September 12, 2025 • 22 mins
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The video for “Neon Dreamers,” the latest single from Arcade Knights, opens on a futuristic cityscape reminiscent of Blade Runner or Tron. As the visuals unfold, soaring vintage synthesizers and thunderous reverb-soaked drums create a cinematic soundscape. Digitized female vocals deliver the track’s core message:We’re the neon dreamers lighting up the sky
Chasing our tomorrow, never asking why
With our hearts electric, breaking through the dark
In this digital world, we’ll make our markEvoking the atmosphere of the Stranger Things soundtrack as much as Daft Punk, the song explores a timeless question: What does it mean to be human in a world dominated by machines?That question lies at the heart of Arcade Knights, the synthwave-cyberpunk electronic project of Canadian musician Dean Parsons. Known for his deep love of 1980s drum machines and synthesizers, Parsons incorporates authentic hardware such as the LinnDrum and Oberheim OB-8 into his work. While modern software can replicate these sounds, he prefers the analog warmth and tactile experience of physical instruments, embracing the buttons, knobs, and patch cables that bring a unique authenticity to his production process.Unlike most contemporary producers, Parsons creates entirely outside of a digital audio workstation. Every track is written, recorded, and mixed using his MPC hardware sequencer, a process he believes allows more emotion to come through the physical act of playing.“My main production machine is not a DAW,” he explains. “Every track, every note, every melody is crafted and recorded through purpose-built hardware. There’s a lot of heart that comes through the keys and pads.”“Neon Dreamers” serves as a companion piece to Cyber Hack, the full-length album released earlier this year. The record tells the story of hackers raised in an AI-driven world who use their skills to protect humanity, ensuring technology serves people rather than controlling them.The theme reflects Parsons’ own life. Growing up in the 1980s surrounded by Commodore 64s and science-fiction films like Terminator and RoboCop, and later working as a cybersecurity expert, he has lived at the intersection of the analog and digital worlds.“It’s important to embrace technology, but not let it control your life,” Parsons says. “Technology is advancing rapidly, and if we continue to depend on it blindly, it may begin to control us. I love technology, but it’s a double-edged sword. The message of Cyber Hack is that we must remain the ones in control.”
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/creator-to-creators-with-meosha-bean--4460322/support.
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Bio
The video for “Neon Dreamers,” the latest single from Arcade Knights, opens on a futuristic cityscape reminiscent of Blade Runner or Tron. As the visuals unfold, soaring vintage synthesizers and thunderous reverb-soaked drums create a cinematic soundscape. Digitized female vocals deliver the track’s core message:We’re the neon dreamers lighting up the sky
Chasing our tomorrow, never asking why
With our hearts electric, breaking through the dark
In this digital world, we’ll make our markEvoking the atmosphere of the Stranger Things soundtrack as much as Daft Punk, the song explores a timeless question: What does it mean to be human in a world dominated by machines?That question lies at the heart of Arcade Knights, the synthwave-cyberpunk electronic project of Canadian musician Dean Parsons. Known for his deep love of 1980s drum machines and synthesizers, Parsons incorporates authentic hardware such as the LinnDrum and Oberheim OB-8 into his work. While modern software can replicate these sounds, he prefers the analog warmth and tactile experience of physical instruments, embracing the buttons, knobs, and patch cables that bring a unique authenticity to his production process.Unlike most contemporary producers, Parsons creates entirely outside of a digital audio workstation. Every track is written, recorded, and mixed using his MPC hardware sequencer, a process he believes allows more emotion to come through the physical act of playing.“My main production machine is not a DAW,” he explains. “Every track, every note, every melody is crafted and recorded through purpose-built hardware. There’s a lot of heart that comes through the keys and pads.”“Neon Dreamers” serves as a companion piece to Cyber Hack, the full-length album released earlier this year. The record tells the story of hackers raised in an AI-driven world who use their skills to protect humanity, ensuring technology serves people rather than controlling them.The theme reflects Parsons’ own life. Growing up in the 1980s surrounded by Commodore 64s and science-fiction films like Terminator and RoboCop, and later working as a cybersecurity expert, he has lived at the intersection of the analog and digital worlds.“It’s important to embrace technology, but not let it control your life,” Parsons says. “Technology is advancing rapidly, and if we continue to depend on it blindly, it may begin to control us. I love technology, but it’s a double-edged sword. The message of Cyber Hack is that we must remain the ones in control.”
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/creator-to-creators-with-meosha-bean--4460322/support.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
If you love entertainment, current events, and Hollywood, don't miss
Creator to Creators. Hosted by the filmmaker Mio Shabine, known
for the shutter Hit documentary or Noir and the acclaimed
film Anatomy of.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
An Anti Heroo Redemption. This show features interviews with filmmakers
and creatives from around the globe. Join the fun with
guest celebrities and gain valuable insights. Subscribe now and follow
Creator to Creators.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Hi, guys, welcome to Creators to Creators. Today, today we
have a special guest.
Speaker 4 (00:39):
Hey, this is Arcade Knights.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Arcade Knights. I like that name. So I love opening
the show and I love going back to the beginning.
I always say, the beginning charge our trajectory in life,
you know, our little habits that we pick up along
the way follow us into our adulthood. Tell me a
little bit about your childhood. What was that like and
when did you, I don't know, get the love bug
(01:03):
for music?
