The Mysterious Music Genre of Signalwave

In November of 2021 my dad died, and an album that I always had on repeat the following year was this one: 电 (translated to: electricity) by ESIAFI 1, an alias of the wonderful New Zealand Signalwave artist TV2, and I would constantly play this because the album made me feel like I was back at his funeral. It sounds like distant music the funeral home lazily places on loop in the ceiling speakers that probably haven't been cleaned since like the early 2000’s making it all sound so crusty. This album allows me to feel like I can revisit that day through sound. 

Signalwave has always reminded me of my dad, and of death, and there is such a powerful energy in these projects that stood by my side day in and day out for almost a year straight; I was listening to nothing but this specific melancholic corner of the Signalwave music genre. Signalwave, or sometimes referred to as Broken Transmission, is a generally lesser known online music genre emerging in the early and mid 2010’s through noteworthy releases like Dream Sequins®, The Computer Trilogy, 天気予報’s (translated to: asutenki / weather forecast) weather-based projects, and ▣世界から解放され▣ (translated to: freed from the world), just to name a few. Branching off of the larger, broader Vaporwave style, Signalwave producers utilize short-lived, heavily repetitive samples usually foraged from television commercials, radio bits, lesser known 70’s and 80’s Japanese songs, but honestly at this point, Signalwave producers are sound collaging all types of source material, which has led the genre to a fruitful spot in the 2020’s.

I made a video on this strange, hidden corner of internet music a couple years back, but so much new Signalwave has come out since then. Also, as described earlier, I discovered a new meaning in these Signalwave releases when my dad passed so I wanted to make a better video not only revisiting the history of the genre and some of the classics, but also all of the newness that has blossomed since. 

Before we begin this massive deep dive, I want to do some housekeeping and make some quick statements. I want to first give a huge shout out to rate your music and their Ultimate Box Set which I didn't even know existed. The Ultimate Box Set is such a great idea in how it showcases a bunch of important releases over the years for a specific genre in a timeline fashion. This was a great help for me when crafting this exploration, especially for the earlier years of Signalwave since I’ve been so occupied in listening to material from like 2016 and up. I also want to give a huge shout out to all of y’all on Twitter who gave me dozens of suggestions for Signalwave albums I should talk about, with a special shout out to CT57 and one71 for providing me with so many year-specific releases to help me further build this Signalwave timeline. one71 also releases Signalwave under channel 71, definitely check em out when you get the chance. 

Plunderphonics is a type of music production based solely on samples, and since that opens up the possibility of so many music projects being categorized as plunderphonics, it really is impossible to try and pinpoint where it all exactly started. Being coined as a term in 1985 by composer John Oswald, we see examples of this type of music production practice in pieces like Dickie Goodman and Bill Buchanan's 1956 single "The Flying Saucer" which featured various sampled records getting interrupted as a radio broadcasts an alien-invasion scenario playing out. “Beyond the Valley of a Day in the Life” off of The Beatles Play The Residents and The Residents Play The Beatles is a trippy mess of a bunch of Beatles material sampled together. Deaf Lions Copia from 1987 contains extremely short, face-paced recorded samples mixed onto a four-track cassette recorder, with bits of sound being repeated non-stop to create this hectic, dizzying effect. 

Signalwave is interesting because, if we were to look at the loose definition of what makes a Signalwave project a Signalwave project, who is to say that Copia is or isn’t the first one, it has short, bite sized looping samples which is the general basis of a Signalwave project. Or what about Chuck Person’s Eccojams Vol 1. from 2010? That technically works as well right? Repetitive short samples spoon-fed ad nauseam to evoke some sort of feeling in you. The album art is fuzzy and old looking too, so is this the first Signalwave project ever made?

The First Era of Signalwave (2011-2018) 

Midnight Television’s self-titled album from 2011 is a great early example of the Signalwave feel. All 7 tracks contain the same hollow sound design, featuring samples from group’s like Change (an amazing group by the way if you haven’t heard of them). Midnight Television’s track “All Night” features a brittle, slowed down snippet from 1985’s “Let’s Go Together”, morphing the track into this distant piece of decayed, delicate audio. A good Signalwave project has an ability to sound intentionally empty or like carved out, yet still retains a memorable melody or sample that latches onto your brain like a parasite. Midnight Television is smooth, easy listening all night long with funky memorable tracks that have great replayability.

We also can’t talk about the early days of Signalwave, and Vaporwave in general, without talking about Vektroid of course; the Prism Genesis EP under the Fuji Grid TV alias came out in the summer of that year and I think out of all the projects we can describe as “early Signalwave”, this is the most influential of them all. The Prism Genesis EP as a whole is pretty much the present day, go-to Signalwave structure for a release; the tracklist is built up with various advertisements competing with lush, shiny instrumental samples all broken up sporadically by pitched down, almost ominous vocal clips. When the track “Waterfall Voyeur” switches into “Mosaic 2.1 / Demo”, that contrast of objectively beautiful soundscapes in one track followed up by these vocal samples in the next one is harsh and disruptive, a mainstay practice found in many projects today. 

Another project from Vektroid in 2011 that also had some Signalwave tendencies in a way is New Dreams Ltd. by her Laserdisc Visions alias. Instead of Midnight Television’s 7 track mini-journey from 2 months earlier, here we have a 27-track platter of varying moods, sample styles and sound terrans. Crisp, midi-moments of bright energy built with samples of various Japanese artists from the 80’s and 90’s, many people don’t know how much material Vektroid was putting out in the early days of the Vaporwave scene besides Floral Shoppe and if you haven’t heard of these yet I highly recommend you get to listening because they are great. New Dreams Ltd. contains super short track times, many not even a minute long, and gives off that sound collage feel many future Signalwave projects would contain, albums with dozens of bite-size tracks going in all sorts of directions. The track “Laserdisc Visions” on the album is so beautiful, not necessarily Signalwave sounding I guess, but has always reminded me of material off of one of my favorite Vaporwave albums, Sound Canvas by Internet Club. 

Speaking of Internet Club, MODERN BUSINESS SUMMER was also released in 2011, and as you’re about to see in this article, Internet Club was a major player in the early game of Signalwave. MODERN BUSINESS SUMMER is early Signalwave meets the perfect corporate office building in downtown Manhattan, lush yet crunchy tunes that make you feel like you’re on hold with your bank in the 1980’s. Internet Club’s signature style of quick cuts to the next moment of sound just as you start feeling comfortable with the current sample chop or loop is infectious and tickles you everytime it happens. Tracks like “MEMORIES” where Internet Club designs the track to sluggishly move along and stumble upon on itself with these awkward sample cuts sparks this mental vision of an overworked investment banker exiting a bar and drunkenly wander to whatever train they need to take to get back home for a couple hours of a horrible, uncomfy sleep before the next day of work. I love it, I saw this like ai-generated video pop up on my instagram the other day that said “THIS IS PHIL COLLINS PENTHOUSE APARTMENT IN 1980’s MANHATTAN” that was so hyper-luxurious and was so obviously not Phil Collins house it was ai generated, but this album feels like those fake images just unobtainable wealth living in the highest apartments of the city but your so overworked that you don’t even know if it’s even worth it. 

