Sometime last week, the album 痛みの永遠 (which translates to Eternity of Pain according to Google) by Macroblank was recommended to me on Youtube. It has an interesting cover and I was looking for something to listen to while I cleaned my room so I put it on. Within minutes of putting it on, I was laying in my bed staring at the ceiling and couldn’t care less about cleaning my room. The groove of the album had put me in a trance to the point where all I wanted to do was listen to the music. I felt beyond cool for listening to it and tried to take a couple of aesthetic videos to send to my friends to show off my cool new music discovery but beyond that, I didn’t do much beyond listening to the music until the album ended.
On the album, Macroblank creates an aesthetic of vaporwave chords and smooth jazz loops played to a downtempo beat. While I listen I’m transported into the soundscape, each sonic element giving me glimpses of an imagined place that feels forgotten. When the album is over it feels like I’m waking up from a dream and I grieve the life lived while sleeping, I want to go back to the places this album took me to.
So now to the questions.
Does it sound good?: Yes, without a doubt the album sounds beautiful.
Did I like it?: Yes, I thoroughly enjoyed this album and I imagine I’ll come to love it in the coming months as it joins my regular rotation.
Do I recommend it?: Yes, if you’re okay with lower-energy music then I highly recommend this album. It’s difficult for me to choose stand-out songs because I love it so much as a whole album so I recommend listening to the first song and continuing from there if it’s up your alley.
I really love this album and I’m sure that I’ll return to it often. It’s a good album for background music too so I will probably put it on often while writing, though so far I’ve really enjoyed using it as a mental portal to imagined scenes.