Speaker 4 (01:04):
Sure, So, I'm totally an eighties kid, growing up in
the eighties and everything that that kind of era brings.
So from me. I remember as a young kid, young
kid in the eighties watching films like Iconic Eighties films
like Tron, Rambo, Blade Runner, Lost Boys, like all of
those films from the eighties, And so I think I
(01:25):
picked up the habits of really enjoying the story, but
really hearing the film, hearing the score and the music,
and then from that I just carried this idea of, like,
you know, I'm going to create music like that someday,
or music that reminds me of that time. And that's
exactly what Arcade Nights is. It takes the idea of
the nostalgia of the eighties, remembering what I felt when
(01:47):
I watched those iconic films and growing up in the eighties,
and then it kind of it takes it and puts
it into this hardware that I have, and then it
kind of spins a retro futuristic vibe to it. So
that's really what it is to me. So I picked
up the habits of loving eighties films and the scores
and the hardware they used. So that's really how it
(02:08):
got started.
Speaker 3 (02:09):
I love that and I love the eighties. Eighties was
like the best the best time, you know, like, and
that's what I immediately felt when I when I, you know,
listen to the music and I heard it. I was like,
I automatically kind of felt like pushed in that time.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
But what was the.
Speaker 3 (02:28):
Process like of creating and what is your process like
when you when you create music?
Speaker 4 (02:35):
Sure, so I'm really glad to hear that you kind
of felt like you were back in the eighties when
you heard some of the tracks, like whether it's my
album like cyber Hack or the Neon Dreamer single or
other albums that I have. And I think the reason
you might feel about is because I don't emulate eighties.
I use the same iconic sounds, authentic sounds, and I
use all of that in hardware to recreate that vibe
(02:58):
from the eighties, and so everything I write it is
all original, but I write it in hardware. So YE
asked what my process was. I did try to use
a dog like the traditional digital audio workstation of a
computer system laptop with like software to kind of generate
you know, MIDI tracks and so on and so forth.
But I did I did try it. I tried that method,
(03:19):
and what I felt really quickly was just it didn't
come through to me, so like clicking on the mouse
and all that kind of stuff, like it just did
not delay the vibe that I wanted or the feeling
that I wanted, and it was just kind of notes
on the screen and then I said, you know, I
tried it. I said I don't want to do this,
It's not what I want, and then kind of walked
(03:39):
away and thought, like, how else do I do this?
And that's exactly when I thought, I need hardware. I
need gear so that I can have tactile feel on
the buttons, on the knobs, on the keys on the pads.
And that was my process. That's how I started, so legit.
I sat down and watched like you know, I think
it was like twelve different iconic eighties films, back to
(04:00):
the Future, Yeah, back to like all of those, and
just thought, okay, I need to start the process now.
And then that's when I found hardware. And that's when
I started. So two years ago is when I sat down,
like binge, watched all of the favorite films I have
from the eighties and cult films too, cult classics, and
then I used hardware to create the sounds that I have,
(04:21):
so all in hardware, mixed and mastered hardware, created in hardware,
and so that's that's my process. And I do think
that the hardware and how I use the hardware. It
gives it a human feel, It gives it a gritty, warm,
nostalgic kind of romantic feel in some cases of the eighties.
(04:42):
So yeah, that's right.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
Yeah, I like that. I like that that that you
process when it comes to making music. What inspires you
when it comes like, you know, I don't know. For me,
I have a film background, so sometimes it's it's, you know,
different things. It could be a conversation, it could be
I don't know, just anything. But what's something that sets
(05:07):
you in the MIoD of like, Okay, I have to
make music now, Like.
Speaker 4 (05:11):
Yeah, so great question. So I really think for me,
it's a feeling or a thought that I have, and
that that feeling or that thought, as quick or short
as it can be, can be a full album for me.
So with this album cyber Hack, I had this idea
in my head of what we're all, in my opinion,
seeing and feeling today. This idea and birth and kind
(05:31):
of drive of artificial intelligence or AI and the understanding
of that in the cyber world brought me right back
to like Blade Runner in the eighties, you know. And
then so that spark of an idea, how do I
relay what I want to talk about when it comes
to AI and legit. I watched Blade Runner, thought about it,
thought about today what we're doing in twenty twenty five,
(05:52):
and started writing. So I had an idea in my head,
a story in my head, and then I started mapping
this story out through different tracks. So that's that's what
really sparks it for me, a creative idea or thought,
and that in many cases turns into an album. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
No, and I love I love that, and I think
a lot of people you know, and I think that's
great too. When when you're not I mean, I assume
you're you're like you have, you're over your own creative process.
You don't have a you're not like signed to a
huge record label. That's like you have to do that
this time. This time you have you can make your
own time to make you know, music, which I think
(06:29):
that makes gives you more room to create and do
things that you don't really hear these days.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
Yeah, so you're right. So I am, like, I'm fairly small.
I'm still starting out. I have a lot of fan
base so far, you know, local, there's some abroad as well,
which is great. So I'm definitely growing, but you're right
about the time frame that I have to create. So
in my day job is I actually am an ethical hacker,
So I actually protect industrial systems, so industrial power systems
(06:58):
that we rely on and say these manufacturing site like
all those things. That's what I do in my day job,
and sometimes I travel to do that. So I could
be because I have hardware, I take some of it
with me. I can be somewhere from an industrial plant
and facility. And it's come out of that thinking, how
do I write something based on what I just felt?
