Solarpunk Exploration

Solarpunk Exploration

Author: Ross Payton, Birk McBirkinson February 3, 2025 Duration: 34:06
In this episode we’re digging into Solarpunk, a multi-media art movement that aims to build a vision of a more optimistic future, free from the crushing doom of environmental collapse. We talk about the movement, some example media, and our thoughts on movements becoming aesthetics. So, come in from your rooftop garden and join us as we take a more hopeful view of the future.

Ever find yourself drawn to a melody that feels like it's echoing from an empty mall or a soundtrack for a forgotten dream? That's the territory explored on Night Clerk Radio: Haunted Music Reviews. Hosts Ross Payton and Birk McBirkinson act as your guides through the often-overlooked corridors of sound, focusing on genres like vaporwave and dark ambient where nostalgia and unease intertwine. Each episode is less a standard review and more a deep dive into the history and emotional resonance of this "haunted" music. You'll hear curated selections of tracks, but the discussion goes much further, unpacking why certain retro aesthetics or melancholic tones hold such power over us. The podcast regularly features interviews with artists and enthusiasts, adding layers of context and personal insight to the commentary. It’s for anyone who’s ever wondered about the stories behind the strangely comforting, sometimes unsettling music that exists just outside the mainstream. Tune in to discover not just what to listen to next, but to better understand the quiet pull of the shadows in our playlists.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Night Clerk Radio: Haunted Music Reviews
Podcast Episodes
Folktronica Exploration [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:31
In this episode, we’re exploring the world of Folktronica, a genre that unsurprisingly features traditional folk instrumentation set against the rhythms and timbre of synth-driven electronica. To top it all off, it’s a g…
Chopping for Tapes at K-Mart [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:02
The K-Mart tapes are a collection of 56 cassette tapes that were used to provide in-store music and announcements in the late 80s and early 90s. They were kept and archived by K-Mart employee Mark Davis who uploaded them…
Summertime is for Summer Jams [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:14
Summertime is for summer jams, so in this episode we’re checking out two recent albums from podcast favorites luxury elite and Limousine. Both albums, while being very different stylistically, capture particular emotiona…
Signalwave Redux [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:44
In this episode, we’re revisiting Signalwave, one of our favorite subgenres of haunted music. Specifically, we’re discussing the evolution of the genre as more new releases focus on the music and media of the late-90s/ea…
Vaporwave and Virtual Reality [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:20
Virtual reality, despite its recent success, has been a perennial retro technology for the majority of our lives. It represents a technological future that may never arrive and a past that never really happened. The haun…
The Music of Terror Vision [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:01
The folks at Terror Vision, a boutique shop focused on preserving obscure genre films, recently released Copperhead, an early direct-to-video film made by Ross’s parents, on blu-ray. This release includes a restored vers…
Architectural Horror and Vaporwave [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:03
In this episode, we delve into the topic of architectural horror and its connection to vaporwave and other genres of haunted music. We explore the shared themes of disorientation, nostalgia, and the uncanny in both genre…
Spring 2023 Discord Recommendations [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:26
It’s that time of year again. It’s our biannual Discord extravaganza. We selected almost 20 pieces of music recommended by our patrons on the Night Clerk Radio Discord over the past few months and spent this episode goin…
The Music of Realm and Ritual [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:20
This week, we’re digging into the music of Realm and Ritual, an anti-fascist record label from Boston that focuses on cassette and other physical media releases of dungeon synth and black metal. For this episode, we focu…
Boss Fights and Save Rooms [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:37
Caleb is back and this time we’re chatting about the original soundtracks to two very different games: Warhammer 40,000: Darktide and Signalis. These soundtracks represent two very different approaches to creating rich a…