Nahuelsat

Nahuelsat is a musician who started producing vaporwave in 2025. His new album The Return of the Ethereal Room is out now, featuring several other people in these interviews.

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?

Nahuelsat: Thanks for giving me this space to talk about myself and give a voice to the Argentine artists of Signalwave (get ready because I'm going to repeat that word as much as you do (laughs)). Okay, without further ado, here's my story: My personal history with Argentine music starts directly with my parents. They always listened to classics that are still considered classics today (like Soda Stereo, Sui Generis, Los Abuelos de la Nada, Virus, Miguel Mateos, Charly García, Fito Páez, Andrés Calamaro, Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota) but also other Latin American artists (like Maná, Ricky Martin, and so on). Then I started discovering Argentine bands too, mostly rock, because I really like rock and I prefer listening to that genre. In my early teens, I found my favorite bands: Los Tipitos, Turf, Airbag, etc.

While Argentine music was never my biggest consumer, I searched and listened quite a bit. I mostly listened to international music of all kinds. From my favorite genre, Grunge, along with Post-Grunge, there’s bands like Soundgarden, Nirvana, Malfunkshun, Love Battery, Pearl Jam, Bush, Silverchair, Alice In Chains, Live!, Fuel, Matchbox Twenty, and Creed. Beyond that, I've always been open to listening to everything since I was a kid. Salsa, Death Metal, Irish Folk, Eastern European Dark Wave, or even Tribal Music from the African continent.

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?

N: It all started because my friend LAPA, whom I know personally and have been friends with for 13 years, is one of the best people I've ever met. That guy (laughs) is going to know when he reads this interview that I'm bragging about him. Anyway. He told me that he had been working on his own project for a while and that he was really enjoying the idea of producing and assembling samples. I knew a little about it; I had some production experience but very little, and it wasn't specifically related to vaporwave or signalwave. I had made some vaporwave songs back in 2016, but they were just tests that I now consider unworthy (laughs). After that, LAPA himself said to me, "I want you to help me with an album, and we can work together."

The idea started as something unpretentious. It was going to be an album of instrumentals and whatever else came up. During the creation process, we started experimenting, resulting in an album that was nominated for Collaborative Album of the Year in 2025. We didn't win, but it was nominated for Collaborative Album of the Year, and it was my first full-length album. Honestly, that album gave me a lot of satisfaction, and I learned a great deal from the creative process. I have a lot of affection for that album and consider it one of my best works, despite my lack of experience and not knowing anything about the genre.

My stage name came to me because I needed a name that fit the Signalwave genre. I suddenly remembered, quite nostalgically, an advertisement for Crónica TV, a channel in Argentina famous for being extremely sensationalist and showing things in the most graphic way possible. The advertisement from the 90s said, "Crónica for the whole country, including the Falkland Islands, Antarctica, and America. Crónica television via the Argentine satellite Nahuel." Then I thought, "Nahuel? What satellite is that?" I started reading and it says it's the first Argentine satellite sent into space for media purposes, and its real name is NahuelSAT1, which was later replaced by the ArSAT satellite, but that's another story.

What I love about the current Vaporwave scene is the sheer number of artists and the musical variety, ranging from the most unlistenable, strange, dreamlike, and outlandish stuff to the most tranquil, accessible, pleasant, or ambient. There are so many people of all ages trying their hand at it, giving us diverse and intangible music and enriching Signalwave and all the Vaporwave genres.

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?

N: Actually, 50/50. I've mostly worked with a lot of samples from music I like from other countries, and with Argentinian music. In fact, the first full-length album I made, which I already mentioned we did in collaboration with LAPA, is called “ARGENTINA.” It deals with politics, social criticism, corruption, social problems, hedonism. All those things that sound dystopian, that were and still are real, and that we like as works of art, but that hurt us deeply because they directly affected us. This Argentinian music includes things my parents listened to when I was a kid, as I mentioned before, as well as things I've discovered since childhood and later in life, and things I found interesting that I recently discovered, specifically for sampling work. These projects yielded good results (in my opinion), and every now and then they spark my curiosity to explore more Argentinian music, sampling, and experimentation.

Spoiler alert: My entire Signalcon 2026 presentation (if it happens) will be audiovisually based on an Argentinian cultural channel I watched as a child and will feature 100% Argentinian music for export. If Signalcon 2026 doesn't happen, it will become a 15-minute EP.

To conclude this question, Argentinian Vaporwave, from what I've been able to observe, is also quite diverse, ranging from sampling things that come from abroad (foreign music) to extremely regional things specific to the locality of the artist who made them. This ends up enriching the genre and showcasing music that is unknown nowhere else in the world, which can be interesting, and can awaken the curiosity and interest of people who didn't know they liked that music and discover new universes.

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?

N: Yes! I've worked with Argentine artists like LAPA, EAST ACCESS, and ishiiburidai, who are truly excellent people. We stay in touch quite often to talk about Signalwave, production, hang out, send each other silly Instagram reels, and share a lot of things. I want to clarify that I'm open to working with other Argentine artists or artists from other countries, whoever needs my services (laughs) or my vision. I'll always offer my help selflessly, and we'll strive to work with the best possible energy because this is about enjoyment. This is about honoring music and an aesthetic. Unfortunately, I haven't worked with people from other South or Central American countries, but as I said, I'm open to everything.

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

N: Absolutely. I'm always open to listening to different kinds of music, regardless of the culture or inspiration. Anything that's art, any expression, anything interesting—I don't really care where it comes from. The important thing is that it enriches me as a person and allows me to enjoy good music. Now, if you mean connecting in the sense of chatting or interacting with artists from other places, I have no problem with that at all. In fact, I'm currently talking with a newcomer from Greece. He contacted me because he liked my music and is learning to mix and work with samples. He asked for my help because he has his own style but wants to incorporate other things or learn to do things differently, and that's what we're working on. I'll probably introduce him on the Signalwave Discord server, if they allow it, although I'm honestly surprised he contacted me, because he seems very shy and taciturn, but he's definitely very nice and I like him. His stage name is VAEL, and I think the day he releases a full album is going to be something very interesting.

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?

N: The truth is that the Argentinian vaporwave scene in general (or at least what I know of it) is not only quite decent and worth listening to and sharing, but the quality of the artists is also quite interesting. Honestly, I'd like to see more of a community in Argentina, different ways to showcase our work, to connect with each other on good terms, and above all to maintain a healthy and inclusive social environment that demonstrates our love for the music and shows that Argentina has a lot to offer and can surprise the world, or meet any demand that Signalwave music might have. Whether it's to showcase high art, enjoyment, relaxation, or simply something that makes you feel good.

I firmly believe that the way the Vaporwave scene in Argentina will grow is simply by existing, because it doesn't really exist in any significant way. It's either very niche or very limited to a small group of people, but it's not something easily accessible, nor are there a large number of people showcasing their work. I've seen events in Buenos Aires held in physical venues, indicating an underground scene that's been around for over a decade, but it's not accessible. It's not easy to find, and that severely limits the audience.

You can find Nahuelsat's music on Bandcamp and YouTube and with Argentum Quorum on Bandcamp.

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