And in fact, on the album cyber Hack, this whole
(07:21):
idea of futuristic AI which we're seeing today in twenty
twenty five and retro Hackers comes through and I actually
have industrial sounds kind of peppered throughout the track. So
it's cool. Yeah, it's like a cyberpunk kind of like
synth wave. I guess track an album that's really what
(07:43):
it is.
Speaker 3 (07:46):
I love that, you know, because I think that's you
don't really hear music like that today. I mean, nowadays
we hear I don't mute things now are just we
live in a society and time where you know, it's
it's the music is not it's just different and it's
not the same as it was in the eighties or
(08:07):
it was. The music's not the same as it was now.
I think nowadays we were it's just you hear the
it's just about glorying and find money or women and
power and all that stuff. But it's like it's good
to hear, you know, music that kind of takes you
out of the what we're dealing with on a day
to day basis, and it puts you in a good mood.
(08:28):
Like this music. I was like, wow, I felt really good.
I felt, like you said, nostalgic, like eighties. You feel
like it just feels like a good time and it's like,
you know, it takes you away from what what's happening
right now in the in the real world, like with
politics and things around the world. So thank you for
creating something to I don't know, kind of distract us.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Yeah. Cool. I can definitely also a line that, like,
you know, music is different, it's changed. That's cool. I
respect that. That's totally fine. I think for me, I
want to say something in my music and just get
across the feeling, but not a political statement. It's just
kind of what I'm observing and also what I want
to try to portray, and I think you really hit
it on the head. I'm trying to aim for really
(09:11):
positive music. However, when I create my tracks and my albums,
there's definitely this ebb and flow. There's a roller coach ride,
like as I created cyber Hack. It starts out with
this kind of idea of like, there's a there's a
problem we have to kind of face, which is AI today,
and the album addresses through the tracks, through the sound
that I create, through the lyrics I create. It creates
(09:33):
this idea of like retrohackers in the eighties recognizing, like
you know, the our age now or whatever, and they're
recognizing that AI is controlling a lot of what we do,
what we feel, how we act. And so throughout the album,
every track is created through its time signature, through its
key mode or key this feeling of up and down
(09:53):
and back and forth. Ultimately no serious spoilers, but ultimately
leaving you on this positive, rebellious no of how do
we move forward with this? And so yeah, So Neon
Dreamers is the kind of bookend to the album, and
it's almost like this passing of the torch from retro hackers,
you know, from the eighties, kind of saying, you know,
(10:14):
by the way, here's what AI could be. You guys
got this passing the torch to like the next generation.
And I think on a positive note, but there is
definitely some elements in this album that I that I
talk about that's that's fairly dark. And as I create
the album, as I do with most of my albums,
I actually for this one too, For cyber Haack wrote
(10:36):
a graphic novel which really expands and so in that
graphic novel, obviously there's images of what I'm seeing and
what I'm feeling in the album, but the the the
content really walks you through the dystopian future. But all
the while it's this eighties kind of like older technology
(10:56):
being used to fight new evil AI.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
You know, I love that, And yeah, how do you
know that's interesting about AI?
Speaker 1 (11:03):
Now?
Speaker 3 (11:03):
I mean there's a lot of people, you know, it's
up for debate. It's there's it's bad, and then it's good,
you know, and it does a lot of things that
But again I was thinking, I was talking to someone
and they were talking about how you know, it's like
it's good to have AI, but it's also this this
thing of well, then it kind of takes you know,
(11:24):
if you apply to music, you know, you can make
a song with AI and and practically overnight it's it's
and and and you could put that out and that
could be a hit, and and it just kind of
eliminates the process of making actual sounds with drum beats,
with you know, a little staff like creating sounds how
it used to be back in the day when this
didn't exist. Do you feel like it does take the
(11:46):
I don't know, the what do you call it, the
the like the realness out of it, the realness when
it comes to making music, if you when you're using AI.
Speaker 4 (11:58):
For sure. So when I look at how I create
music and why I create it the way I do,
I'm an analog person, grow up in the digital and
kind of the the retro time and of analog, and
so we're in this digital age now, and I do
think that AI can serve us. However, it's really kind
of the other way around, where where I kind of
we're serving it in some capacity because we're giving, to
(12:18):
your point, giving our skills to AI, or forgetting our
skills and having it do us for us and in
some industries that may be acceptable, and I think in
music it's it's it's really harmful if used in a
way that it could be used and maybe is used
today primarily, And so from my perspective, the album actually
(12:39):
addresses exactly this fact because I used all of my
hardware to create all the tracks, everything that's in there.
And for sure, someone can go create an AI version.
Sure that's that's not cool, but it's possible, and I
think it would remove all of the things that I
felt while I created. And I do think that the
translation of what I felt through my music, how I
(13:02):
created it won't get to the listener if it's created
by AI. And I think people know in the music industry,
even in film like you mentioned, but also in graphic
design like AI is not that I mean, it's in
some cases it is taking jobs. So that is all
explored in these tracks. It's all explored, and the idea
(13:23):
is to be careful on how it is controlling society
in twenty twenty five and beyond. I'm not going to
go super cheesy on you and say it's like Terminator
and like Skynet, but but you know what like, and
I grew up on Terminator as well, right, and like
that I'll score. But like, the point is is it?
It is going in that path. There's no question from
a military use perspective, it is going in that path
(13:45):
without questions.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Is there an so it's no way to stop it?
