Hot Takes

In an effort to properly close the chapter on the talk show aspect of the "Hot Takes" experience, the team came together for an extra special five-hour conclusion to the show, featuring any previous guest and server member that wanted to join the live conversation on video. We haven't had a truly public community episode since the ending of season 3, and we quickly learned that there is a limit to how many people can be in a Discord videochat session on video at any given time! Numerous previous guests joined us to chat, some of them sticking around for the entire four-hour portion of open dialogue with the community, who also came out in droves, we might add. There was a number of engaging and terrific conversations that got everybody riled, like how to properly define and delineate signalwave from other vaporwave genres, how to better give and take constructive criticism within the scene, and the profitability or lack thereof of IRL vaporwave shows! Despite the chaos, the imperfections with audio levels, some miscommunications, misunderstandings, and a few guests talking a little bit too much compared to others, the finale of the five-year strong "Hot Takes" podcast and talk show was lively, poignant, and memorable. Five hours is a lot to ask of our viewers and listeners, but if you couldn't be there on Twitch or in Discord videochat, we encourage you to take in the entire experience!

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Vaporwave zero pioneer Simple Syrup got the special treatment during this penultimate episode from "Hot Takes" season five! In a very special departure from the typical fare, Josh was hosted by Luxury Noise and Roge Corp, dropping YUNG SHIRO 白 from the lineup; and the dynamic was flawless all evening. Getting his name out with a series of very well received breaks tracks on George Clanton's Big Stream during the pandemic lockdown era, Simple Syrup has released a handful of well respected vapor-adjacent albums since then and has played a number of live shows in the Midwest and on the east Coast in the years since as well. In addition to his vaporwave zero project, Simple Syrup is also a member of Columbus, Ohio powerviolence band Forest Fucker and is a prolific film photographer with published work in print as well. Tap in to hear about Josh's love of Pen and Pixel artwork, after which he named two of his cats! Watch him discuss his favorite hidden Youtube channels, like his interest in a specific New York City new jack swing DJ's channel! Hear the story behind his project name! Simple Syrup and two of the team's hosts made this episode a breathtakingly memorable experience, despite stepping out of their comfort zones a little bit. If you couldn't be there live to watch it all go down, now you can rewatch it as many times as you like!

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"Hot Takes" episode 102 featured ambient downtempo artist Casha Mour! In an effort to branch out into other realms of independent net-based electronic music, we made an effort to reach across the pond and engage with Dan, and it was extremely worthwhile. Despite the lateness of the hour for the poor fellow, Casha Mour went the distance, and we got to talk about all kinds of cool things like bleak reworks of well loved songs and the finality of the ElectroniCON festivals. Some talk may or may not have transpired about nu metal acts like Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, and P.O.D. It is possible that the topic of excessive self-promo on social media may have come up at one point during the broadcast. Talk about being the musical concierge in the friend group came up, and some chatting occurred around the topic of utilizing guitar in electronic music. We're so glad that this one hundred and first episode occurred, so be sure to run it back if you want to hear about such topics like the story behind "cash amour", MS-DOS edutainment games, metal bands with goblin-esque vocalists, and more!

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We chose to spend our 101st episode celebrating and platforming Sage Hardware! It's not often we get to chat with people who blend diverse genres like metalcore, cybergrind, and vaporwave; and Shortstuf888 pulled someone that made perfect sense to fill the role. We started a few minutes late due to some technical difficulties, but we made sure to make time to cover a series of interesting and important topics, like breakcore, digital hardcore, and what it was like touring with a post-rock-influenced screamo band. Alex regaled us with the story behind BasshouseHTML's mantra "steal from big business", he got to share a geekout moment with Shiro about Justin Pearson's many projects, and Sage also mentioned a pivotal moment getting into producing electronic music thanks to his love of Lil Ugly Mane. During several moments, the trio expressed their love of Angel Marcloid's various projects. Alex mentioned that his father plays bassoon in a quartet that covers video game music; and the squad talked about what he learned about Japanese culture while touring in Japan. We had a lot of fun during our 101st episode, so tap in if you want to hear the skinny on Venetian masks, Maryland, West Virginia, and the subjectivity of art and music! You heard it on "Hot Takes"!