Let’s head on over to the next year, 2012, on New Year's day actually, where we would see the release of this beast, ▣世界から解放され▣ (translated to: freed from the world) by INTERNET CLUB, this time though with their alias ░▒▓新しいデラックスライフ▓▒░(translated to: new deluxe life). This wonky, broken thing of beauty truly is one of the earliest examples of the type of Signalwave we see a lot of today, extremely quick, repetitious loops that sound like you found them playing out of a broken radio in a dumpster. These loops though are extremely quick, some sounds don’t even last half a second and they are just repeated over and over until you think you’re going to get sick like your ears are gonna throw up. ▣世界から解放され▣ has now developed into a sort of cult-classic drop to Vaporwave fans across the world. Many people will find this release unlistenable, while some will devour its beautiful irony to the sample-based Vaporwave idea as a whole. 

In 2012 we would also see the emergence of one of, in my opinion, the most prolific figures in the Signalwave scene: Infinity Frequencies. In October of that year, Channel 8 by their alias Local News would get released, an extremely short project consisting of these little jingles reminding us of the tunes and sounds that would play during nightly news segments, little moments of auditory bliss right before and after a commercial break. While Infinity Frequencies would release their first project Euphoria a couple months earlier, that project is much more brighter and airy than everything else that would eventually come out of the Infinity Frequencies project; definitely not a Signalwave release but a more classic, groovy vapor-based project. In the following year, we would see Infinity Frequencies begin to truly solidify themselves as a Signalwave titan with Computer death, the beginning of The Computer Trilogy.

If you’ve been on my channel before, you know I have done a whole bunch of Infinity Frequencies deep dives in the past. They have become one of my favorite Vaporwave producers of all-time, and because I already have so many videos on them, I’m not going to spend so much time on their work in this article, but I’ll try and mention some stuff when I see fit. To sum it up, Infinity Frequencies has crafted a beautiful, uncanny world woven through all of their releases over the years, blending the Signalwave vibe with liminal spaces. An incredible project to find yourself stranded in. 

In 2013, we saw the return of Midnight Television under the alias computer slime with the release of ミスト (translated to: mist). While the album doesn’t contain one concrete soundstyle of Vaporwave specifically, you do get some Signalwave moments on tracks like “carwash” and “life lag”, this is a super chill and smooth listen from start to finish. It’s a quick listen, only 17 minutes in length, but contains so much color and personality in such a short run time. Each track has a different tone and feel from one another, further pushing that sound collage and audio mood board many Signalwave projects would further replicate in years to come, and this is just more early day Vaporwave goodness that stood out among many other projects at the time due to it’s easily-digestible, tranquil sample selections and artwork that wasn’t just statues and palm trees. 

2014 saw a massive release, and now forever classic, in Dream Sequins® by Nmesh. This hypnotic fever dream experiment was a great breath of fresh air during the explosion of Vaporwave releases in the mid 2010’s. Dream Sequins® ingredient list consists of so many different styles and genres, all blended together for a trippy, and at times unnerving, listening experience. Unparalleled at the time in density and atmospheric wanderlust, Nmesh creates a world littered with commercial samples, vocal bites and stutter chops all disrupting this dystopian hologram of a world.

Each track feels so large due to the vast amount of varying source material with a sound design not focused on feeling hollowed out or empty compared to many other Signalwave releases before and after it. All of this isolates the project as one of the most unique Signalwave, and ultimately Plunderphonics-based listens from the mid 2010’s. Put on some good quality headphones, close your eyes and get lost in tracks like “Irregularly Scheduled Programming”, where every second feels like a whole new world flashing before your ears. I can’t even imagine how many samples are present in total for this album. 

We also got Telenights by g h o s t i n g in 2014. Released over at Dream Catalogue, Telenights also features a whole bunch of samples constantly switching up and morphing into new moments. True channel surfing goodness, this feels way more crunchy and distorted than the crispness of Dream Sequins®, giving it more of a true Signalwave sound texture. The glitchy album art replicates the tendencies of g h o s t i n g’s movements throughout the album wonderfully, conjuring of that feeling of waking up in the middle of the night dazed and confused as 3am commercials for products you can only order on TV play in the background. Staring into the blue box in the corner. It lights up the room and makes me dream again. 

2089 by テレビ体験 (translates to: tv experience) was released in September, an odd and mysterious little creation over at the TKX vault, which is a sub label of Dream Catalogue. This feeling even more broken and decayed than Telenights, Y. 2089 gives its samples barely any time to develop, ultimately creating this muddy blend of Japanese samples with no where to go, abrupt cuts especially on this one sample that comes up numerous times on the album preventing it from actually saying what it needs to say, Y. 2089 feels as if a force is holding back the countless product advertisements littered beneath it’s debris, and there is something captivating building throughout all 20 tracks. Maybe it’s the year 2089, and futuristic technology is trying to clean up a pile of decayed tapes they found in the rubble of an old city, because it sure sounds like that. 

In 2015 we got 9.0水面下Megathrust (translated to: 9.0 Underwater Megathrust) by 放射性Hi5 (translated to: Radioactive Hi5), a project driven with a tragic story from start to finish, these 8 tracks provide the timeline of events of a tsunami disaster through different samples and varying levels of energy throughout. Whether it’s the build up to disaster or the calm after the storm, 9.0 水面下Megathrust contains a single narrative throughout and provides cinematic world building through jolting synths, people crying, or announcements being made, transporting you into the disaster through sound alone. The pockets of calm, tranquil soundscapes are chilling in here and cause you to feel the aftermath of such tragedy, especially in the last couple of seconds as the album concludes with these dying keys reminiscent of a final light flickering out. I’ve covered this album before years ago in a video titled The Tragic Side of Vaporwave and journeying through old albums of the past for this new deep dive has reminded me of how special of a project this is. 

In the summer, we got the first EP from Channel 505. Titled 5日の展望 (translated to: 5th outlook), each bite-sized track provides a nice blend of moods and sounds, and this 10 tune journey will take you just about 10 minutes to complete. Channel 505 would also go onto release two more EP’s that year, both also containing an aesthetic dedicated to retro Japanese weather channel graphics and forecasts. Now, if you’re a Signalwave fan, you may recognize the look and feel of these releases from Channel 505, however, you may be thinking of another big-name Signalwave producer who would begin releasing similar work just a couple years later.

Don’t you worry, we’ll get to that. 

We now head into 2016... In april we would see the release of Ｅｔｅｒｎａｌ Ｉｎｔｅｒｍｉｓｓｉｏｎ by Ｓｐｏｒｔ３ ０００ , a short and sweet 5 track bundle of somber, dreamy jingles flooded with varying levels of fuzz, noise and static. Over the years, Ｓｐｏｒｔ３０００ would go on to create quite the discography within the Signalwave scene, with notable releases like ＴＥＸＴ in 2017, Ｃｌｅａｒａｎｃｅ Ｓａｌｅ in 2018, and so on; always a consistent dedication to soft, smooth sounds all centered around a lonely sound design. 

In the summer we saw SUPER SIGNALWAVE CD by the Indiana based KROPN, a mashup of so many different television based samples and effects that create another one of those late night channel surfing adventures. KROPN’s attempt at mashing together all these different pieces to create the flow of the album is memorable and makes it feel longer than it really is, like the over 13 minute track “It’s Morning Again in America” captures such a hectic energy and non-stop back and forth treatment of Signalwave that keeps you on your toes the whole time, only for it to just end abruptly and roll into the next track on the album. We also saw some 2010’s weatherwave in WMCC Weather Channel by Morris County Meteorological Team. Each track varies in sound texture and at 25 song long, this is a solid blend of moods and vibes in the weather-channel inspired world of the genre. 