Speaker 4 (13:49):
I think there is, And I think that the album
really speaks to that because if we pass the torch
John I would say the kind of I don't know
about responsible adults we are from the eighties, but the
the idea of maturity and understanding and maybe strategically thinking ahead,
passing those skills on to like, yeah, it's important to
live in the now, don't get me wrong, but like
(14:10):
if you have a future, dude, you want to protect it.
And so the album addresses that, and it really addresses
should we or how much do we trust or reliant AI?
So trust is a big part of that.
Speaker 3 (14:22):
Yeah, yeah, and that's so true. How much do we
rely on AI? And you know, I took a break
from social media. I mean I really disconnected and just
really begin to live life. And I got to say,
I was like, wow, this is what I've been missing.
(14:44):
So much life to be lived and so many things
that you can be inspired by by and do. But
what would you I mean, I don't know. Do you
think that you know, you mentioned responsible human beings? If
we are that is it? Do you feel like with
society now and how much we've how far we've come
(15:06):
with everything, do you think that this younger generation is
more open to hearing this and actually changing the narrative
for the Bible.
Speaker 4 (15:18):
Yeah, it's a great question. So I think that I
am not about to suggest that AI like down with
AI at all, that's or down with technology. It's not
what I'm saying. What I'm saying is a kid like
younger folks that are growing up with AI being a
part of their life integrated in I understand that it's
important for them to actually use it and understand how
to leverage it. But if they let it go too far,
(15:39):
just like anything, it will kill things. And so I
think that there is definitely, I hope, an ability for
people to recognize the downside with anything, and AI is
one major piece of that can affect a lot of
people quickly, and I think that if they recognize that,
they'll be able to, like you mentioned, not necessarily disconnect
from it. But hold off on it, control it, because
(16:02):
if you like, just like you mentioned with social media,
if you just didn't disconnect, it can and drive your behavior,
your thoughts, your actions, your feelings, your emotions. And I
think that is not the only the case with AI
or with social media. It could be with drugs, it
could be with alcohol. And so if you take the
human persona and idea in psychology behind a person or
(16:24):
a human being today's kind of world, then with anything
that gives them gratitude, instant gratification, there will be this
kind of why wouldn't I continue down that path? And
I think it's a part of maturity, like again Retrohacker's
maturity from the eighties, knowing the strategic outcomes that could happen.
It's all about how to throttle that. So I'm not
(16:45):
saying don't use it. I'm saying I think I think
it's it's responsible to throttle it and use it for
our purposes. And that's exactly what this album is meant
to be. And it does question it and it suggests
some things as well, and I also make predictions in
it nice and yeah, and so it does align with
(17:05):
possibly a dystopian future to some degree. It might not
be like Blade Runner when you were not when you
walk out your door, but the suggestions I have in
here for thirty years from now is not far from
some of those elements.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
Wow, that's that's awesome now, I really I love that
you have this. You made Neon Dreams Dreamer Dreamers, Yeah, dreamers,
And I just like that title so much. I feel
like it's it's so it's a what do you call it,
It's it's very like hmmm.
Speaker 4 (17:35):
I think for me, Yeah, I kind of wrote the
that track Neon Dreamers as like a rebellious anthem. I
think that's really how I would describe it. There is
a positivity to it. How I wrote it, the key,
I used all that stuff, the lyrics, and I think
from my perspective it's it's a rebellious kind of anthem,
you know, for youth. I think, and uh, I think
(17:56):
if I was back in the eighties and I heard
something like that, because it all uses the same i'll
say architecture or hardware and authentic sounds from the eighties,
I would be pumped. So I'm hoping other people will
be pumped about it too.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
I love it. I'm excited for you, what advice would
you give to those someone out there who's trying to,
you know, make something like this that has a bigger message,
you know.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
I think for me, I think the biggest message I'd
like someone to take away from this conversation is to
question what you're doing and why you're doing it. So
question why you're doing death scrolls, what keeps you there?
What does it prevent you from doing? And I think
for me it's I also did that disconnected and that
allowed me to create. So the message is, understand what
(18:44):
you're doing right now doesn't make sense. What is it
preventing you from actually doing in your life? And think
more than just now, think more than today, like live
than now, dude, whatever you want to do. But if
you think a month out, two months, a year out,
two years out, where do you want to be? And
you'll be able to understand the death scroll is going
to keep you from your goal, and AI will continue
(19:06):
to keep you from your goal unless you leverage it
rather than it push you.
Speaker 3 (19:11):
I love that. I love that message. I love asking
this question. And there's no wrong answer. But the three
levels of influence, money, power, and respect, and if you
could choose only one of those things, which one would
you choose?
Speaker 4 (19:25):
And why? I think respect because I think the idea
for me is power creates enemies, and I'm fine with
having enemies if I'm creating something, and like haters are
going to exist, don't get me wrong, but I think
if you're collaborating with somebody, human beings, collaborators and music, film, whatever,
I think respect is important because it's supposed to be
should be mutual. And I think that that is the
(19:46):
most important thing because that actually allows you to achieve
financial I guess, stability and so on. Not that you
would go for power, but I think the most important
thing from that is respect because it will get you
the things you need. And of course, whatever you need,
whether it's power, money, you can also use that nefarious
purpose as well, But if you're respected and you're respecting,
(20:07):
then there's less likely to have a nefarious purpose behind
either one of those.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
I love that if you could collaborate with any artist,
living or dead, who would it be And.
