Vaporwave and the Hyperreal

Hyperreality, a term coined by Jean Baudrillard, is the point at which the real can no longer be easily distinguished from fiction or simulation including simulations of realities that do not exist known as simulacra. The connection to vaporwave, a genre of music which seeks to induce nostalgia for eras that never existed, is immediately apparent.

On this topic episode we briefly introduce some of the ideas behind Baudrillard's hyperreality and discuss how we think they can be applied to vaporwave and its aesthetic goals.

Reading List
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Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard
America by Jean Baudrillard
Faith in Fakes: Travels in Hyperreality by Umberto Eco, William Weaver

Additional Resources
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Baudrillard and Vaporwave: A Remixed Nostalgia
Culture Jamming: Hacking, Slashing, and Sniping in the Empire of Signs
Rick Roderick on Baudrillard - Fatal Strategies
Episode 124 ... Simulacra and Simulation on Philosophize This!
American Psycho, Baudrillard and the Postmodern Condition
Don’t Worry, These Gangly-armed Cartoons Are Here to Protect You From Big Tech
Comment: Vaporwave and the pop-art of the virtual plaza
Comment: “Distroid” – the muscular music of hi-DEF doom

Credits
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Music by: 2Mello
Artwork by: Patsy McDowell
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Birk on Twitter
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