artists

Bell Square & Device Operator

Device Operator is the artist name of an electronic musician based in Louisiana. He began experimenting with sample-based vaporwave in 2019 and released “type exception,” dreamy cuts of funk and soul music turned into slushy ambient. In 2020 he continued to release new music. The first release, Astreopora, was the result of initial experiments in making original music, producing a modern and soft new age album featuring imagery and themes of coral reefs and underwater life. His third release, Better Days, was a collection of eclectic sampling blended with original synth sounds, featuring plentiful syncopation and small cuts of sounds transformed into classic vaporwave unrecognizable from the originals. In 2021, he plans to release two more original midi albums, one inspired by new age music of the 80s, and another featuring danceable and funky midiwave.

Bell Square is an electronic musician based in the suburbs of Seattle, Washington. He creates evocative sound collages from a mixture of samples, synthesizers, and an eclectic collection of outdated hardware.

Releases

Memory Falls

Sample free original compositions and gapless playback, split album, with in-depth thematic collaboration between two artists, Device Operator and Bell Square. This album was heavily influenced by east-Asian new age classics, unique timbres and instruments associated with eastern folk music, and also the styles and emotion of modern ambient vaporwave. We wanted to create an album that would do modern new age music justice and follow in the footsteps of the earlier new age artists, while also incorporating aspects of vaporwave.

To achieve this we used VST recreations of 1980s synthesizers commonly used in classic new age music, such as the DX7, Synclavier, and CZ-101. We also utilized kontakt instruments that enabled us to write original compositions using the sounds of ancient eastern instruments such as the dudukt, guzheng, and the morin khuur, and also write new drum sequences using samples of real hand drums.

“Memory Falls is a peculiar place. To the average passerby, a facade of elderly trees and overgrown paths may appear unremarkable, but to a friend of the oaks – well-versed in the forests’ myths – or a peaceful traveler with an open mind and heart, something much greater will appear.”