Speaker 4 (20:17):
Why, dude, that's seriously hard. I think that like a man.
So Brad fidel Side he wrote the track yeah the
scores for Terminator. For example, Jan Hamer, who wrote the
track in scores for Miami Vice like all of those, Yeah,
John Carpenter for example, fantastic legend, YEP legend, dude. Yeah,
(20:37):
So I could go on and on, but like that's
just right off the top of my head. Alan Silvestri, Yeah,
like who wrote the score for Back to the Future. Uh, yeah,
that's big time.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
That's awesome. That would be Yeah, that'll be pretty epic
to see a collaboration with you and all these guys,
especially John Carpenter.
Speaker 4 (20:54):
Yeah, but I'm open to any collaboration with anybody out
there who has respect for what we do in the
hardware and the kind of future retro thoughts from the eighties,
So synthwave, cyberpunk I'm in.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Yeah, awesome, awesome. Where can people find you guys on
social media to follow everything you got coming up?
Speaker 4 (21:13):
Yeah, so all the usual places. I have a gum
Road so Arcadenights dot gumroad dot com. That's where I
actually provide digital downloads, so I don't just do streaming.
I provide digital downloads. So my album is in there
and MP three waveform, but also like arc that I
have created as well, like all the things that you
would we expect from I'll say legacy kind of albums,
(21:34):
so like the lyrics are there, like all of those
additional things that we've gotten away from. So you can
find me on gum Road, but also on Spotify as
an example, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, all that stuff, so regularly
have content coming out and love interacting with folks out there.
I love it.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Oh, this is awesome, and again, congratulations, and I really
enjoyed the music that they sent me of yours and
it was just really fun to just to go back
to the eighties. I always say the eighties was the
best time. I wish I was born in the seventies
because you know, I feel like that's when everybody love
each other then. But I do like the eighties, eighties
(22:10):
is just a special time.
Speaker 4 (22:12):
Cool, definitely agree, awesome, Thank you so much for having
your show. I really appreciate it. All the best out there.
Speaker 3 (22:16):
Thank you so much, and thank you all for listening.
And always remember to live, love, laugh, and see you
guys next time.
If you love entertainment, current events, and Hollywood, don't miss
Creator to Creators. Hosted by the filmmaker Mio Shabine, known
for the shutter Hit documentary or Noir and the acclaimed
film Anatomy of.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
An Anti Heroo Redemption. This show features interviews with filmmakers
and creatives from around the globe. Join the fun with
guest celebrities and gain valuable insights. Subscribe now and follow
Creator to Creators.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Hi, guys, welcome to Creators to Creators. Today, today we
have a special guest.
Speaker 4 (00:39):
Hey, this is Arcade Knights.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Arcade Knights. I like that name. So I love opening
the show and I love going back to the beginning.
I always say, the beginning charge our trajectory in life,
you know, our little habits that we pick up along
the way follow us into our adulthood. Tell me a
little bit about your childhood. What was that like and
when did you, I don't know, get the love bug
(01:03):
for music?
Speaker 4 (01:04):
Sure, So, I'm totally an eighties kid, growing up in
the eighties and everything that that kind of era brings.
So from me. I remember as a young kid, young
kid in the eighties watching films like Iconic Eighties films
like Tron, Rambo, Blade Runner, Lost Boys, like all of
those films from the eighties, And so I think I
(01:25):
picked up the habits of really enjoying the story, but
really hearing the film, hearing the score and the music,
and then from that I just carried this idea of, like,
you know, I'm going to create music like that someday,
or music that reminds me of that time. And that's
exactly what Arcade Nights is. It takes the idea of
the nostalgia of the eighties, remembering what I felt when
(01:47):
I watched those iconic films and growing up in the eighties,
and then it kind of it takes it and puts
it into this hardware that I have, and then it
kind of spins a retro futuristic vibe to it. So
that's really what it is to me. So I picked
up the habits of loving eighties films and the scores
and the hardware they used. So that's really how it
(02:08):
got started.
Speaker 3 (02:09):
I love that and I love the eighties. Eighties was
like the best the best time, you know, like, and
that's what I immediately felt when I when I, you know,
listen to the music and I heard it. I was like,
I automatically kind of felt like pushed in that time.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
But what was the.
Speaker 3 (02:28):
Process like of creating and what is your process like
when you when you create music?
Speaker 4 (02:35):
Sure, so I'm really glad to hear that you kind
of felt like you were back in the eighties when
you heard some of the tracks, like whether it's my
album like cyber Hack or the Neon Dreamer single or
other albums that I have. And I think the reason
you might feel about is because I don't emulate eighties.
I use the same iconic sounds, authentic sounds, and I
use all of that in hardware to recreate that vibe
(02:58):
from the eighties, and so everything I write it is
all original, but I write it in hardware. So YE
asked what my process was. I did try to use
a dog like the traditional digital audio workstation of a
computer system laptop with like software to kind of generate
you know, MIDI tracks and so on and so forth.
But I did I did try it. I tried that method,
(03:19):
and what I felt really quickly was just it didn't
come through to me, so like clicking on the mouse
and all that kind of stuff, like it just did
not delay the vibe that I wanted or the feeling
that I wanted, and it was just kind of notes
on the screen and then I said, you know, I
tried it. I said I don't want to do this,
It's not what I want, and then kind of walked
(03:39):
away and thought, like, how else do I do this?