In September we would see a drop that would eventually become one of the most classic releases in the Signalwave, and greater Vaporwave scene: News at 11 by 猫 シ Corp., an album many of you probably know already and an album I’ve covered far too many times on this channel. To sum it up, Vaporwave legend 猫 シ Corp. crafted a sample-based project based on the events of 9/11, utilizing smooth jazz samples, commercials and even news clips from September 11th all in a way that creates this eerie undertone throughout what seems to be a bright and hopeful surface level of relaxing tunes, cheery commercials and easy listening weather channel background music. News at 11 was another project that emphasized a narrative as it’s main driving force, and its tracklist divided into 2 different parts always felt like a fun changeup throughout the album. 

Another late 2016 release was ▣THIS WORLD▣ by Looking Through Sheets, a project dedicated to the mannerisms and flow of ▣世界から解放され▣ (translated to: freed from the world). More wacky, mind-numbingly repetitious sample material with a Bandcamp description of “finally freed from this world”. 

We also saw one more EP release from Channel 505 with 日本の天気と気候 (translated to: Japan’s weather and climate) and two full album drops with ＥＮＴＲＥ ＴＥＭＰＳ and 気象庁の予報 - 24H (translates to: Japan Meteorological Agency Forecast). Despite being labeled as 2 full albums, they both seem to contain the same short-length nature of their other EP’s, but nonetheless, more colorful, bright sample selections that add only more easy-listening material to the Channel 505 discography. 

In 2017 we saw the rise of 天気予報’s (translated to: asutenki / weather forecast). 

The master of Weatherwave or Climatewave, and with clear inspiration from Channel 505, 天気 予報’s massive discography of weather-channel and news based projects provided countless hours of vintage, nostalgic listening experiences. I’m not even Japanese yet 天気予報 makes me feel like I remember all these little samples and jingles in an alternate timeline of me growing up in the countryside of 1980’s Japan. 

And don’t get me wrong, it’s not like 天気予報’s work was groundbreaking in a production sense or anything, that’s not why I believe they were the best to ever do the genre. Signalwave, just like many other online music genres, I find is best enjoyed when you feel like you have more than you can ever listen to. This dedication to one single persona for about 6 years has provided me with the ultimate “never-ending” journey for 天気予報’s Signalwave catalog of almost 100 albums. They are simple, you know what you’re getting into, and for me that is just relaxation perfection. 

天気予報 would eventually delete all of their music, and the now completely wiped 天気予報 Bandcamp page feels like a locked tomb, a door that can never be reopened. It does suck that this is the case and I don’t really know why this happened. It was so mesmerizing scrolling through the Bandcamp page when it was active, all these beautiful, colorful looking album covers of different regions and forecasts, an overload of old school Japanese weather broadcast graphics. It was so beautiful and felt like its own special bonus level in the world of Vaporwave Bandcamp pages. Now when you go to the Bandcamp, you’re left with a simple message that translates to: “Good night, please forget about me. This project has ended”. Thankfully, there is an archival page of 天気予報’s work out there, a place made to continue the legacy of 天気予報 with the full discography available to purchase at the lowest possible price, with all profits being used for download credits. 

天気予報 ‘s first project, 現在の地域条件 (translated to: Current regional conditions), would release on the 7th of March 2017. This year alone, 天気予報 would release 10 more projects including some personal favorites in 巡 (translated to: Tour) and 真夜中の天気 (translated to: Midnight Weather). 

Perhaps a bit more Mallsoft than Signalwave at its roots, Let’s take a look at some more weather channel inspired music. One can’t deny the aesthetic of Yodobashi Camera’s テレビ天 気 (translated to: tv weather), 14 short length tracks released in October of that year consisting of washed out samples that feel like waves crashing on top of one another as they loop throughout. Roaring guitars and powerful saxophones build up a nice chunk of this album with some vocal samples scattered throughout.

Ｃｒｔ霧 (translates to: C r t fog) by R.E.A.L. was a project that brings more weather channel inspired grooves to life through a dreamy television you’d awaken to in the middle of the night. This thing barely makes it across the 6 minute mark with 6 easy listening, distant sounding tracks consisting of all types of samples from more weather channel callouts to smooth jazz. 

In October we got a really fascinating project with 香烟 (translated to: incense) by 维新噩梦工厂 (translated to: nightmare factory). Another project with a story or message to tell. The bright and lively samples represent the tobacco brands and the lifestyles the commercial advertisements would portray back in the day like beauty, freedom, love and a healthy lifestyle to a product that is eventually going to kill the customer. Similar to News at 11, I love a project that sounds happy and adventurous at the surface but contains a darker meaning underneath it all. 香烟 is one of the most unique Signalwave pieces coming out of the second half of 2017. 

Also in late 2017 we heard 日本のノスタルジックなCM (translated to: Japanese nostalgic commercials) by アニメシステム (anime system); generally fun and playful samples washed out with super heavy, bellowing vocal samples on top. Glitchy at times and intensely slow at others, many tracks like “日本のレコードレーベル “ (translated to: Japanese Record Label) give some serious I’ll Try Living Like This vibes. 

As we roll into 2018, the big one of course being Between two worlds by Infinity Frequencies, one of my favorite albums I think ever, a beautiful pairing of brittle, haunting sample material intertwined with the visions of liminal spaces and isolation. Two more 天気予報 album releases in 青空 (translated to: blue sky) and 全国の天気 (translated to: National weather, 2018 would be an extremely quiet year for the Weatherwave legend, especially compared to the previous year, but don’t you worry because in 2019 we would see the true magnitude of 天気予報’s work with one of the biggest Signalwave albums of all-time. 

In March we got Don’t Change The Channel! by 商業 TV (translated to: commerce TV), a complete trip from start to finish with repetitious samples that spark a feeling of being force-fed thousands of products and items to buy through overly-jolly Japanese commercials. It’s not like you don’t want to change the channel, but you feel like you can’t change the channel. There’s something hypnotic about this album that captures your attention, it’s dreamy and homey despite its fast pace and constant switchups. You can find this gem on the Pennsylvania based Night Light Tapes. Another one of my favorites this year was LANGUAGE SELECT by CH 03, an alias of Toadofsky who is the Owner of Analog Psychedelia and one part of the legendary Philly based Virtua94. LANGUAGE SELECT is fittingly divided into two parts: “English” and “ESPAÑOL”, with each presenting the audio findings from a mysterious VHS tape that appears to have been recorded on many times, over and over with different material including commercials, music videos, over night weather channel forecasts, and bootleg mix tapes. 

Off of the 3 year long label Net Century, we saw releases like video forum’s sky dream in October, tracks reminiscent of a waiting room in the sky. So many of these are so happy going and refreshing like the track “dilemma” or “joyful breeze”. The album has a tropical feel and is perfect for a late summer night, it’s also another one of those that feel both like Mallsoft and Signalwave at the same time, so you take your pick. Audio Venture Corp.’s 代替仮想世界 (translated to: alternative virtual world) would match in similar happy tones, although maybe more subdued and timid compared to sky dream. Tracks are bright but sluggish, extremely lofi but full of adventure. 