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Multidisciplinary musician and video game composer Floor Baba was the focus of "Hot Takes" episode 100! After a prolonged period of not having Quiz on the show as co-host, we finally got him back and with a terrific pull too! Known for their work on the soundtracks for Pac Man: Snack Break and Egg Squeeze, their affiliation with the Pluswav Cooperative, and their wonky, futuristic take on vapor-adjacent experimental electronic music; two hours was seemingly only enough to scratch the surface of Jesse's experience, as we heard their history and fielded questions from the live chat as well. We conversed about 90's and 2000's Christian music and what it's like to compose soundtracks for video games. A lot of talk about how much cratedigging transpires daily and how Floor Baba likes to listen to music took place. Other topics that came up in conversation include the stories behind some of Jesse's album artwork, the psychological horror of playing Egg Squeeze,  their favorite composers, starting a label, and their favorite N64 OST's. The memorable moments we got to spend with Floor Baba that night cannot be quantified, so what are you waiting for? Hit play!

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We brought Arpwire TV showrunner Win2K front and center for "Hot Takes" episode 99! Co-host Roge Corp has been a member of the Arpwire TV team for some time now, so why not collaborate with the mastermind behind the nostalgia-themed channel himself? Known for their meticulously crafted homages to Y2K nostalgia and Frutiger Aero- and Metro-themed graphic design, our two hours' runtime was really only enough to scratch the surface of who Win2K is and what they create out of their love for the turn of the millennium. We got to hear about how much they hate the Malibu Ken album cover, along with how to create art from the heart while also gamifying the algorithm. Lots of video game talk transpired, along with some hot takes about David Wise's "Aquatic Ambience", in addition to a story about a video that Trent created as kind of an homage to "Everywhere at the End of Time", by The Caretaker. We got to hear his thoughts on industry plants, and Win2K told us the many stories behind the members of the Arpwire TV team, what they do, and how they met each other. These are just a small sampling of the highlights of this delightful episode with Win2K, so what do you say you watch or listen to the episode and let us know in the comments what your favorite moment was!

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Luxury Noise called upon longtime Coast 2 Coast Collective collaborator San Gabriel for episode 98 of "Hot Takes"! A classically trained and multifaceted musician, San Gabriel's background is in guitar and banjo playing for a bluegrass punk band, touring 49 of the 50 United States and myriad countries worldwide as well. And now he makes psychedelic synth-infused dream pop! If you couldn't be present for the live broadcast, tune in to hear about topics such as San Gabriel's daily songwriting process, influences like Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, and a lively debate about the merits of drums vs. flats. Our two hours with James flew right by as we mused about shitty Spotify playlists and needing to be comfortable with rejection as an artist. Birp FM and David Dean Burkhart! Skateboarding for Warped Tour! Being in Pitch Perfect 3!? You'll never know the stories unless you hit that play button!

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Vaporwave and outsider artist and musician 식료품groceries starred on episode ninety-seven of "Hot Takes", enlivening the evening with Luxury Elite and YUNG SHIRO 白 as they discussed numerous topics like the origin story behind the artist name and favorite video game soundtracks. On top of releasing genre-defining vaporwave albums such as "Yes! We're Open!", Jordan has released lo-fi house material as Null Object and runs the label Consumer Electronics as well; glitching and corrupting visual art on the side! They have also performed at a couple of noteworthy vaporwave events, like ElectroniCON and Flamingo Fest. We hope you are delighted about getting to hear the about 식료품groceries' favorite effects to use in music, living in South Korea, getting started creating glitch art with ROM corrupters, and so much more!

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On "Hot Takes" episode 96, we landed a whopper of a guest: film/TV/video game composer Andrew Gordon MacPherson. A multimedia artist and disciple of several different A/V trades, Ango was one of Shiro's top choice guests, owing to a spate of neo-R&B releases he dropped in the early 2010's; and we had a delightful evening being regaled by his journey and getting exclusive insight into his creative process and artistic paradigm. Two hours together was truly insufficient for this entry, but we were able to rap about a number of topics during that time, like imposter syndrome, the emotional effect that music can have upon listeners, and Ango's experience performing alongside Caribou with the Red Bull Music Academy! If you like wild touring stories and deep insight into the creative process, definitely check out this episode, and keep it rolling if you feel like getting engaged with the content!

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Crystal Eternal, YUNG SHIRO 白, and our special guest of honor Fiji島の水 all starred in the latest episode of "Hot Takes" together! Up-and-coming artist, DJ, and community member, Fiji has a handful of audio/visual releases under her belt already, streams to Twitch regularly for her show Thursday Night Funkin', and has performed IRL in cities like Atlanta, Brooklyn, Columbus, and more. Two hours was nowhere near sufficient time to cover the numerous topics we wanted to cover with Fiji島の水, discussing everything from her favorite anime series to spinning vaporwave at open deck DJ nights and even the benefits and drawbacks of streaming services completely disappearing from the face of the earth. If you didn't hear it on "Hot Takes", it must not be real!

"Hot Takes" is a safe space for all opinions! Join the conversation at

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