Vinyl Fantasy by Mingfei Xie

Vinyl Fantasy details the haunting pain of memory, the loneliness of self-exploration, the parallel psychedelic joys of the cosmos and subconscious, and the catharsis of hard-won growth. From the intro’s volcanic synth blasts to the postlude’s lilting arpeggios, the album confronts its themes through intriguing juxtapositions. Galloping rhythms collide with baroque melodies. Fuzzy field recordings dislocate night-drive flow states. A defiant human voice emerges in the haze of machine music, but disappears before the end. Something is out there, but you’re in here. Time: Does it elapse or collapse? Everything seems connected, but it’s not clear how. What do you do when you realize you can keep speeding up, but you’ll never catch up? Inspired by a fleeting encounter with an extra-dimensional being in a dream, the album is a restless journey through progressive electronic, synthwave, Italo Disco, film soundtracks and ravaged beauty.