And that's exactly when I thought, I need hardware. I
need gear so that I can have tactile feel on
the buttons, on the knobs, on the keys on the pads.
And that was my process. That's how I started, so legit.
I sat down and watched like you know, I think
it was like twelve different iconic eighties films, back to
(04:00):
the Future, Yeah, back to like all of those, and
just thought, okay, I need to start the process now.
And then that's when I found hardware. And that's when
I started. So two years ago is when I sat down,
like binge, watched all of the favorite films I have
from the eighties and cult films too, cult classics, and
then I used hardware to create the sounds that I have,
(04:21):
so all in hardware, mixed and mastered hardware, created in hardware,
and so that's that's my process. And I do think
that the hardware and how I use the hardware. It
gives it a human feel, It gives it a gritty, warm,
nostalgic kind of romantic feel in some cases of the eighties.
(04:42):
So yeah, that's right.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
Yeah, I like that. I like that that that you
process when it comes to making music. What inspires you
when it comes like, you know, I don't know. For me,
I have a film background, so sometimes it's it's, you know,
different things. It could be a conversation, it could be
I don't know, just anything. But what's something that sets
(05:07):
you in the MIoD of like, Okay, I have to
make music now, Like.
Speaker 4 (05:11):
Yeah, so great question. So I really think for me,
it's a feeling or a thought that I have, and
that that feeling or that thought, as quick or short
as it can be, can be a full album for me.
So with this album cyber Hack, I had this idea
in my head of what we're all, in my opinion,
seeing and feeling today. This idea and birth and kind
(05:31):
of drive of artificial intelligence or AI and the understanding
of that in the cyber world brought me right back
to like Blade Runner in the eighties, you know. And
then so that spark of an idea, how do I
relay what I want to talk about when it comes
to AI and legit. I watched Blade Runner, thought about it,
thought about today what we're doing in twenty twenty five,
(05:52):
and started writing. So I had an idea in my head,
a story in my head, and then I started mapping
this story out through different tracks. So that's that's what
really sparks it for me, a creative idea or thought,
and that in many cases turns into an album. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
No, and I love I love that, and I think
a lot of people you know, and I think that's
great too. When when you're not I mean, I assume
you're you're like you have, you're over your own creative process.
You don't have a you're not like signed to a
huge record label. That's like you have to do that
this time. This time you have you can make your
own time to make you know, music, which I think
(06:29):
that makes gives you more room to create and do
things that you don't really hear these days.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
Yeah, so you're right. So I am, like, I'm fairly small.
I'm still starting out. I have a lot of fan
base so far, you know, local, there's some abroad as well,
which is great. So I'm definitely growing, but you're right
about the time frame that I have to create. So
in my day job is I actually am an ethical hacker,
So I actually protect industrial systems, so industrial power systems
(06:58):
that we rely on and say these manufacturing site like
all those things. That's what I do in my day job,
and sometimes I travel to do that. So I could
be because I have hardware, I take some of it
with me. I can be somewhere from an industrial plant
and facility. And it's come out of that thinking, how
do I write something based on what I just felt?
And in fact, on the album cyber Hack, this whole
(07:21):
idea of futuristic AI which we're seeing today in twenty
twenty five and retro Hackers comes through and I actually
have industrial sounds kind of peppered throughout the track. So
it's cool. Yeah, it's like a cyberpunk kind of like
synth wave. I guess track an album that's really what
(07:43):
it is.
Speaker 3 (07:46):
I love that, you know, because I think that's you
don't really hear music like that today. I mean, nowadays
we hear I don't mute things now are just we
live in a society and time where you know, it's
it's the music is not it's just different and it's
not the same as it was in the eighties or
(08:07):
it was. The music's not the same as it was now.
I think nowadays we were it's just you hear the
it's just about glorying and find money or women and
power and all that stuff. But it's like it's good
to hear, you know, music that kind of takes you
out of the what we're dealing with on a day
to day basis, and it puts you in a good mood.
(08:28):
Like this music. I was like, wow, I felt really good.
I felt, like you said, nostalgic, like eighties. You feel
like it just feels like a good time and it's like,
you know, it takes you away from what what's happening
right now in the in the real world, like with
politics and things around the world. So thank you for
creating something to I don't know, kind of distract us.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Yeah. Cool. I can definitely also a line that, like,
you know, music is different, it's changed. That's cool. I
respect that. That's totally fine. I think for me, I
want to say something in my music and just get
across the feeling, but not a political statement. It's just
kind of what I'm observing and also what I want
to try to portray, and I think you really hit
it on the head. I'm trying to aim for really
(09:11):
positive music. However, when I create my tracks and my albums,
there's definitely this ebb and flow. There's a roller coach ride,
like as I created cyber Hack. It starts out with
this kind of idea of like, there's a there's a
problem we have to kind of face, which is AI today,
and the album addresses through the tracks, through the sound
that I create, through the lyrics I create. It creates
(09:33):
this idea of like retrohackers in the eighties recognizing, like
you know, the our age now or whatever, and they're
recognizing that AI is controlling a lot of what we do,
what we feel, how we act. And so throughout the album,
every track is created through its time signature, through its
key mode or key this feeling of up and down
(09:53):
and back and forth. Ultimately no serious spoilers, but ultimately
leaving you on this positive, rebellious no of how do
we move forward with this? And so yeah, So Neon
Dreamers is the kind of bookend to the album, and
it's almost like this passing of the torch from retro hackers,
you know, from the eighties, kind of saying, you know,
(10:14):
by the way, here's what AI could be. You guys
got this passing the torch to like the next generation.
