Ramona Andra Langley Explained

Ramona Andra Langley
Landscape:yes
Origin:Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Occupation:Music producer
Years Active:2005–present

Ramona Andra Langley is an American electronic musician from Portland, Oregon. She has released music under her primary Vektroid alias, as well as others, such as dstnt, Laserdisc Visions, New Dreams Ltd., Virtual Information Desk, and PrismCorp Virtual Enterprises. Langley played a prominent role in the popularization of the vaporwave subgenre with the release of her ninth studio album, Floral Shoppe, under the alias Macintosh Plus. The album helped popularize the vaporwave genre throughout the Internet. Since then, she has continued to release music through Bandcamp and other online platforms.

Career

Langley began producing and releasing electronic music in 2005. She has released music through aliases, including Macintosh Plus, PrismCorp, and Laserdisc Visions, among others. She reports that she has put out over forty releases since 2005. Paolo Scarpa characterized Langley's music as an "exposé of late capitalism". James Parker noted Vektroid's "sensuous virtuality" and "new cyber-pop unconscious". Writing for Sputnikmusic, Adam Downer called Floral Shoppe a shift toward beauty in an age that has nearly "run the gamut of what artists and musicians can do".

Tiny Mix Tapes ranked Floral Shoppe and 札幌コンテンポラリー, released by Langley under her Macintosh Plus and 情報デスクVIRTUAL aliases, respectively, on its list of its 50 favorite albums of 2012. Fact magazine called Floral Shoppe the defining album of Bandcamp, the streaming service through which Vektroid releases her music. The album is the site's most user-recommended album in the experimental music category.

Langley stopped releasing music regularly in early 2013, only releasing two albums of that year, Home™ and ClearSkies™. Both albums were released under the PrismCorp Virtual Enterprises pseudonym in April. In 2014, Langley released , a revision of her release Initiation Tape - Part One, as New Dreams Ltd. In early 2015, she collaborated with electronic duo Magic Fades to produce a remix of the song "Ecco" from their debut album, Push Through. In February 2016 she released three albums, Fuji Grid TV EX, Shader Complete and Sleepline. The first two are revisions of some of her albums, while the last one was produced in 2013 but never released previously.

Impact and legacy

Under various aliases, Langley played a role in the creation of the modern electronic genre vaporwave between 2010 and 2013. Her projects, Macintosh Plus and New Dreams Ltd., are considered as the primary artists in the vaporwave genre.[1] [2]

Personal life

Langley resides in Portland, Oregon. She is a trans woman.[3] She was diagnosed with autism in February 2024.[4]

Discography

YearNameAlbum titleNotes
2009VektordrumCapitose Windowpane
Deciphered
Fraktalseq: Blossom
I, Banished
Hello1&2Compilation of the EP's "Hello Skypedals EP1" and "Hello Skypedals EP2"
2010Geese
dstntisÆ
Night Signals II
iss2+2
VektroidTelnet ErotikaReissued in 2017 as Telnet Complete
2011Polytravellers
Starcalc
Neo Cali
Fuji Grid TVPrism GenesisReissued in 2016 as Fuji Grid TV EX under the name New Dreams Ltd.
Laserdisc VisionsNew Dreams Ltd.
New Dreams Ltd.Initiation Tape - Part OneReissued in 2014 as Initiation Tape: Isle of Avalon Edition
esc不在Black Horse
MIDI Dungeon
Tanning SalonDream Castle
Macintosh PlusFloral Shoppe
2012情報デスクVIRTUAL札幌コンテンポラリー
Sacred TapestryShaderReissued in 2016 as Shader Complete
VektroidColor Ocean Road
2013PrismCorp Virtual EnterprisesHome™
ClearSkies™
2016CTOGDGA1In collaboration with Ray Sherman
New Dreams Ltd.Sleepline
Eden
PALACIO DEL RIONO TITLEIn collaboration with Siddiq
VektroidMidnight Run
Vektroid Texture Maps
Big Danger
RE•SET
2017Seed & Synthetic Earth
Peace Forever EternalNextcentury
2022Vektroid & New Dreams Ltd.Fuji Grid TV II: EMX
2023VektroidcRASH 1
2024cRASH 2: Mac +/-
777 PIG DANGER
TBAMacintosh PlusUntitled album[5]
VektroidNo Earth
The Children's New Book[6]

Notes and References

  1. News: Galil. Leor. Vaporwave and the Observer Effect. Chicago Reader. February 19, 2013.
  2. Web site: Friedlander. Emilie. McDermott. Patrick D.. October 8, 2015. A Recent History of Microgenres. The Fader.
  3. 1408079054494855171. VektroidLive. Just now remembering that I came out as trans ten years ago this month. Holy shit.. RaRa. Vektroid. June 24, 2021.
  4. 1760604291856015510. VektroidLive. also i got an official autism diagnosis, i am mid-high level 1 autism certified now. RaRa. Vektroid. Feb 22, 2024.
  5. Web site: Vektroid on Twitter: Just so you know - the Macintosh Plus sequel is NOT called "Rise From Your Grave", nor is it "Sick & Panic"! Sick & Panic is one of roughly a dozen (also long) tracks from the album. I'm not announcing the full title yet, but for now...MACINTOSH PLUS PLUS/Twitter. July 17, 2020. Twitter. en.
  6. Web site: Moebius Blue (from "Seed & Synthetic Earth") by Vektroid - Free Listening on SoundCloud . . October 21, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181021025552/https://soundcloud.com/vektroid/moebius-blue-from-seed-synthetic-earth/ . October 21, 2018 . . November 1, 2018 . live .