The Second Era of Signalwave (2019 - present) 

Even though we’ve looked at some great material already, I feel like this article is just getting started now that we’re getting into 2019. From this point onwards, you really feel like the Signalwave scene exploded, a big part of of course due to an abundance of new artists emerging and dropping large amounts of work, but also thanks to YouTube channels that have showcased so many like channelsurfing, Signalwave, and Signalwave Archives, providing many people just surfing through YouTube an opportunity to stumble upon the genre and begin their dive down the rabbit hole. 

Starting this era in 2019, we saw 天気予報 in prime form, releasing their magnum opus: a 360 track long mega project known as ひまわり画像 (translated to: sunflower image). ひまわり画像 was made to represent a full day of television broadcasting, inherently providing you with hours of listening material that represent the early morning within the first 120 tracks, the afternoon in the next 120, and the evening in the next 119 tracks. The finale track, “Into The Abyss”, is incredibly dense and over 10 minutes long. All of this makes the project feel like Signalwave’s version of Everywhere at the End of Time, both projects over six hours long with a cinematic finale to top everything off. 

天気予報 would go onto release 7 more albums that year and a handful of EP’s like 天気ガイド (translated to: weather guide), which saw 天気予報 blend Future Funk with Signalwave, an awesome concept that gives some really fun energy to the delicate listening experiences much of Signalwave is known for. 天気ガイド is part of the “Tenki Guide” series of EP releases from 天 気予報. These uploads sample more upbeat and dancey material like citypop for example. There’s some actual sidechaining here as well with the kicks, making these the club bangers, if you will, of 天気予報 collection. The finale installment of this series, 天気ガイド IV (translated to: weather guide IV) is my personal favorite of the bunch; it’s super short and sweet but all 4 tracks contain some of the most airy, fun and nostalgic samples I’ve heard in a Signalwave EP. 

ASTRO TV SYSTEM would have a big year with projects like ULTIMATE TELEVISION EXPERIENCE, 呪われた放送1984 (translates to: cursed broadcast 1984) and VORTEX TELEVISION. Ninepin Group and their album 一種催化劑 (translated to: a kind of promotion or a catalyst, not really 100% positive on the translation for this one) portrays a collection of damaged VHS tapes found in the rubble of a city. The owner of the tapes was an elderly man who passed away, and featured recorded material from the 80’s and early 90’s for the artists to sample from for the album. It’s these little stories placed onto the albums that make so many of them special, and with this one there’s such an abandoned charm to the whole project that actually makes it feel like it was foraged from an old man’s archived collection of news broadcasts and commercials as they lived the years away on their sofa. There also is a chance that this release may be under an alias of 天気予報, as in the release details on Bandcamp, it states: “*This release has been given to Hitonatsukashi as part of the merge.*”. 天気予報 would use the name “Hitonatsukashi” in some of their albums and album tags. 

Ｓｐｏｒｔ３０００ would continue their discography with albums like asset allocation, ｓｐｅｃｔｅｒ and ｏｂ ｓｅｒｖｅｒ, but we would also see the birth of a new alias in Video Interface. In September, Satellite Frequencies would release on the Internet-Stories label, a perfect 19-track collection of songs to scratch any Signalwave fans itch. With a sound design at times a bit more clear and less-distorted from most Ｓｐｏｒｔ３０００projects, Satellite Frequencies provides sample flips drenched in nostalgia, even if you’ve never heard the original source material before. Each track on here is titled as a different frequency, built with starry night synths, ancient strings and the occasional vocal presence of someone explaining the satellite technology providing you with today’s listening. 

A great album to pair this with came out in September of this year as well: Night Coverage by Meteorological Agency. More crisp, not as distorted Signalwave that sounds more pretty than anything with many of the same instruments found in the samples of Satellite Frequencies. Night Coverage doesn’t wow you with an overabundance of decayed, harsh radio buzz or things like that, instead a clean palette cleanser that features pockets of rainfall, sweet pianos and early morning flutes. This is one of those albums that represent my favorite part of the day; that like 4:45am-6:15am section of the early early morning where the sun is just beginning to awaken and has cast the first signs of turning the sky blue. Another Signalwave album that’s atop my list of favorites also falls right in this nook of the day as well, but we’ll have to wait until we get to 2021 for that one. 

Although producing music for a couple of years under the Kratzwerk name, we would see the producer release a weatherwave-based project in 広告と天気など (translated to: advertising, weather, etc.). Instead of the usual Japanese terrain we got some Mediterranean going on here, changing it up a little, and more importantly, a weatherwave project that doesn’t share a lot of the same usual weather channel samples as many other projects. This is a really refreshing listen in the weather-based Signalwave niche and as many now know, Kratzwerk would begin their Signalwave run starting around this time and continue dropping some absolute bangers in the 2020’s.

And last but not least, we got a collaboration project between 天気予報 (translated to: Asutenki), 空気系 (translated to: Air System), and Ｋａｎａｌ Ｖｉｅｒ titled 成層圏 (translated to: stratosphere)・ Guide・Nachtmusik: 10 tracks from each artist building a diverse palette of Signalwave exploration from start to finish. This is another personal favorite of mine and as someone who has always been a fan of albums that feature 2 or more artists having their own dedicated sections, this 3-piece masterclass is a perfect sampler of what the Signalwave scene has to offer. 

As we turn into the next decade, early 2020 saw the 100 track long misc. Recordings. Here, we would see video forum return with a huge amount of easy listening, relaxing samples. This is a free download I can’t recommend enough. Contrast these sunny day moods with sounds as dark as the cover art itself, 夜分 (translated to: nighttime); an atmospheric ambient track by the Richmond based 秋 (translated to: autumn memory) and causes you to feel like a test subject dragged through 40 minutes of varied intensity. Accompanied by a narrator who periodically makes their presence known, some moments are painted with birds and bells while others glitch uncontrollably. 

2020 was a year that sparked a major starting point for so many Signalwave producers who have now established themselves as major names in the scene. We saw the beginning of the artist TV2 in 2020, a Signalwave producer who had a big year with traditional Signalwave releases in Willow Tree, Sentimental Summertime Signals, and we also saw their alias carpet dust this year release junk, and let me tell you if there is a project that can sound as dusty as the deepest parts of a thrift store, it’s this one. On top of that, she also dropped more story-driven scenarios with BP Oil Spill 2010, using Signalwave to once again showcase a tragic event or history, and then we shift gears to Morning Appointment which is a lot of fun, picture a device manufactured solely to deliver your morning dose of Signalwave. Can’t beat that with a good cup of coffee. 

The Paris based CANAL+ would begin their beloved discography with releases like Matin, Vendredi and Ensoleillement , French inspired Signalwave creations with various moods and atmospheres. 

Channel 71 would debut their discography with 1, a non-stop barrage of commercial and ad clips paired with a cover image the producer took during a morning walk during the quarantine of early 2020. 

Another artist who would begin their Signalwave journey this year was EtheReal Media™ and their Ｓｋｙｗａｖｅｓ EP, an EP I’ve talked about before on the channel that feels incredibly lonely yet strangely comforting. At only 4 tracks long, it still has the ability to leave a lasting effect on listeners with sounds that feel like you’ve heard them through memories of your childhood home or the holidays. Super cozy and a great start to the EtheReal Media™ catalog that would continue to develop over the years. 