And I think on a positive note, but there is
definitely some elements in this album that I that I
talk about that's that's fairly dark. And as I create
the album, as I do with most of my albums,
I actually for this one too, For cyber Haack wrote
(10:36):
a graphic novel which really expands and so in that
graphic novel, obviously there's images of what I'm seeing and
what I'm feeling in the album, but the the the
content really walks you through the dystopian future. But all
the while it's this eighties kind of like older technology
(10:56):
being used to fight new evil AI.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
You know, I love that, And yeah, how do you
know that's interesting about AI?
Speaker 1 (11:03):
Now?
Speaker 3 (11:03):
I mean there's a lot of people, you know, it's
up for debate. It's there's it's bad, and then it's good,
you know, and it does a lot of things that
But again I was thinking, I was talking to someone
and they were talking about how you know, it's like
it's good to have AI, but it's also this this
thing of well, then it kind of takes you know,
(11:24):
if you apply to music, you know, you can make
a song with AI and and practically overnight it's it's
and and and you could put that out and that
could be a hit, and and it just kind of
eliminates the process of making actual sounds with drum beats,
with you know, a little staff like creating sounds how
it used to be back in the day when this
didn't exist. Do you feel like it does take the
(11:46):
I don't know, the what do you call it, the
the like the realness out of it, the realness when
it comes to making music, if you when you're using AI.
Speaker 4 (11:58):
For sure. So when I look at how I create
music and why I create it the way I do,
I'm an analog person, grow up in the digital and
kind of the the retro time and of analog, and
so we're in this digital age now, and I do
think that AI can serve us. However, it's really kind
of the other way around, where where I kind of
we're serving it in some capacity because we're giving, to
(12:18):
your point, giving our skills to AI, or forgetting our
skills and having it do us for us and in
some industries that may be acceptable, and I think in
music it's it's it's really harmful if used in a
way that it could be used and maybe is used
today primarily, And so from my perspective, the album actually
(12:39):
addresses exactly this fact because I used all of my
hardware to create all the tracks, everything that's in there.
And for sure, someone can go create an AI version.
Sure that's that's not cool, but it's possible, and I
think it would remove all of the things that I
felt while I created. And I do think that the
translation of what I felt through my music, how I
(13:02):
created it won't get to the listener if it's created
by AI. And I think people know in the music industry,
even in film like you mentioned, but also in graphic
design like AI is not that I mean, it's in
some cases it is taking jobs. So that is all
explored in these tracks. It's all explored, and the idea
(13:23):
is to be careful on how it is controlling society
in twenty twenty five and beyond. I'm not going to
go super cheesy on you and say it's like Terminator
and like Skynet, but but you know what like, and
I grew up on Terminator as well, right, and like
that I'll score. But like, the point is is it?
It is going in that path. There's no question from
a military use perspective, it is going in that path
(13:45):
without questions.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Is there an so it's no way to stop it?
Speaker 4 (13:49):
I think there is, And I think that the album
really speaks to that because if we pass the torch
John I would say the kind of I don't know
about responsible adults we are from the eighties, but the
the idea of maturity and understanding and maybe strategically thinking ahead,
passing those skills on to like, yeah, it's important to
live in the now, don't get me wrong, but like
(14:10):
if you have a future, dude, you want to protect it.
And so the album addresses that, and it really addresses
should we or how much do we trust or reliant AI?
So trust is a big part of that.
Speaker 3 (14:22):
Yeah, yeah, and that's so true. How much do we
rely on AI? And you know, I took a break
from social media. I mean I really disconnected and just
really begin to live life. And I got to say,
I was like, wow, this is what I've been missing.
(14:44):
So much life to be lived and so many things
that you can be inspired by by and do. But
what would you I mean, I don't know. Do you
think that you know, you mentioned responsible human beings? If
we are that is it? Do you feel like with
society now and how much we've how far we've come
(15:06):
with everything, do you think that this younger generation is
more open to hearing this and actually changing the narrative
for the Bible.
Speaker 4 (15:18):
Yeah, it's a great question. So I think that I
am not about to suggest that AI like down with
AI at all, that's or down with technology. It's not
what I'm saying. What I'm saying is a kid like
younger folks that are growing up with AI being a
part of their life integrated in I understand that it's
important for them to actually use it and understand how
to leverage it. But if they let it go too far,
(15:39):
just like anything, it will kill things. And so I
think that there is definitely, I hope, an ability for
people to recognize the downside with anything, and AI is
one major piece of that can affect a lot of
people quickly, and I think that if they recognize that,
they'll be able to, like you mentioned, not necessarily disconnect
from it. But hold off on it, control it, because
(16:02):
if you like, just like you mentioned with social media,
if you just didn't disconnect, it can and drive your behavior,
your thoughts, your actions, your feelings, your emotions. And I
think that is not the only the case with AI
or with social media. It could be with drugs, it
could be with alcohol. And so if you take the
human persona and idea in psychology behind a person or
(16:24):
a human being today's kind of world, then with anything
that gives them gratitude, instant gratification, there will be this
kind of why wouldn't I continue down that path? And
I think it's a part of maturity, like again Retrohacker's
maturity from the eighties, knowing the strategic outcomes that could happen.
