O N E H U N D R E D T W E N T Y F I V E
A S C E R T A I N M E N T : Porter Robinson
Today is my final day in Singapore. I think I saw everything I could reasonably see in a visit given that I was working throughout. I saw the aquarium today; like many things here it was sublime and was probably the best I’ve ever encountered. The totalitarian system of rules, fines and punishments here makes me uncomfortable but, ultimately, the beauty of the city appears to be reflected in the happiness of its citizens. I’m sure there’s a darker side to this place but I can’t speak with any authority on it because all I’ve experienced here has been wonderful. I suppose I am quite emotionally conflicted with regards to this issue and am in no place to pass any sweeping judgement on this bizarre, unique nation. I hope this beautiful harmony between people of different faiths and cultural backgrounds has not come at too high of a price. Having lived in America for many years now I have seen a great deal of unfairness, inequality and unadulterated hate; visiting a place which even appears to lack these things is humbling and, unfortunately, in profound contrast to my expectations. I hope to visit Singapore again.
The above being said, the main focus of this episode is our Ascertainment week. Today I’m going to share with you Porter’s newest project titled Virtual Self. The artist known as Virtual Self is indeed Porter Robinson, but the Virtual Self releases and live appearances are to be considered separate, and no Porter Robinson music appears in Virtual Self sets or conversely. This being said, and indeed having been a choice made by Porter himself, I again wish to argue that this division is arbitrary and artificial.
The genesis of Virtual Self occurred for two reasons, the first somewhat negative and the second quite beautiful. The first is that, after the release of Worlds, the new fans Porter obtained began to first want and later demand more music in the Worlds style. Comments about how Porter’s music “saved the lives” of his fans, as well as many similarly positive yet grandiose statements, appear to have worn Porter down emotionally. Releasing a “side project” seems to have been a way to free himself from writers block. Instead of hoping beyond hope to exceed his masterpiece, he cleared his mind and permitted himself to work on something different. Let me mention now that this is why I went on and on about this “old” versus “new” Porter distinction: it is not only absurd but is actively harmful. On Porter’s end it appears to have seriously exacerbated his depression and anxiety symptoms, whereas in the part of his fans it gave rise to a bizarre cult of personality centered around “new Porter”. If you think I’m exaggerating take a look at the Porter Robinson subreddit. To share any posts from there here would be overtly mocking the (often obviously very upset and distraught) people posting there, but I’m confident that “cult of personality” is also the feeling you’ll get if you indeed read through it.
The brighter side of all of this is the creation of the Virtual Self project itself. All throughout his career Porter has credited music from DDR, other video games, other EDM artists and asian pop as influences on his music. Virtual Self is, despite what many would tell you, Porter’s return to his roots. Porter learned a tremendous amount in his journey through composing and touring Worlds, but the album had a delicateness to it which was not present in his other works. In Virtual Self he synthesizes everything he has learned thus far but, moreover, goes harder here than he ever has before. On twitter he described his first Virtual Self show as “a rave” and, having been to one of these shows, can personally attest that this was indeed the case. The set I saw him perform was full of masterful production and deep emotion, but in addition to the themes of loneliness and isolation which are sorrowful but sublime throughout Worlds, we also are made to feel the raw, pulsing sexuality of Porter’s unrefined early work from his teenage years.
Maybe all of the ideas which comprise Virtual Self wouldn’t normally be able to mix together, that normally they would be too disparate. That which binds them into one cohesive whole is Porter himself; this music is his experience, his emotion, his Self, unadorned and vulnerable and pure for all to see. Again, I have the honour of sharing with you all something magnificent. Here is the debut self-titled EP of Virtual Self.
I’m having a minor WiFi issue and can’t post the link to the album myself.
https://open.spotify.com/album/7I3PH61aLVNVj4EVvU16WG?si=sCXaf6SBQa6FIWIvz4VgaQ
p r o s p e r i t y a n d h a r m o n y
