How to Write Vaporwave Songs

You want a song that smells like a late checkout at a mall that no longer exists. You want reverb that feels like a ceiling too high to reach and chords that sound like someone rewound a mall playlist then cried into it. Vaporwave is mood first and rule second. This guide gets you from feeling to finished track with practical production moves, songwriting ideas, and promotional reality checks so you do not end up stuck in nostalgia for nostalgia.

This article is written for millennial and Gen Z artists who want weird, glossy, melancholic music that can be made on a laptop and still feel cinematic. We will cover the aesthetic pillars, sample sourcing, tempo and groove, chord choices, melody and topline tips, vocal processing, arrangement shapes, mixing, mastering, legal issues, and quick templates you can steal tonight. All terms and acronyms are explained in plain English with real life examples so you do not have to guess.

What Is Vaporwave

Vaporwave is a music and art movement that leans on nostalgia, consumer culture critique, and surrealism. It grew online in the early 2010s from chopped and slowed samples of 80s and 90s muzak, smooth jazz, elevator music, early digital pop, and corporate jingles. The aesthetic often features retro computer imagery, neon pastel colors, and a feeling like you are listening to a cassette you found in a hotel lobby after a power outage.

Vaporwave songs often use heavy reverb, pitch shifting, time stretching, and lo fi texturing. The mood is dreamy, eerie, and sometimes ironic. Some tracks are philosophical and critical of late capitalism while sounding like a retirement lounge at a mall. Others are purely romantic and nostalgic. Both approaches work. Pick a mood and build everything around it.

Core Aesthetic Pillars

• Nostalgia for a non specific past expressed through sounds that recall 80s and 90s media.
• Material culture references like shopping malls, corporate imagery, muzak, and hold music.
• Surreal processing such as extreme reverb, pitch shifting, and stretched time that make ordinary sounds strange.
• Texture over clarity with tape noise, vinyl crackle, and mild distortion used as design elements.
• Emotional ambiguity where a warm chord might read as comfort or as irony depending on context.

Basic Tools You Need

You do not need a high end studio. You need a laptop, a digital audio workstation called a D A W, a basic sample library, and headphones or monitors you trust.

• D A W stands for digital audio workstation. Examples include Ableton Live, Logic Pro, FL Studio, and Reaper. This is the app where you arrange, edit, and mix your track.
• Audio interface for recording if you plan to record vocals or instruments. Not essential if you work purely with samples and virtual instruments.
• VST plugins which are virtual instruments and effects. You will want a reverb plugin, a chorus or flange, a pitch shifter, and a good time stretching tool.
• Sample editor or audio editor. Many D A Ws have this built in. It lets you chop samples and warp timing.

Choosing Source Material

Sampling is central for many vaporwave producers. You can also make original music in the vaporwave style. Either way you need source sounds that carry the mood.

Where to find samples

• Old records and thrift stores. Albums from smooth jazz, lounge, library music, and corporate compilations are gold. Imagine finding a muzak cassette in a thrift store and giving it a spa day. That is the vibe.
• Royalty free libraries. Many kits replicate 80s keyboards and lounge orchestration. They keep you legal and fast.
• Field recordings. Record a shopping mall, an elevator, or a food court. The ambient hum and footsteps add documentary weight.
• Public domain media. Some old corporate jingles and production music are free to use depending on jurisdiction. Do your homework.

Real life scenario: You are at your grandparents house and you find a dusty cassette labeled elevators. You digitize the cassette with a cheap cassette player and a phone cable. You cut a two bar loop from the sax section, pitch it down two semitones, add reverb and boom you have the spine of a track. That is a practical example of the vibe in action.

Sample ethics and legality

Sampling is fun and complicated. If you use copyrighted recordings without permission you face takedowns, claims, or lawsuits. If you want to release commercially and avoid problems, clear samples or use royalty free alternatives. Clearing a sample means getting permission from the owner of the recording and the owner of the composition. That can be expensive and slow.

Alternative strategies

• Recreate a part with a session player or a soft synth so you own the new recording. You still might need to clear the composition if it is recognizable.
• Use sample packs labeled for commercial use. Many producers sell vintage sounding loops cleared for release.
• Use tiny, heavily processed chops. This does not guarantee legality but can sometimes keep you under the radar. Do not assume it is safe.

Tempo and Groove

Vaporwave tempos are often slow to moderate. Typical BPM, short for beats per minute, sits between 60 and 95. That makes the songs feel lazy and spacious. Slower tempos give reverb more room to breathe and let time stretching produce that melted clock feeling.