It's all about how to throttle that. So I'm not
(16:45):
saying don't use it. I'm saying I think I think
it's it's responsible to throttle it and use it for
our purposes. And that's exactly what this album is meant
to be. And it does question it and it suggests
some things as well, and I also make predictions in
it nice and yeah, and so it does align with
(17:05):
possibly a dystopian future to some degree. It might not
be like Blade Runner when you were not when you
walk out your door, but the suggestions I have in
here for thirty years from now is not far from
some of those elements.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
Wow, that's that's awesome now, I really I love that
you have this. You made Neon Dreams Dreamer Dreamers, Yeah, dreamers,
And I just like that title so much. I feel
like it's it's so it's a what do you call it,
It's it's very like hmmm.
Speaker 4 (17:35):
I think for me, Yeah, I kind of wrote the
that track Neon Dreamers as like a rebellious anthem. I
think that's really how I would describe it. There is
a positivity to it. How I wrote it, the key,
I used all that stuff, the lyrics, and I think
from my perspective it's it's a rebellious kind of anthem,
you know, for youth. I think, and uh, I think
(17:56):
if I was back in the eighties and I heard
something like that, because it all uses the same i'll
say architecture or hardware and authentic sounds from the eighties,
I would be pumped. So I'm hoping other people will
be pumped about it too.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
I love it. I'm excited for you, what advice would
you give to those someone out there who's trying to,
you know, make something like this that has a bigger message,
you know.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
I think for me, I think the biggest message I'd
like someone to take away from this conversation is to
question what you're doing and why you're doing it. So
question why you're doing death scrolls, what keeps you there?
What does it prevent you from doing? And I think
for me it's I also did that disconnected and that
allowed me to create. So the message is, understand what
(18:44):
you're doing right now doesn't make sense. What is it
preventing you from actually doing in your life? And think
more than just now, think more than today, like live
than now, dude, whatever you want to do. But if
you think a month out, two months, a year out,
two years out, where do you want to be? And
you'll be able to understand the death scroll is going
to keep you from your goal, and AI will continue
(19:06):
to keep you from your goal unless you leverage it
rather than it push you.
Speaker 3 (19:11):
I love that. I love that message. I love asking
this question. And there's no wrong answer. But the three
levels of influence, money, power, and respect, and if you
could choose only one of those things, which one would
you choose?
Speaker 4 (19:25):
And why? I think respect because I think the idea
for me is power creates enemies, and I'm fine with
having enemies if I'm creating something, and like haters are
going to exist, don't get me wrong, but I think
if you're collaborating with somebody, human beings, collaborators and music, film, whatever,
I think respect is important because it's supposed to be
should be mutual. And I think that that is the
(19:46):
most important thing because that actually allows you to achieve
financial I guess, stability and so on. Not that you
would go for power, but I think the most important
thing from that is respect because it will get you
the things you need. And of course, whatever you need,
whether it's power, money, you can also use that nefarious
purpose as well, But if you're respected and you're respecting,
(20:07):
then there's less likely to have a nefarious purpose behind
either one of those.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
I love that if you could collaborate with any artist,
living or dead, who would it be And.
Speaker 4 (20:17):
Why, dude, that's seriously hard. I think that like a man.
So Brad fidel Side he wrote the track yeah the
scores for Terminator. For example, Jan Hamer, who wrote the
track in scores for Miami Vice like all of those, Yeah,
John Carpenter for example, fantastic legend, YEP legend, dude. Yeah,
(20:37):
So I could go on and on, but like that's
just right off the top of my head. Alan Silvestri, Yeah,
like who wrote the score for Back to the Future. Uh, yeah,
that's big time.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
That's awesome. That would be Yeah, that'll be pretty epic
to see a collaboration with you and all these guys,
especially John Carpenter.
Speaker 4 (20:54):
Yeah, but I'm open to any collaboration with anybody out
there who has respect for what we do in the
hardware and the kind of future retro thoughts from the eighties,
So synthwave, cyberpunk I'm in.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Yeah, awesome, awesome. Where can people find you guys on
social media to follow everything you got coming up?
Speaker 4 (21:13):
Yeah, so all the usual places. I have a gum
Road so Arcadenights dot gumroad dot com. That's where I
actually provide digital downloads, so I don't just do streaming.
I provide digital downloads. So my album is in there
and MP three waveform, but also like arc that I
have created as well, like all the things that you
would we expect from I'll say legacy kind of albums,
(21:34):
so like the lyrics are there, like all of those
additional things that we've gotten away from. So you can
find me on gum Road, but also on Spotify as
an example, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, all that stuff, so regularly
have content coming out and love interacting with folks out there.
I love it.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Oh, this is awesome, and again, congratulations, and I really
enjoyed the music that they sent me of yours and
it was just really fun to just to go back
to the eighties. I always say the eighties was the
best time. I wish I was born in the seventies
because you know, I feel like that's when everybody love
each other then. But I do like the eighties, eighties
(22:10):
is just a special time.
Speaker 4 (22:12):
Cool, definitely agree, awesome, Thank you so much for having
your show. I really appreciate it. All the best out there.
Speaker 3 (22:16):
Thank you so much, and thank you all for listening.
And always remember to live, love, laugh, and see you
guys next time.
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