Synthwave and vaporwave finished 2019 exactly level, 842 releases each, and it is the only year in the Frekvenci archive where the two largest families cannot be separated. The total, 2,281, is down 7% on 2018's 2,448, the first fall since 2006. It is not a story of fewer labels: the label count rose to 610, a new high.
One label explains a lot of the fall
DMT Tapes FL released 126 records in 2019, down from 196 in 2018 but still more than four times the next label. That drop of 70 accounts for 70 of the archive's 167-release decline, or 42% of it, from one label's schedule. Behind it, Palm 84 has 27 of its 56 listed releases, B O G U S // COLLECTIVE and NewRetroWave 25 each, global pattern 22, business casual and FiXT Neon 20 each and First Class Collective 19. The tape labels were quieter, and many smaller ones filled the space. A year page can only count what the databases hold, and one label can move the total this much.
A change of texture
The archive had more labels, fewer self-releases and more singles. Self-releases were 529, down from 632 in 2018, a fall of 16%. By format there were 1,139 LPs, 505 singles and 410 EPs. Singles were 444 in 2018, so they rose 14%, while EPs fell from 490.
SHOW THE NUMBERS
| Format | Releases |
|---|---|
| Albums (LP) | 1,139 |
| Singles | 505 |
| EPs | 410 |
| Other | 157 |
| Compilations | 61 |
| Mixes | 9 |
The fine tags show why the families tied. The synthwave tag lost a little (819 to 770), the vaporwave tag fell by a quarter (460 to 358) and future funk slipped from 233 to 203. Chillwave went the other way, from 61 to 107, and the dreamwave family rose from 75 to 127. The soft end of the scene had been a side note; in 2019 it got real numbers. The families: synthwave 842, vaporwave 842, popwave 261, darksynth 209 and dreamwave 127. The Chillwave explained: the hazy 2009 sound and what followed and Dreamwave: synthwave's soft, nostalgic side explain those two.
Games, a pop single and future funk
In May, Bandcamp Daily wrote about the Katana ZERO soundtrack, where the composers Bill Kiley and LudoWic said they drew on 1980s house, electro and synth-pop, along with Gary Numan and Vangelis.[1] The archive lists Katana ZERO – Original Soundtrack by Bill Kiley on Wic Recordings; he is new to the archive that year. More on that crossover is in Synthwave and video games: from Out Run to Hotline Miami.
In November, The Weeknd released "Blinding Lights", a pop single often described as synthwave-influenced. It reached No. 1 on the US Hot 100 dated 4 April 2020, and as of March 2021 it held the record for the longest time in the top ten, 52 weeks in total.[2] None of that shows in our 2019 numbers; 2019 is simply the last year before the chart run, and the Synthwave in 2020: the year in the archive, and the albums to hear page picks up there. For the larger picture, see How synthwave went mainstream: Drive, Stranger Things and Blinding Lights, against the release numbers.
Future funk, meanwhile, had reached the press: Bandcamp Daily's April 2019 profile of Yung Bae describes it as an upbeat offshoot of vaporwave built from disco, funk, soul and retro Japanese pop samples.[3]
Country and names
Country is known for 61% of the year. The United States has 530 releases, the United Kingdom 140, France 91, Russia 64 and Canada 63. Of the year's 1,488 artists, 816 are new.
The busiest is Carlights, from India, with 24 releases, well ahead of the rest: Makeup and Vanity Set (13) and "$lick King" (11). Four acts follow with 10 each: haircuts for men, George Ergemlidze from Georgia, "from tokyo to honolulu" and upallnight. Carlights has 33 listed releases in all, so most date from this year.
Other first-time names include Black Deer, a synthwave-tagged act, and Karel, a synth-pop one. 816 new artists cannot all be one style, and the debut list is mixed on purpose.
Ten records from 2019
- Bill Kiley · 2019 · Wic Recordings · LPThe game score the Bandcamp Daily piece is about, listed on Wic Recordings.
- Marvel83’ · 2019 · Marvelous 1983 Records · LPA synthwave-tagged LP on Marvelous 1983 Records.
- Mono Memory · 2019 · TimeSlaves · LPA remix LP on TimeSlaves, tagged synthwave.
Sources
- On the "Katana ZERO" Score, Synthwave Goes Neo-Noir · Bandcamp Daily, 13 May 2019
- The Weeknd's Blinding Lights sets US Top 10 chart record · Official Charts Company, 9 Mar 2021
- Yung Bae: Meet the Introvert Producer Taking Future Funk Mainstream · Bandcamp Daily, 24 Apr 2019