Written By: Carlos Mbendera<\/p>\n
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Vapor Jazz. You heard that right. Vapor Wave paired with Jazz.The official soundtrack to the Sega Genesis masterpiece, Barbershop Simulator is a vapor jazz album. If you\u2019ve ever played Va11-HallA -also known as Bartender Simulator 2077 –\u00a0 and mixed drinks in its dystopian cyberpunk future then you already know the vibes you\u2019ll experience listening to the Barbershop Simulator soundtrack. Down Tempo and Chill paired with lead lines active enough to keep you aware of its presence. It\u2019s LoFi Beats to Study To\u2019s cool cousin from abroad.<\/p>\n
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On August 29, the year 2023, a new post from L2014 on thecoil.com titled \u201cY\u2019all remember Barbershop Simulator?\u201d Went live. The replies were filled with a mixture of accounts. Some trading secrets for how to beat the final boss, others asking where to play it, and even more people claiming the game never existed.<\/p>\n
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Here are a few of my favorite quotes:<\/p>\n
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\u201cDamn why is the soundtrack like ultra good deep house music?\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe last boss was hard. The trick is to start the fight off with the 1 hour late appointment and then combo into the gotta order food. He gets so mad he loses about half health. Hope that helps.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cSteam got an simulator game for damn near everything, Sega was ahead of its time with this one\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cY’all really had me googling this sh*t like it was real.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The music really is something special. This is one of the few albums that I can listen to without speaking a single song from start to finish. My only gripe would be that a few songs towards the 80% mark of the album feel a bit drawn out. Otherwise, it\u2019s a great relaxing album. Stand outs are:<\/p>\n
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Now after reading all of this. You might want to play the game that started it all. However, that\u2019s the thing. It never existed. This entire franchise is a concept album created by our lovely Brazilian producer slowerpace \u97f3\u697d<\/a>. A couple of comments from the album\u2019s YouTube page describe this idea pretty well. Everyone else believes that they played this game or are trolling. Most likely trolling.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cFor some reason I’m utterly fascinated by the idea of this game that never existed. I’m imagining something like VA-11 HALL-A where you chat up your customers while giving them their regular haircut, all while a jazzy soundtrack plays in the background.\u201d –@LOL-funny-videos<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThis is Borges level art: making music for a game that never even existed yet that creates an atmosphere that no 90s video game ever could.\u201d -@kaptnstrumpfus6759<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n For the uncultured among us (me included), Jorge Luis Borges’ literary works are renowned for their intricate and mind-bending narratives that challenge perceptions of reality, fiction, and time. The comment suggests the music is as profound and imaginative as Borges’ stories, evoking feelings of a non-existent, atmospheric 90s game.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As someone who used to produce Jazz Hop beats, the experimental sampling featured in this album really caught my ear and I wanted to learn more about the producer\u2019s approach. So I did some research (checked Instagram) and found the producer and sent them a message, and here are the results:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Interview Article is still in writing. So Tune In later and see it posted here on KJHK.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n You can find slowerpace\u2019s work here:<\/p>\n Band Camp:<\/p>\n https:\/\/slowerpace.bandcamp.com\/album\/barbershop-simulator<\/a><\/p>\n YouTube:<\/p>\n