What does Shirobon sound like?

The chiptune electronic artist embraces his synthwave and cyber noir side.

The review of ‘Data Mind’ by Shirobon

The beautiful world of electronic music is diverse and varied, which is something Shirobon exploits time and again. Often mixing chiptune music with other genres, this time around the formidable artist goes all in on synthwave. This is the closest to a commercial album Shirobon has created as it’s full of guest vocalists and big anthemic tunes. It is also one of his most complex.

In his own words, the concept of ‘Data Mind’ was to make music for “a decade that never existed”. Melody is always front and centre but the album has an unplaceable timeframe due to the different electronic elements at play. The opening track sounds late 80s and early 90s because it opens with a hard synthwave sound initially but as more modern chiptune trinkets and percussive loops come in, it borrows from the present and future too. ‘Initialisation’ also has a fantastic vocal sample throwback for Metal Gear Solid fans, too. In many ways, this album sounds like it has a neon alleyway espionage narrative to it. It sounds seductive and dangerous.

More time-agnostic is ‘Fumes’, which jumps seamlessly between modern-day Monstercat-drenched darkwave and something you’d go clubbing to. The track then adds in retro synthpop vocals but with modern production, achieving a sound that is a melting pot of decades. This continues with the maximalist electronic pop anthem ‘Brand New You’. Insanely catchy vocoder-filled choruses, disco beats and heavy house bass lines make this a Eurovision track for 80 years in the future. It is a tour-de-force of melody and production. We then hit slap bang in 1999 with what I can only describe as a would-be Dance Dance Revolution classic. ‘Ridin’ ft TANUKI’ brings sassy vocal motifs, darkwave synth runs and a rave waiting for a high score challenge. It screams Niko’s ‘Night of Fire’ but brings the 80’s wah-wah vocoder energy along too. It is sublime.

Even dreamy ballads aren’t safe. ‘Droplets’ is a dewy soft 90s pop ballad with glassy echoing keyboard tones, snowy vocals and a wintry overcoat. It is an anomaly tonally as most of the album keeps to a dark cyberpunk undertone but it a welcome surprise. Slow-motion rave is beautiful. Vocaloid-focused ‘Obsession’ flicks the switch back to dark mode with a fantastic bassline and a drum ‘n’ bass beat that hammers hard in short bursts. Many songs remind me of how important a bass groove is for malevolent synthwave. It is a track that is difficult to age as it fuses maximalist bass and retro drum fills with futuristic darkwave production.

Whilst most of the album has vocals, ‘Search Unit’ is a throwback to previous Shirobon work. It’s a taut espionage piece that pairs nicely with the Metal Gear Solid motif nods from the opening track. As the track progresses it moves from the shadows to an emergency run for cover for a cinematic finale. It also pairs beautifully with the elixir that is ‘Hiraeth’. Here we get a jazz chiptune/synthwave hybrid like a 2300 lounge bar piece. Everything about this screams celestial anime from the early 80s down to the vinyl spitting but it’s made with modern crisp synths.

The album then closes with Shirbon returning to big beats, huge vocals and retrofuture synthpop. ‘Break Away’ has big hair energy because of its thick synths and huge disco tom drums. It also has the darkest lyrics of the album hiding behind the rousing chord structure and clean production. Most of the album is about finding and searching for love but sometimes Shirobon infers that its acceptance and self-belief that’s the true golden treasure to find. ‘Lightyears’ is a mixture of synthpop and vocoder solos that then bring us to a chiptune-charged rave finale. Again DDR comes to mind along with Initial-D and hardcore Japanese dance music. It’s a wildly satisfying finale and ends things with an uplifting bang.

Shirobon never misses but ‘Data Mind’ is a new bar of excellence for his music. The time-untethered concept has forced him to create a new subgenre melting pop that draws you in. That means if you are an 80s over-produced synthwave freak, you are covered. If you enjoyed cheesy 90s Europop with a dark edge, you are covered. Fancy some chiptune and Vocaloid adjacent bangers – you’ll be happy too. It is a glorious display of creative talent to synthesize so many things into one cohesive sound and ‘Data Mind’ does it and never drops the ball – only the bass. This is my favourite electronic album of 2024.

Recommended track: Break Away

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