by Terrell Davis for i-D's 'the a-z of y2k' (2016)

in late 2018, years before the 2000s revival had fully cemented itself in the mainstream, I caught wind of the Y2K Aesthetic Institute on my dashboard. it immediately beamed a light in my life. it wasn't just the aesthetic i was attracted to, but the sheer amount of work that went into archiving, curating and authentically reproducing the era just when the temporality of aesthetics was beginning to unravel through the slippery fabric of the digital age.

cover art by Froyo Tam for "Whisper" by Himera and Jel (2019)

growing up in the late 2000s, I'd seen hints of the bygone years before. but the Y2K Aesthetic Institute gave me a chance to really fill in my understanding of what I'd missed out on. the pudgy beauty of the blobject, rave flyers anticipating the new millenium, and even otherworldly furniture... i was flooded with the image of a different world and the wish to evoke its playfulness in the present. I owe it to the Y2K Aesthetic Institute for being my gateway to incredible acts including DV-i, ViRiX Dreamcore, and Doss. to have all of this information at hand is an incredibly precious and modern feat, and I refuse to take it for granted.

Endless appreciation to their legendary founders, who are multidisciplinary artist Froyo Tam and architect-archivist Evan Collins. They have also founded Consumer Aesthetics Research Institute (CARI), which more broadly outlines aesthetic histories and I find equally essential.

Rest in Power to Terrell Davis, whose work changed my life for the better and fills my heart with deep resolve. Here, you can watch his visuals for Doss's 2020 Secret Sky set, which are permanently burned into my mind. Warning for flashing lights.

view the Y2K Aesthetic Institute Tumblr

read "Terrell Davis Changed Digital Art Forever", from Paper Magazine (2021)

i can't remember if i'd come across PC Music or Y2K Aesthetic Institute first, but it was the same mutual who put both of them on my dashboard.

Charli XCX by Charlotte Rutherford

what she had put exactly on my dash was a photoshoot of Charli XCX for her mixtape Pop 2... the rest is history. though the sound of PC Music would eventually reach mainstream appeal in 2024 (and we angels would be forced to get along with brats), much of its philosophy was initially rejected and would only start to be legitimized by this 2017 tape. I was already blown away by Pop 2, but PC Music as a whole sounded like nothing i'd ever heard before. it was otherworldly and futuristic, occupying a mythical stratosphere of artistry i didn't know was possible. yet in its plastic language was a potent vein i could still follow, from 2000s technopop all the way back to 1990s hardcore lines and sped-up cliches. it turned up the exposure of EDM, reducing it into pure essence with the maximum power of a blue screen. and it kept me up at night, hopeful for the future of music.

My interest in mainstream electronic music has always waxed and waned, but i've always been faithful to PC Music and its collaborators. i've loved the label from "Be Your USA" all the way to its twilight release of "Soft Rock", and i'm glad its spirit continues into the 2020s through artists like underscores, Petal Supply and Himera.

visit the PC Music website

read - "Interview with PC Music's Danny L Harle", from Northern Transmissions (2016)

What if seinfeld theme song still on TV today?

McMaNGOS is suspended hahahahahaha! McMaNGOS is suspended, why? hmm, let's see, could it be because you love to upload copyrighted cartoons like Marios, like uhh Simpsons anything dealing with Nintendo or Fox you love uploading cartoons, and uhhh this is part of the YTPMV which is the YouTube Poop Movement, and what the YouTube Poop Movement is, is they think it is funny to take animations from TV shows and remix them and create them as their own. And that is why you are suspended and it is for a good reason. His new channel is McMaNGOSAlt, and that channel will soon be suspended, why? because you are reuploading those stupid, YouTube Poop cartoons with Homer Simpson. Smoking weed, Mario Brothers, dude. You are a little boy who has nothing better to do but to upload crap. And that's keeping it real.

hi

McMangos Soundcloud