The System Should ChangeI started this project and track, The System Should Change, on 25 April 2025 with a strict production approach, though I wouldn’t call myself a dogma guy. Limitations were necessary since I couldn’t spend much time at home due to work. My sessions took place in cafés around Shibuya and neighbouring wards, as well as on buses and trains, squeezing every possible moment into breaks. With just my laptop and a small DAC plug, one of those tiny ones that can boost sound up to 32-bit, 384 kHz, I chose 24-bit, 96 kHz.But with limited CPU power in that plug, latency and overload soon became an issue. The lag dictated my sound choices: short, snappy drum hits, no massive pads. A minimal setup relying on sends for reverb instead of cluttering each track with separate effects.By the time I added the pads, and the power hungry melody at the end of the track, my CPU was struggling. So I moved the production back home, took as much time off work as possible, and locked myself in my bedroom studio until the project was done. I have a much better audio interface at home, but it’s too heavy to carry around. Mixing and bouncing multiple versions on my old studio speakers, I tested it in the car on Tokyo's Loop Road No. 7, Kan-nana (環七通り), where I have a stretch I use when I need to turn up the volume louder than I can in my flat, hunting down noise discrepancies. The car stereo isn’t ideal, but it exposes flaws like nothing else. I shouldn’t waste energy moving a vehicle just for this, but as many music makers say, the car is a great place to check balance between instruments, stereo imaging, and for cranking up the volume.Another thing I want to add, as mentioned, is that I use 24-bit, 96 kHz, which presents a challenge many other computer music makers don’t face, since they rely on samples I can’t. Most drum samples and loops in DAWs are recorded at a maximum of 24-bit, 48 kHz, and converting them to 96 kHz leads to quality loss when downgraded again for streaming and sales. Every drum sound in this project was programmed by hand. I’ve explored and sourced a few digital instruments capable of delivering true 96 kHz drum sounds, though there aren’t many great options available. But in the end, that’s not really a problem—I’ve built my own drums, free from low-quality, pre-programmed loops and samples.On 23 May I sent the final files to Benoit D. for mastering. By 26 May the mastered versions arrived from France. I checked them across all my audio setups, including noise-cancelling headphones, living room Wi-Fi speakers, the bedroom studio, the car, my Japan Audio Society-approved "Hi-Res Audio" DJ headphones, and more. I’m quite particular about this stage. The next day I uploaded them to my distributor’s platform, locking in the 10 June release date.The dates I mention here aren’t important (except the release date), but the timeframe is. This was a much faster process than usual, something new for me, intense and honest.Oh, and a bonus track from the vaults, New Direction (Belgian edit). Floor tested, tried, and proven to keep the energy alive. Mastered by Lawrie Dunster in England.The cover was created by my best man, longtime friend and creative ally from my time in London, Thanos Karampatsos, aka HoiKaloi, now based in Athens. A smart, minimalistic and intellectual take on the song title, yet instantly catchy and immersive.There are always limitations in life. Similarly, in digital music production, the art is in knowing the limits and making the best out of them.What is this music? I’ll let you decide.
Out 10 June 2025
2025 Delusive Disco