Virtual Anticipation is the first studio album by American artist Ben Aqua. It was released as a digital album on February 18, 2014 through #FEELINGS.[1]

Virtual Anticipation
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 18, 2014 (2014-02-18)
Recorded2011–2014
Genre
Length42:42
Label
  • #FEELINGS
Producer

Background

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Virtual Anticipation was in production for over three years,[1] and included the title track from Aqua's debut EP, Reset Yourself. He described the album concept as "loosely about a sense of anxiety, happiness, fear, alienation and excitement I've felt as a result of years of endlessly analyzing how the Internet and technology are influencing ideas of self-identity, sexuality, privacy, 'immortality,' and fantasy". The album was composed of audio samples from field recordings, Nintendo DS, YouTube videos, and iPad synthesizer apps.[2]

Virtual Anticipation was musically influenced by Frédéric Chopin, Wendy Carlos, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Sega Genesis, Timbaland, and RP Boo.[1]

Reception

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In a 2014 interview with Ben Aqua, VICE Thump called Virtual Anticipation "an opus that taps everything from footwork and club to seapunk and skweee, and pulls it all together with a post-human outlook". They described the album as having a "combination of classical elements and up-to-the-minute synth sounds".[2]

Track listing

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All music is composed by Ben Aqua, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."We're All Baroque"1:14
2."Virtual Anticipation"4:42
3."Eternal Hard Drive"2:41
4."Ultimate Reality"4:23
5."Melted Memories"3:44
6."4C1D"4:32
7."Drip Hop"3:09
8."Reset Yourself"3:28
9."Organic Blueprint"1:33
10."Dark, Dark Day"6:00
11."Just B U"3:16
12."Neverending Beginning"4:08
Total length:42:42

Personnel

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Guest collaborators

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  • Joe Howe - synthesizer solo on "Virtual Anticipation"
  • Ojay Morgan (Zebra Katz) - vocals on "Ultimate Reality"
  • Christa Palozzolo - vocals on "Neverending Beginning"

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Virtual Anticipation, by Ben Aqua". #FEELINGS. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
  2. ^ a b "You Can Thank Ben Aqua for Keeping Austin Weird | Thump". Thump. Retrieved 2015-10-13.