The year is now 2021, and we would see the release of one of my favorite Signalwave albums of all time, the one that I mentioned earlier in this video: night-time television service by national network, another alias from you guessed it: TV2. This little 6-track delight features intense buzzing, but somehow in a way that is far from annoying or anything like that. The samples reworked into these tracks are nothing short of beautiful and hopeful, it’s the ultimate early morning Signalwave album that is always a go to when I’m trying to just get some work done around the house in the morning. nocturnal depression also came out in August of that year, another nostalgic release that feels as if you’re experiencing it straight out of an old television, a channel guide showcasing what is in store for the rest of the day in the world of cable television. 

Based out of Milan, Italy we saw the beginnings of Ｔｅｌｅ＋１with ｍｅｔｅｏ ２４ and it’s funkier-than-usual sample selection for a Signalwave project. Created with various Italian clips and other sorts of sample material, this was the start of another artist with a massive Signalwave discography; February of 2021 alone saw 3 different albums from them with the additions of ｄｅｃｏｄｅｒand ｔｅｌｅｖｉｄｅｏ, and 10 more albums in addition to that before the end of the year. It’s always refreshing finding albums that contain sample material in other languages than just Japanese all the time, and being someone who grew up with grandparents who watched nothing but RAI Italia news, these albums are extremely nostalgic for me. 

TV2 was back in 2021 with another huge year, featuring a release under the new alias ESIAFI1 called 地球卫星 (translated to: earth satellites) . Projects under this alias have such an attention to detail in regards to creating something incredibly distant and mysterious; barely audible japanese vocal clips scattered throughout warped and eroded sample material. Many of these sounds barely make it through, and the ones that do feature such little energy that the source must be hundreds of thousands of miles away, floating somewhere in space where we will never be able to hear the actual quality of the, what once was, beautiful tracks laid beneath the distortion and sound texture. More standouts from TV2 include recycling sale under the carpet dust alias, as well as Transmitter Charlie 113.2 MHz, uplifting sounds drowned in heavy distortion to start your morning. 

And, what is a year in Signalwave without more weather-based work: An Hour of Climatewave by 晴れた空123 (translated to: Sunny Sky 123) features two 30-minute long parts of go-to, relaxing weather-inspired material. Speaking of the weather, this was also 天気予報’s quietest year with the only material releasing being the Transmission Index EP, the inclusion on some compilation projects, and a track with NxxxxxS on Combochamp, a collaboration project I hosted back in 2021 that features artists from all over the Vaporwave community randomly paired with one another and tasked on making a track together. Seeing 天気予報 and NxxxxxS, two artists with completely different styles, come together and produce a blend of Signalwave and Vaportrap, was nothing short of awesome. 

As we head towards the end of the year, we would get the massive 説明なしで提示 (translated to: presented without explanation) compilation curated by OSCOB. This thing is absolutely huge, not just in the wacky and odd 96 total track quantity, but in the fact that each one is at least in 5 minutes length besides like 1 or 2 of them. Best of luck finishing this gargantuan project. Some standouts for me are track 11 “買い物をしながら別の人生を夢見ていた” (translated to: while shopping I dreamed of a different life) constantly gets slower and murkier, along with many other pieces that contain super short and repetitious sample material looped to infinity. The whole album feels like you walked into an antique shop of samples stacked to the roof. Sometimes you need one of those Signalwave projects that feels intentionally broken, and this is just that; like track 15 for example “不安” (translated to: anxiety) just tickles the soul as it’s all over the place. Due to the compilation length, you are constantly hooked into these mesmerizing, weird loops for minutes at a time, sometimes forgetting that you are listening to anything at all if you have this on in the background of a task or something, and then all of a sudden these artists just pull you out and throw you right into a new loop with no warning. Loaded with short vocal bursts that play out for minutes at a time. Some of these hypnotic tracks are also extremely pretty sounding, like track 80 “彼女はあなたを傷つけるつもりです” (translated to: she’s gonna hurt you) which feels so delicate and foggy. If you aren’t one who wants to sit through this whole thing from start to finish, have some fun at least randomly choosing a track on its massive 96-story tracklist and go from there. Shout out to Aloe City Records for putting this thing onto a 4-cassette collection, a limited edition 50 copies drop which is now long sold out. There are a handful of super, almost comically long, releases in the Signalwave sphere, but 説明なしで提示 sticks out by feeling genuinely odd and justifies this insanely long runtime by transmitting the true sensations of what repetitious samples flooding your brain for hours at a time can do to a listener. Hats off to everyone involved in this project. 

In the very last weeks of the year, we would see the beginning of the Toronto based CT57 with their release of ANIK TELESTAT in December; a 7 track journey that follows a lonely satellite lost to time, orbiting forever. Classical and almost Caretaker-esque, CT57 builds the perfect on hold telephone music and creates an eerie, yet calming, world through warped samples. The almost 18 minute long track “ENDLESS ORBIT” gives off some heavy Fallout vibes, or music you’d imagine playing in a near-empty diner from generations passed. It’s wonderful and brittle in all the right ways, and I was actually able to discuss the genre with CT57 and what Signalwave means to them a little while back before beginning the construction of this video: 

“Signalwave is the most important genre of music in my life, it's gotten me through some rough patches of life and it's the one hobby that has somehow lasted for me. Signalwave saved my life when I had no purpose by giving me a creative purpose. I have found a way to express myself, my memories and my emotions through signalwave. I have made connections with people I'll never forget, people who have been so influential to how I think about art, and people who have been there when life got me down.” - CT57 

2021 was also the year my dad passed away, towards the end of November. セルシオ (translated to: serushio) would also begin releasing Signalwave material this year, and so many of these projects stayed by my side the weeks after his death. Branches contained the frigid temperatures of Winter but the comfort of watching it all from inside your living room window.

bloom is an album I still listen to so much, a moody charcuterie board of minimalistic sample choices. lost in abyss is painstakingly empty, many tracks just featuring one single instrument in an empty room flooded with light distortion and buzz constantly. 2021 was セルシオ most prominent year of production with 17 releases in total. 

Ｗｉｎｔｅｒ Ｐａｒａｌｙｓｉｓ １-５ I also played a whole lot around this time from CRT麻痺 (translated to: CRT paralysis), who is also an alias of .nds as well as ベリキャンディ(translates to: Berry Candy) and localdecay, another Signalwave alias. As I’m sure you see by now, so many artists have so many different projects that showcase different themes, moods and personalities, so the possibilities are constantly endless in this space.. This album always reminded me of old black and white episodes of The Twilight Zone, a show my father and I would watch religiously around the end of the year because I always remember they would do a marathon of all the episodes around Christmas or New Years or something like that. These airy, melancholic tracks are mysterious; drowned out and stretched horns are crafted to sound ambient and comforting and the long run-time undeniably helps you cozy up and lock into the frigid world the album creates; another release that Signalwave makes you feel as if you are looking at the freezing cold outdoors through the comfort of your living room window. 

