Sam Barker, a Berlin-based music producer, and David Pearce, philosopher and author of The Hedonistic Imperative, join us on a special episode of the FLI Podcast to spread some existential hope. Sam is the author of euphoric sound landscapes inspired by the writings of David Pearce, largely exemplified in his latest album — aptly named "Utility." Sam's artistic excellence, motivated by blissful visions of the future, and David's philosophical and technological writings on the potential for the biological domestication of heaven are a perfect match made for the fusion of artistic, moral, and intellectual excellence. This podcast explores what significance Sam found in David's work, how it informed his music production, and Sam and David's optimistic visions of the future; it also features a guest mix by Sam and plenty of musical content.

Topics discussed in this episode include:

-The relationship between Sam's music and David's writing

-Existential hope

-Ideas from the Hedonistic Imperative

-Sam's albums

-The future of art and music

You can find the page for this podcast here: https://futureoflife.org/2020/06/24/sam-barker-and-david-pearce-on-art-paradise-engineering-and-existential-hope-featuring-a-guest-mix/

You can find the mix with no interview portion of the podcast here: https://soundcloud.com/futureoflife/barker-hedonic-recalibration-mix

Where to follow Sam Barker :

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/voltek

Twitter: https://twitter.com/samvoltek

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samvoltek/

Website: https://www.voltek-labs.net/

Bandcamp: https://sambarker.bandcamp.com/

Where to follow Sam's label, Ostgut Ton: 

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ostgutton-official

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ostgut.Ton.OFFICIAL/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ostgutton

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ostgut_ton/

Bandcamp: https://ostgut.bandcamp.com/

Timestamps: 

0:00 Intro

5:40 The inspiration around Sam's music

17:38 Barker - Maximum Utility

20:03 David and Sam on their work

23:45 Do any of the tracks evoke specific visions or hopes?

24:40 Barker - Die-Hards Of The Darwinian Order

28:15 Barker - Paradise Engineering

31:20 Barker - Hedonic Treadmill

33:05 The future and evolution of art

54:03 David on how good the future can be

58:36 Guest mix by Barker

Tracklist:

Delta Rain Dance – 1

John Beltran – A Different Dream

Rrose – Horizon

Alexandroid – lvpt3

Datassette – Drizzle Fort

Conrad Sprenger – Opening

JakoJako – Wavetable#1

Barker & David Goldberg – #3

Barker & Baumecker – Organik (Intro)

Anthony Linell – Fractal Vision

Ametsub – Skydroppin’

Ladyfish\Mewark – Comfortable

JakoJako & Barker – [unreleased]

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