Eccodroid

Eccodroid is a music producer from Argentina who has been making vaporwave since 2017. His most recent EP ashes of burned prototypes came out last December.

Pool Plants: What is your personal history with Argentinian music? Who are your favorite Argentinian musicians or bands? What kind of non-Argentinian music did you listen to growing up?

Eccodroid: Believe it or not, I'm not a big fan of Argentinian music (or Spanish-language music as a whole). I grew up watching VH1, so I was exposed to a lot of '80s acts like Michael Jackson, Modern Talking, Alphaville, and so on. That experience turned out to be pivotal in my later years when I started making vaporwave. Then, in the early 2000s, MTV introduced me to my all-time favorite bands, which I still listen to today: The Cure, Radiohead, Jamiroquai, Keane, and Arctic Monkeys.

My favorite Argentinian acts are Virus, Willy Crook, Juana Molina, Los Espíritus, Babasónicos, and Hannie Schaft. I also idolize the geniuses Luis Alberto Spinetta and Fito Páez. And I have a soft spot for Alejandro Sanz (though he's Spanish).

P: How were you first introduced to vaporwave music and how did you get your start in the vaporwave scene? How did you come up with your artist name? What do you like in the current vaporwave scene?

E: Like most people, I was introduced to vaporwave thanks to the meme popularity of Floral Shoppe around 2015. It was everywhere, so I decided to give it a listen. Despite finding it pretty haunting, it didn't really click with me at first. It wasn't until I heard DDS.wmv's "I'll Try Living Like This" that I started loving vaporwave and seeing it as a legitimate art movement.

2017 was the year I began making vaporwave, under two aliases: SΛΚURA SΣMPΔI and Ｓｕｎｋｅｎ ＧＨＯＳＴ バーチャル (pretty cringe and generic names, I must say LMAO). The idea was to create vaporwave with pitched-down vocals or vocoder effects, kind of like Daft Punk, but that made vocal mixing a nightmare. Then, people on Facebook and Reddit introduced me to Whitewoods, and he became the blueprint for what I do now as eccodroid: "ecco" from the Sega dolphin video game, and "droid" because I was singing a lot about feelings and robots don't feel (androids, perhaps).

I can't really say what I like about the current vaporwave scene because, to be honest, I haven't felt like part of it since 2020...I feel sort of "shadowbanned." I won't go into all the details (you can ask around and you'll hear tons of different stories), but long story short: I got caught up in a big misunderstanding that was fueled by years of accumulated hate toward me as this kind of "love it or hate it" proud Argentinian guy online. Even though the actual issue was resolved pretty quickly, the fallout has lasted to this day. You won't really read or hear much about me anymore...the way I was discussed around 2019 pretty much set the tone. I paid a heavy price just for being awful to a nice person but hey all that i care about is that we're cool and he's always been super supportive of my music! That's why I really appreciate this interview.

P: When making vaporwave, how much do you draw on Argentinian music and influences? Have you made albums that are about Argentina in any particular way? Do you think there is anything unique about Vaporwave from Argentina?

E: To be honest, I feel a bit guilty that I've never really incorporated much of my country into my music. I've only sung in Spanish on a handful of tracks—exactly three, actually. I keep thinking I should make a full EP in my own language, diving deeper into Argentina's own nostalgia, but I'm worried it might alienate some listeners.

From what I've heard in Argentinian vaporwave: going from bbrainz to cyberlust, Ezhak to Trademarks & Copyrights, Diett Colaa to Fan Fiordo I don't really feel like we share a distinct "unique" element tied to our roots. Vaporwave as a whole feels pretty globalized to me. That said, I'd need to listen to a lot more to be completely sure.

P: Have you worked with other Argentinian musicians or artists, either locally or nationally? How about people in other countries in South or Central America?

E: Yes, I did! I've had a couple of collabs with the Argentinian producer Diett Colaa. He produced a track for me that appeared on my 2017 album "holy ghost father", called "depression is endless" (credited as unknownsoldier). In return, I wrote and sang the banger "Ocean Heights" for his 2018 future funk album as Vercetti, "Summer Hits Vol. 1". I also collaborated with the Costa Rican producer eccodusk on a track titled "ethereal."

P: Do you think you are able to connect easily with the American or European vaporwave scenes despite the geographical distance?

E: Thanks to social media, I think it's pretty easy to connect with vaporwave people all around the globe—whether producers or listeners. I'm not much of a talker myself, but I always try to stay open to DMs. I've met a lot of chill people all around the globe and I'm proud that some of them remain as mutuals.

P: What is one thing you would like to see happen with vaporwave in Argentina or vaporwave in general? How do you think the vaporwave scene in Argentina could grow?

E: I'd really love to see the vaporwave and hypnagogic pop scene grow in Argentina as much as possible and to discover more people doing stuff similar to what I do. Shoutout to projects like Shay Dreamcast, Pico's Yachty, and Nuk Ronson.

You can find eccodroid's music on Bandcamp, Soundcloud, YouTube, and Spotify. You can follow him on Instagram.

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