To finish the year off, EtheReal Media™ would drop Ｈｏｌｉｄａｙ Ｓｐｅｃｉａｌ. Christmas is always a special time for my family and I, and this year was going to be different without my pops around. Without him, there definitely was an emptiness this year around a time where we all usually got together and celebrated. The warm glow of Ｈｏｌｉｄａｙ Ｓｐｅｃｉａｌalmost felt like a night light in audio form. Something I always remember about the past was how homey it felt at nighttime around the holidays, seeing the glow from tree sneak in underneath your bedroom door, or outdoor Christmas lights casting a dim colorful glow as it barely passed through the curtains of your windows. This album reminds me of that alot, and it was all very comforting, whether I realized it or not at the time, as we rounded up 2021 and all that happened towards the end. 

On the first day of 2022, we got the return of Vektroid & New Dreams Ltd. with Fuji Grid TV II : EMX, one of the most chaotic pieces I think from the Signalwave realm ever. Blending warped Japanese commercials that have no rhyme or reason, like in the track “CHANNEL 3”, there are so many times you feel like the song is ending as the tone of the warped sample starts to slow down but then Vekrtoid just throws it into another never-ending cyclone. I love these pieces from Vektroid’s discography that really bend samples in ways far more hectic than what most people in the Vaporwave sphere remember in her works like Floral Shoppe. Towards the end, the songs feel like a combination of 100 WarioWare minigames in audio form, there is so much going on here, that last track “P • V” in particular, which is such a surreal blend of corrupted, cut off sample chops sprouting out in every single direction. A true grand finale and explosion to send the whole thing home. 

Talking about the return of OG Signalwave pioneers, INTERNET CLUB threw up a 19 minute track titled SPEED DIALER ! in March of this year which is heavily drenched in that classic, lofi Signalwave fuzz. This is an actual torture trip of being on hold in a phone call with a never ending music loop, only for the whole thing to fall apart towards the end, that final japanese vocal clip feels like I actually got through to someone, only for the track to then end like 5 seconds later and I’m just at a loss for words. It’s INTERNET CLUB, it’s fun, it’s weird, I love the big MJ suit in green, its all just dandy. 

In 2022, 电 (translated to: electricity) by ESIAFI was released, and is the album that reminds me of my dad the most. This album is the most important Signalwave album to me, and is the album that really helped me appreciate how powerful these simple, yet narratively rich, sample-based projects can be. TV2 uses these pianos that barely have any life left in them, accompanied by a mysterious vocal sample that pats you on the back as you venture further and further into the desolate mood of the rest of the album. 电 always feels like funeral home music to me, and has always been an escape for me to revisit those weird days where I felt so disconnected from everything. This album is what purgatory has to sound and feel like. 

A bit more hopeful but still a project that I remember keeping on all the time around the months after my dad passed was slideshow by crt paralysis; a meeting of Signalwave and the Fruitger Aero aesthetic that has swept over the internet these past few years. slideshow is so dizzy yet easy to attach yourself to and hypnotic, samples and how they are repurposed on here feel as if they are constantly being spun around crafting intricate spiderwebs inside your brain. The low-resolution album art on a Frutiger-Aero aesthetic image is the perfect representation of this album, a project that has sample material that is most likely vivid and polished sounding, yet covered in a low-res sound texture to make it all feel like that distant memory and time you can never return to. Simpler days of the internet romanticized constantly in your mind. It’s really refreshing seeing Signalwave not only just venture down different avenues besides solely using Japanese-based samples, but also different time periods. We usually find Signalwave source material based in the 80’s and early 90’s, but seeing a project clearly emphasizing the feelings of 2000’s tech and the theme of a hopeful future is like a splash of water to the face. With a simple Bandcamp description of “a handful of memories”, slideshow is to the point yet memorable in every way. 

More Frutiger Aero or 2000’s inspired work shined through with FORMAT BLUE where we return to our good friend INTERNET CLUB. Something about this album has always reminded me of discount, shovelware Nintendo DS games in like a bin at a CVS or something, and it’s beautiful. Playful samples build up this new setting from INTERNET CLUB and is arguably one of my favorite projects from them. Keep up the amazing work Robin. 

The beginning of this year saw the return of Infinity Frequencies with Exit Simulation, their first full album release since 2018. Similar to much of their other work, many were excited to see the return of liminal Signalwave once again. screen recordings also appeared early on in the year and was a unique project from the Vaporwave producer christtt that was crafted by using the numbers on a keyboard to jump between sections of YouTube videos, ultimately creating the same Signalwave style of cut and paste sample repetitions through 27 tracks. There is a video album that also showcases the production style exactly, and is another great push for other people out there to make Signalwave releases of their own, you don’t even need music production software just hop onto YouTube my friend.

Hallmark ‘87’s Quiet Storms was a standout this year, capturing the settings of a stormy day through the eyes of a child with a tracklist that ventures through all of the different moments a severe weather pattern can have from their perspective. The album starts off ominous and eventually settles into a more blissful, comforting state, just like the passing of a storm from start to end. Quiet Storms is simple but extremely effective. 

We saw the emergence of SKY SPORTS with ★★★★☆ , another alias of TV2 (if this video accomplishes anything it is that TV2 is the undisputed queen of Signalwave). SKY SPORTS is another project that emphasizes that 2000’s vibe; an energetic, techno and Y2k aesthetic is given the Signalwave treatment here and everytime I listen to SKY SPORTS I always get memories of when Italy won the World Cup in 2006. Quick side story here, when it’s World Cup or EURO’s time, my family always go above and beyond, every game is always a party, especially when we were growing up and the releases from SKY SPORTS always reminds me of when we scored two goals against Germany in overtime of the semi’s in 06’ and winning the final against Zidane. SKY SPORTS is so much fun, full of energy and another alias under the TV2 name that adds even more diversity to all of the different styles she ventures into with her production. 

セルシオ was back with some more material this year, including 日記 (translated to: diary); more piano and strings to create a tracklist that is simply beautiful, these tunes just pull at your heart in all the right ways. Another project where the album art describes the sound perfectly, it’s impossible to not feel like you’re just waking up and stepping outside to a warm rainy morning when you put this thing on. 

We saw a big collaboration project in ｆｒｅｑｕｅｎｚａ/ＣｏｌｏｒＳｐｅｃｔｒｅ by Ｔｅｌｅ＋１ & International Telecom, both artists taking a separate half of the album to showcase what they are all about: a blend of programming and transmissions inspired by Italian and Russian roots, despite still finding the occasional American sample squeezed in there. 

In addition to this unique take on Signalwave, we got a Halloween-inspired release in 悪霊に悩 まされている (translated to: tormented by demons) by CMメモリーズ (translated to: CM Memories). Dropping on Halloween day, this barely 4 or 5 minute long bizarre and zany trip is a bundle of almost unlistenable samples that are reminiscent of dirty old halloween decorations you find at a yard sale from a family trying to clear up space in their garage. I love it. 

To finish out the year, one that I listened to a whole bunch when it first released was channel tuning by antenna decay, an alias of ICMASA, the International Climatology, Meteorology and Astronomy Space Agency. This release is simply beautiful; that opening track “eternal interference” is iconic in its delicateness, same with “radiowaves” and pretty much everything on here. This is another one of those super early morning albums I love to throw on and just keep on in the background as I make some breakfast or clean up the crib. Also, people are calling this type of sound “Satellitesoft” which I just absolutely love.

