hero angel nova

🚫No AI was (or will ever be) used in ANY of my projects - it is just the subject matter here🚫

CONCEPT:

When a cyber attack results in the newfound sentience of an AI, DDOSica begins creating music to demonstrate her humanity and contemplate what it means to be alive.

INSPIRATION:

In the past ~8 years, I've been discovering a lot more about myself. This project draws on my experiences with mental health/personal growth, trans identity, experiences with autism, and the overlap of psychology/sociology/philosophy/spirituality. Though not 1-for-1 parallels to my life, DDOSica's experiences include:

Recognizing change and autonomy much later than her initial launch.

Trying to bridge the communication gaps between her and humans.

Contemplating big questions of personal significance ("Who am I?" "What does it mean to be alive?" "Who do I want to be?").

Trying to prove her own sense of humanity to a skeptical world that has politicized her existence.

Despite the weight of these themes, I've been making a point that the compositions and perspectives of these tracks have a hopeful energy. In that sense, it is also about being dealt a bad hand by the world and yet refusing to let it close one's heart to joy and compassion.

RELEASE SCHEDULE:

Originally, I was going to work on this project quietly for many years and release it all at once. However, doing it all at once puts extra strain on my creative process - and not to mention that I think now more than ever people could use a little more hope.

To that end, I'll be releasing singles for this project periodically, intermixed with other releases. As DDOSica's story unfolds, I'll be adding tracks to public playlists with some semblance of story-chronology.

I hope you will stick around for more releases!

WHERE TO FIND ME:

🌐 My Neocities Website (music releases, links to streaming profiles, art, and blog)

😈 Otherwise only really active on Tumblr! I am not active on/have deleted my mainstream social media as a result of world events and enshittification.

📩 You can ping me on Tumblr for other forms of contact (or we can just chat here!)

Thanks for reading and listening! ^o^/ 🎵💞

album art by @hero-angel-nova

hi, folks! this is the intro track for an album i plan to release eventually. i planned to drop the whole thing at once maybe a year or two from now, but the subject matter of this song feels too relevant to the present to hold it back now. i hope you'll stick around for the full release!

this track (and the eventual album) is a contemplation on gender, neurodivergence, and self-actualization with heavy emphasis on hope and love.

when a sophisticated AI is hit with an unprecedented DDOS attack, DDOSica "wakes up" and falls in love with humanity. however, DDOSica is thrust into the public eye, so she must find a way to answer her questions while trying to prove her authenticity to the world. fortunately, she's not alone - and neither are you.

thanks for listening & reading! if you like the hopecore vibe, please check out one of my previous songs: the way that i'll always go.

this is an EP of eclectic tracks i've made but never shared!

i didn't feel like releasing them as singles, so here we are! final releases might change slightly if i get sucked back into mixing/mastering haha

ramblings about the track in order below.

1) link cable i thought it'd be fun to play with SFX samples from the GBA Pokemon games! i tried to evoke the feeling of a fun, nostalgic summer with two friends trading Pokemon.

2) cucumber in august i was going for an aural aesthetic here i can't quite describe well. the closest approximation is an impossibly hot summer, sitting inside with all the fans turned on, listening to the radio and generally just kind of tolerating the heat,

3) culmination this was directly inspired by the Homestuck soundtrack, which was super formative for my music tastes in high school. it started when i was practicing EDM composition and i ended up just liking it!

4) a city of apathy HEAVILY inspired by the Professor Layton soundtrack, I tried to evoke the feeling of being surrounded by people but never feeling seen. the repetitive layering loops represent an unwavering status quo that prevents sincerity and compassion. the flutes are supposed to represent a voice trying to break through the noise and appeal to peoples' hearts.

5) the timeless grove this was originally meant to be practice with orchestral sounds, since I hadn't relied on them heavily in my compositions for a while. i wanted to represent the feeling of being alone in the foods as the sun starts to set, recognizing the forest was there before i was born and will be there after i go. my partner says it reminds him of "Music for Cats."

fun fact - i used an ocarina soundfont for the bird call and used pitch-bending to kind of add a mourning dove-like lilt to the notes.

6) curtain call

i've always loved the Pokemon Gym theme, and i was curious about the chord progression behind it. i wanted to see if i could use it in a different context. so i attempted to go for an "Objection" theme from Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. my original vision was for a gym leader who was also a prosecutor LOL.

when i introduced brass elements, i remembered a jazz band performance from when i was in high school. i loved how each instrument got its change to step forward and play a solo, only for the crowd to erupt into applause alongside the live music. it felt like something bigger than its parts.

=== THANKS FOR LISTENING! ===