at home. There's an occasional person every now and then, but the bright neon lights and gorgeous displays of luxury products and art are all you care to see.

Your field of view is increasing, the bloom intensifies, the mall is gargantuan. Some of the plants from outside have made their way into the mall...

This is of very few tracks I've ever heard in my life that give me a surreal feeling that is fairly indescribable. If I had to describe the way it made me feel, I'd only be able to tell you what picture it paints in my mind: a thin atmosphere, starry night sky, mountains, and desert.

マイケルズ三菱
You continue through the mall, a strange breeze runs over your scalp. It's neither cold nor warm. You notice a massive opening in the mall, the tall ceiling blending in with the sky. The thin atmosphere, starry night sky, mountains, and desert.

The sand is alive and moves slowly around you as you walk on it. The mountains seem to be waving from side to side subtly. The stars are static as colorful nebula clouds phase in and out of existence. There's truly not much here, but it's all you need.

i came on my nikes
Memories are unleashed into your sight. The city, the cherry blossoms, the snow, the windy beaches, it's colliding with where you are now. Freedom is nigh, you think, as everything begins to blend into an unintelligible, incoherent soup of light.

Conclusion
I'm really pleased with this album. My expectations had a massive hole blown through them because I was already working on a different album review and honestly I couldn't wait to write something for this. The trip-hop and chillwave jams are a pleasure to hear and really gave me feelings I wasn't prepared for. The transition between each track works well, and there's definitely something in this album for everyone if you're a fan of vaporwave, chillwave, hip hop, or experimental music in general.

It's a mix of sounds that'll stay in my mind forever. Again, this is the self-released version I've reviewed, but there is a Virtual Beach Club release you can grab tapes of hopefully soon, and I do ask of you to listen to that as well! I'll see you all in the next dream, and boy it will be a dream alright... ~РСоД.


View: https://virtualbeachclub.bandcamp.com/album/hawaii-83
 

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