Floral Shoppe cover

Floral Shoppe

Released

Lopatin’s eccojams became vaporwave largely because of what Ramona Xavier does here on Floral Shoppe. Xavier has a more patient hand than Lopatin, and lingers on chunks of soft rock, several from Seventies outfit Pages (which later became Mr. Mister). The hyperpop link to vaporwave through trans vibes is here in the simple act of slowing down Sade and Diana Ross until femme becomes masc. Longer stretches of plangent synth and sax really churn up the whole taste argument, which vaporwave was helping to bury. That “corny” soul record that became a hiphop classic? Let’s take it further! Imagine that your parent’s quiet storm records have become the retaining wall for a new safe space, a padded room for all the weirdos! haha! Didn’t see that coming did you?

Sasha Frere-Jones

Recommended by

Suggestions
The Vanishing Earth cover

The Vanishing Earth

Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe
Coda cover

Coda

Ryuichi Sakamoto
星間性交 cover

星間性交

t e l e p a t h テレパシー能力者
FRKWYS, Vol. 12: We Know Each Other Somehow cover

FRKWYS, Vol. 12: We Know Each Other Somehow

Ariel Kalma, Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe
Grafts cover

Grafts

Kara-Lis Coverdale
Twoism cover

Twoism

Boards of Canada