We finally saw the conclusion of the 天気予報 project. At the end of this year, 天気予報 released their final album Beyond The Veil: Farewell Performance via a password locked Mega.nz link which would expire on New Year’s Eve. The password for this album was found hidden in an image that was added to every download of any 天気予報 album. This album is now available on the 天気予報 archive, and contains over 10 hours of material from 天気予報. The sounds of this project come from purposely destroyed physicals of their music by using heavy effects from pedals and other methods. In conclusion, 天気予報 destroys eight years of work with little to no remorse, all made in one take. On the archive page for the release, 天気予報 also lists all of the physicals they used to create this farewell release, a variety of cassettes and vinyl from online labels like Geometric Lullaby, Dark Web Recordings and No Problema Tapes. To give my own personal thoughts on this, I can understand someone wanting to stop some sort of craft or hobby they’ve worked on for so long. Maybe they just got burnt out of doing the same thing over and over again. Something like Beyond The Veil: Farewell Performance could be a way to cleanse themselves of feeling like they are attached to this one form of art or personal project, a destruction and deterioration of their work that is ironically just as fitting as old CRT TV’s breaking down over time; old televisions locking away an era of vintage weather channels that can only be recovered through now decayed broadcasts and aged, broken screens. 

“It may sound comical or disgusting, and its primary purpose… to evoke a wide range of emotions. Love it or hate it, I’m satisfied with the final product, and destroying them is pretty fun. “ - 天気予報 

There was no need to worry though, as weather-inspired Signalwave constantly finds new releases each year, some noteworthy albums in the deluxe and remastered release of i hope you get wet with the rain from the Brazil based producer default.cfg who lays down each track based on a different location or news announcement, resulting in a very colorful and lively piece of Signalwave that does not resort to the constant, usual VHS sound design texture found on many other releases. The moods on here vary like an actual windy, rainy storm; some moments are glitchy with sporadic stutter chops while others resort to that classy smooth jazz comfort that is a standard in the weatherwave scene. With an additional 20 minutes of unreleased material on here, this is a hearty album with lots of replayability. QC Broadcasting Network featured more whimsical, playful, super lofi weather-based Signalwave from CRTskies, your local Canadian TV and weather station. 

Talking about some good weather, how about this gem of a project: 此有 (translated to: this existence) by 常世 (translated to: eternalness). A tropical and pretty experience that feels like you’re waiting in an airport terminal or on hold with a travel guide company. Full of wanderlust for those wishing to go on vacation far, far away. 50 tracks long, some are less than 10 seconds while the finale track “All Too Human” is a full 7 minute ride that introduces some really harsh distortion in there as well, putting a cherry on top of the whole thing in a mysterious “where to next” fashion.

When I think of my favorite Signalwave releases from that year, two come to mind; ３ａ.ｍ.Ｓｉｇｎａｌｓ by International Telecom would drop in March. An album that feels like a rest stop or a gas station on a planet far, far away, this album has everything you look for in a Signalwave project; moody atmospheres from varied sampled genres all given the perfect amount of lofi treatment from start to end. International Telecom continually builds a great catalog that focuses on themes of satellites and connectivity to night time and outer space. Another one that I found myself having on repeat was GOOD NIGHT AMERICA by 4departing4. With clear inspiration from News at 11, GOOD NIGHT AMERICA features more jazzy, easy listening and warm tunes with the undertones of tragedy and sadness. GOOD NIGHT AMERICA was a follow up to their release PRESERVE from earlier in the year, and having both side by side provides you with almost 3 hours of great sample curation from 4d4. Another standout is THERE which contains 2010 weather recordings & pbs kids samples, where the VHS fuzz level is turned up quite a bit as we’re given some timeless weatherwave and channel guide-esque relaxation. 

We saw some Morocco-inspired Signalwave in 2M الثـانـية القـنـاة) translated to: the second channel) by S.N.R.T.M.. Once again, it is always fun discovering Signalwave that represents another country, and here we get to experience a lighthearted and adventurous collection of samples to explore the broadcasts of Morocco. 

One of the biggest announcements of this year was Signalcon 2023, a 2 day online Signalwave music festival that S.N.R.T.M. and many other big names performed on throughout July 14th and 15th. This festival was a great way for many to experience some of the biggest names in the scene, as well as discover music from countless other great new artists. Signalcon would continue in 2024 and I’m hoping it will be back again in 2025. 

From big event to big release, we also got one of my personal favorite Signalwave projects ever: Wiiきおくにとどめる (translated to: Wii Save… I think?) by sobergaze. Being a huge fan of the Nintendo wii aesthetic, ambience and era in general, this project was just made for me; 3 hours of Nintendo Wii samples to make you feel like you are on vacation at Wuhu Island. Utilizing all sorts of material to sample like the Japan exclusive Food Delivery channel, this is a beautiful compilation dedicated to that Wii aesthetic that is so magical to so many people. Wiiき おくにとどめる is a lengthy listen at 66 tracks, and everytime I throw this thing on I start itching to hit the back 9 in some Wii Golf. Another massive release was मेरो नेपा ल, मेरो शा न (translates to: my nepal my pride) by ShrinesTV, 163 tracks make up this insanely long release. For the most part, everything on here contains that same brittle sound texture on top of various samples across all different sounds, instruments, commercials you name it. The entire release is a tribute to Nepal by ShrinesTV. 

To completely contrast the amount of volume in Wiiきおくにとどめる and मेरो नेपा ल, मेरो शा न, an Oregon based artist who went by A S T Advantage who paints their discography by only posting single-track releases. They do claim in 2023 that an album would be coming soon, but nothing has yet to pop up on the Bandcamp; just 2 single track releases in 2023 and 2 more in the upcoming year. This is one of those corners of internet music that feels like you’re in the depths of a dying department store, the farthest shelves placed in the back that many of the store workers just seem to forget about. There is an abandoned aesthetic here that is so wonderful and so Signalwave. 

ディスク830561 (translates to: disk 830561) by 衛星テレビ (translates to: satellite tv) is a project that starts off with your normal Signalwave tendencies, but gets really washed out and gorgeously slushy towards the end. This project, at first glance, immediately reminded me of 2814’s Dreampunk classic 新しい日の誕生 (translates to: Birth of a New Day), except here we bring that undeniable purple color to New York City. This is a gorgeous release that also features an individual music video for every track of the album on the Bandcamp page, an excellent touch that further brings to life these sounds in color and personality. 

Some more releases that begs to stick out of 2023 〒650-8576 Suiminjimukokyū by Kansai Restoration Project, an album loaded with so many filters and effects that takes the catchy samples into a realm far beyond just slowing them down or coating them with some VHS buzz. This album feels unique and genuinely trippy compared to many other Signalwave releases. Or how about this one, wormhole by テッセラクト (translates to: tesseract), a mysterious bundle of 31 songs that feel left behind in the far corners of space. Samples built with these almost choir-like chants to moments more dimly lit and absent of energy, wormhole goes back and forth between vibrant and buried and captures your attention from start to finish. And, right at the end of the year, ディスフォリア (translates to: Dysphoria) by ネコネコ (translates to: nekoneko) contains 5 long tracks. The first 2 feature broken down, repeating sample loops with audible sound, but the last 3 are incredibly drowned out and messed with, all resulting in this weird, broken down cassette tape concept. ネコネコ is an alias of Nikolai M. who has released Signalwave and ambient music under other aliases as well like the smell of decay and unknown settlement to name a few. 峰 (Topography) by 巡天 (Sky Survey) sticks out as well with 4 tracks titled “Depths”, “Land”, “Mist” and “Path” that all have the same drowned out sound texture, yet each feel unique and full of significance with these strong, isolated pianos and ancient strings. This release feels just like the cover artwork; stranded in the rich depths of nature. This is another alias of ICMASA, who also released channel tuning under the antenna decay alias back in 2022. International Telecom would also drop another album with Ｔｅｌｅｃｏｍ, a released drenched in constant buzz and simplicity. These type of Signalwave tunes are always so laid back and nostalgic, and are perfect in any long-form rotation of album you may want to throw on. 

