Wastefellow is the latest artist to release a project with the ever-growing, always talented artistic collective that is Soft Boy Records. "Philosophy Plastic" foreshadows his EP Post-Human Potential.
Toeing the line between genres, "Philosophy Plastic" as a track sits on a scale between electronic and singer-songwriter. The production is lush, the beat irresistibly danceable. Yet underneath are rich and grounded lyrics. Of the track, Wastefellow explains:
Back when I was finishing the beat that would become ‘Philosophy Plastic’, I was reading a bit about new age philosophy, the human potential movement, stuff like that. Something about the always vague ideas of cosmic one-ness became really interesting to me, and I started linking them into other thoughts I had been having about my own up and down relationship to the internet. What if, instead of wasting my life online, I was actually tapping into a cosmic energy, one that really did connect us all? A lot of the new age stuff talks about using some hidden potential we all share to reach the next stage of humanity, and it occurred to me then that we’d already done it, this was the cosmic end-game. ‘Philosophy Plastic’ was the first one I wrote. The video…essentially sees me running around looking for my phone.
Perhaps my favourite thing about the material released via Soft Boy Records is its cheeky self-awareness. "Philosophy Plastic," directed by Kevin Smith (better known by his Soft Boy moniker Kojaque), stylishly encapsulates the very millennial condition that we are painfully aware of our own reliance on technology and the internet. Wastefellow wanders aimlessly around the most mundane places one might find in an otherwise beautiful city—a stairwell, a roof, a Centra—swiping at the air with his hand when he realizes he's not holding a cell phone. It's humorous, whip-smart, and a little bit dark. In other news, I want that raincoat.
Limited release vinyl editions of Post Human Potential will be available for pre-order on Soft Boy Records.
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