“But it doesn’t matter. The electric things have their lives, too. Paltry as those lives are.”
― Philip K. Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
As I sat down to begin this assignment, I was listening to my Chill playlist (just a collection of relaxing, atmospheric tunes). I often use music as a form of emotional regulation, using it to encourage whatever emotion I want to experience. Or, as in this case, enhancing an emotion I’m already experiencing. Before I even began looking for an image, I knew exactly what type of image I wanted. After struggling to come up with some keywords to describe my mood, I settled on the term “lo-fi”. The first hit on Wikimedia Commons was Lofi Cyberpunk by David Revoy. That was it, that was my mood.
I knew I wanted to enhance the image. So, I needed to find a title that would add some depth. The “lo-fi” term just wasn’t giving the vibe I wanted. I thought about the image. Who is she? What type of world is she in? My mind settled on the movie Blade Runner, a futuristic detective noir film from 1982 based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick. I needed some chill jazz vibes to enhance the image. Eventually, I settled on “Cool Vibes” by Kevin MacLeod, a jazzy, laid back, atmospheric piece that helps to enhance the vibe.
Terminal Rhapsody by Troy Mosac is licensed under CC BY 4.0
Hey Troy,
I think you nailed this assignment! It’s funny how students all can recognize “Lofi Girl,” but I like that Mr. Revoy created a version that matches the cyberpunk aesthetic. Actually, this drawing made me wonder what exactly is “Lofi Girl’s” copyright, and up to what point is a remake of the art, like your image above, becomes something that doesn’t need to attribute the original work, even if the influence is pretty clear. I also like how you’re tying in your taste of music to your media, too, so this is a really good post in my opinion!
Hi Troy! What a delightful choice for the image of your post! The girl you selected immediately reminded me of the iconic “Lofi Girl”, tucked away in her own world with headphones on and a busy city humming in the background. I can’t help but imagine that “Lofi Cyberpunk” by David Revoy drew inspiration from that same visual language: a focused young figure, absorbed in something meaningful, with a busy city landscape behind her. Listening to “Cool Vibes” sent me drifting back a few years, to late nights spent studying for high school exams, with this kind of music as my companion, especially since it was so popular at that moment of my life!
The way I see the image, it is of a girl wearing headphones, relaxing in a semi-messy room, reading a blog perhaps, with her cat looking out the window at the big city and a Super NES controller for gaming. I had to look up what the original Lofi Girl picture looked like, and this cyberpunk variant does give a different vibe, as it adds a noisy city that the headphones and music are trying to drown out. I liked your addition of the Cool Vibes music, as it enhanced the sense that the young girl is creating a safe space in a cyberpunk world, surrounded by technology, in order to focus and relax. If you had chosen a sound or piece of music that was more mechanical in nature, it would have completely changed the mood, making it more tense or lonely. I feel you made the right choice, as the two go very well together and bring a sense of balance.