We’re gonna round up discussion of 2023 with a wonderful plate of releases from CRT麻痺 (translated to: CRT paralysis), who put out some freezing cold Signalwave projects like Winter’s Lament back in January, and 2 more releases in December with Cold Desolation and Distant Carol. These are some of the most lonely and barren Signalwave you can experience, and also some of my favorites as CRT麻痺 creates a complete winter landscape that would also continue into 2024. With my dad passing in late November, I always also associate much of the winter time with Signalwave, and releases like this just correlate perfectly. These somber sounds make it impossible to not feel reflective over a year that is about to pass, all of its ups and downs and questions left unanswered.

In 2024, CRT麻痺 would continue this string of winter-inspired releases with Frigid Path in January and Winter’s Demise in April, with Winter’s Demise hinting at an end to this series. Who knows what the future will hold. We also saw some more winter-based Signalwave in Snow of '93 by M1 t e l e v í z i ó,. This time we have some Hungarian-based Signalwave that further pushes that subtle and monotone feel. These 6 tracks feel like they are buried under 6 feet of snow. 

vcr recordings by 直子coed (translated to: naoko coed) brought back some true early days Signalwave channel surfing madness; non-stop action, super fun samples and always upbeat. Melt away the snowy textures of CRT麻痺’s releases with this one… Signalwave for the ultimate sunny day. 直子coed is also well known in the Signalwave community, helping newcomers gain some ground by promoting their work and hyping up events, for example Signalcon 2024 which she also hosted on her YouTube channel. 

Channel 71 would release HD Analog in July. HD Analog would mark the 7th album they released in 2024, where the producer aimed to add more audio effects to their style. They like to think of their 2024 releases as the “Broadcast Day Era” of their work, where albums are paced as if they take place throughout a day or within a certain time of day. 

Let’s flip the switch and drop another release that is completely contrasting the previous one once again with before we appear by victory over death. Minimal, bellowing, and feeling as if it was found drifting in the farthest corners of space, this wonderfully hypnotic piece of ambient Signalwave is painted with beautiful pianos and rough-sound vocal bites. Despite being an overall relaxing listen, before we appear makes you feel itchy as victory over death does a great job experimenting with sound textures. I also highly recommend 自然な境界線 (translated to: natural boundaries) from the year prior and their latest project the monitor which is far less abstract or distorted sounding as it is structured with these really fun and bright loops. victory over death has been extremely active since 2023 and their is a project in the discography for everyone. 

Aside from this, CT57 had a big year with notable releases like distant sounds of desolation, a 10 track journey that feels Caretaker-esque with vintage textures and samples that are beautiful underneath the surface now covered in dust and old age; echoing, broken sounds of the past that decay by the moment. Millbrook memories has a very similar feel but generally more warm and uplifting; a perfect 1-2 combo if you have an hour to spare. As their discography has aged and grown overtime, CT57 has created some very moving pieces and these are some of the very best. 

Another powerful album is ダークデイ (translated to: dark day) by ダークデイ (an artist of the same name), an alias of the Netherlands based artist TREVØR. Releasing under the What Nightmares Are Made of label, a label that focuses on darker sounds, this is exactly that. ダーク デイ is dedicated to Agatha, someone close to the artist who has passed away. Released back in July, the sadness and strength of these songs are riveting. Piano samples are taken from old videos of Agatha as a child practicing the piano. Some moments are subtly glitchy while others are drawn out, patient and filled with such immense space in between each sound. 

Some more early-2000’s inspired work found in ｄａｉｌｙ ｍｅｄｉａ by TCR-4; easy listening and pumped up jazzy tunes perfect for a mid-day channel guide or the music that a movie theater plays before the trailers begin to start if you’re one of those people that get to the movie THAT early. I always found that to be such a relaxing vibe. Anyways, I love the use of Frutiger Aero in Signalwave, both genres are so different in composition so seeing the bright and shiny feel of Frutiger Aero dipped into the lofi tones of Signalwave always makes it actually feel like these sounds are coming out of some old tech or computer buried in the back of someone's garage that is just being booted up for the first time in 20+ years. 

街灯 (translated to:street light) by ビリヤード場 (translated to: pool hall) is also a lot of fun. The chicago-based producer delivers silky smooth samples with some minimal texturizing to preserve the natural tendencies of the original material. Perfect for that late night walk. For some more happy listening, try Dreamweather’s WeatherView; a feel good blend of groovy samples and more go-to weather channel announcements and weather reports. Dreamweather’s application of VHS fuzz on here is elegant and creates a warm feeling throughout the entire mix. 

And for more of that traditional, Japanese-based Signalwave, look no further than アナログ停 (translated to: analog stop) by 視聴者 (translated to: viewer) which contains an overload of advertisements, shiny sounds and hectic sample placements that sound like you are surrounded by 3 televisions blasting Japanese news stations and mid-day programming at the same time, and you can’t decide which one to watch. If you’re in the mood for some audio caffeine, this blast of Japanese sample work will wake you up better than any cup of coffee could. 

A towering release of Dreamscapes: Complete Edition by Reizaibatsu Corp. is a massive 60 track project that enters you into the virtual world of Dreamscape, a setting in which the real world and dreamworld merge as one. Each song feels like another store or building in this virtual city, sort of like a Signalwave equivalent to death’s dynamic shroud’s DERELICTメガタ ワー (translates to: Derelict Mega Tower). I love these open world scenarios put forward in audio form every time. 

And to conclude everything and bring us to the very present day, we’re going to end with 2 very important releases, this first one which has to be my favorite Signalwave project of the year thus far, CT57’s incredible Road to Nowhere, a project that is around 4 hours long. This Signalwave journey was inspired by TV2’s 1450kHz at Broken Grove, which in turn was inspired by GlenOAX’s Narvon Night’s. On Road to Nowhere, CT57 takes us into the passenger seat of a cross-country 18-wheeler driving through the night with nothing but streetlights and dark skies surrounding the vehicle. In doing so, we are presented with 7 lengthy tracks that are sometimes trippy, sometimes mysterious, and many times lifeless in all the right ways, all periodically paired with the sounds of a moving truck to constantly remind you of where you are.

enjoying the silence before a new day is born.” - CT57 

And last but not least, the Signalwave community’s The Gas Station MegaCompilation, 31 tracks from so many different artists that are dedicated to YouTube freezing the Signalcon 2024 Day 3 premiere on the image of this gas station. Which ultimately, may be the most Signalwave thing to ever happen. You can find this album on YouTube in its movie premiere, or on the Hitachi Home Video Bandcamp page, alongside many other great Signalwave works.