Groove advice

• Use a soft kick and a warm sub bass if you want more modern electronica energy.
• Use minimal percussion if you want a drift and an ambient feel.
• Try swing on drums for a nostalgic mechanical feel. Swing adds a small timing offset that makes grooves feel human and slightly off center.

Harmony and Chord Choices

Harmonic language in vaporwave often borrows from jazz, smooth R and B, and production music. Think lush seventh chords, major seven chords, add nine chords, and slow moving changes. The goal is atmosphere more than tension and release.

Chord palettes to try

• Major seven chord. Example: C major seven. Play root note C, then E, G, B. It sounds warm, sunny but slightly wistful.
• Minor seven chord. Example: A minor seven with notes A, C, E, G. Use for late night mood and melancholy.
• Major add nine. Example: G add nine adds color without heavy complexity. Notes G, B, D, A. Great for sustained pads.
• Slash chords where the bass is not the root. Example: D over F sharp plays D major with an F sharp bass. It gives movement inside a slow progression.

Progression ideas

1. Two bar loop using I major seven to VI minor seven. That is a calm drift with a hint of sadness.
2. I add nine to V over bass then back to I major seven. A small turn that feels cinematic.
3. Cycle of minor seven chords moving down by minor thirds for a floating vibe. That one feels like a dream where the furniture moves slightly when you look away.

Melody and Topline Ideas

Vaporwave melodic lines are often simple, reverbed, and emotionally ambiguous. If you add vocals, consider using chopped vocals as texture rather than full lyrical narratives. Use syllables, repeated phrases, and short hooks. If you prefer instrumental, a simple synth line with portamento, which is a sliding pitch effect, can be powerful.

Real life prompt: Record yourself humming a memory. Not a lyric. Just hum wordless melodies into your phone while grocery shopping. Later, import that hum, pitch it down, add chorus and massive reverb, and place it under a chord loop. You just used your own memory as a sample. That is very vaporwave.

Vocal Approaches and Processing

Vaporwave vocals are a design element. Here are common treatments and how to use them.

• Pitch shift down or up slightly to alter the human quality. Pitch shifting moves the pitch of audio without changing tempo when done well. Use it to make voices sound like a washed out announcer or a child in a vintage commercial.
• Time stretch a vocal to make syllables long and ghostly. Time stretching changes length without dramatic pitch warping when you use a quality algorithm.
• Formant shifting which changes the vocal timbre while keeping pitch. Use it to keep the syllable shape but make the voice less human.
• Chopping cut phrases and repeat fragments like a glitchy mantra. Chop your own voice or sampled vocals into tiny loops.
• Heavy reverb and long pre delay to put voice in a massive space. Pre delay is the time between the direct sound and the reverb onset. Longer pre delay helps the original word be intelligible before the wash takes over.

Example use case

Record a friend saying a mundane corporate line like thank you for calling. Chop the phrase to keep only thank you. Pitch it down two semitones. Add chorus, a plate reverb with long decay, and a slight tape noise layer. Use it as the main vocal hook. It will sound like a jingle from a parallel timeline.

Texture and Sound Design

Textures are the secret sauce. Use subtle noise, tape saturation, vinyl crackle, and vintage keyboard timbres. These elements give age and depth.

Simple texture chain

1. Add a gentle tape saturation plugin to the master or group bus to glue everything.
2. Create a dedicated track for ambience. Fill it with field recordings or long synth pads low in volume.
3. Use a noise generator with a low pass filter to sit under the verses. Low pass means frequencies above a certain point are reduced so the noise feels warm.

Plugins to explore

• Chorus and ensemble for that 80s wide shimmer.
• Spring or plate reverb to create a long wash.
• Vintage delay with ping pong modes to make space feel enormous.
• Pitch shifter with formant control for vocal weirdness.
• Time stretching that preserves transients for dreamy pads and reversed textures.

Arrangement Shapes That Work

Vaporwave songs can be short loop based pieces or long slow moving soundscapes. Here are three shapes to steal.

Loop Drift

• Intro with field recording and vinyl crackle
• Two bar chord loop with primary sample
• Second loop enters with a pitched synth counter melody
• Bridge of chopped vocal fragments
• Final two minutes gradual fade via low pass filter

Ambient Story

• Layered pads open with long reverb
• Slow evolving chords with subtle modulation
• Sparse percussion emerges at halfway point
• Short melodic hook returns near the end then evaporates

Jingle Deconstruction

• Start with a recognizable corporate jingle sample
• Reverse section and stretch to twice original length
• Introduce a clean vocal stating a mundane line
• End with abrupt tape stop effect and quiet radio static

Mixing Tips Specific to Vaporwave

Mixing for vaporwave is about space, tone, and texture. Clarity is less important than mood but you still want a clean mix that translates.

• Use EQ to cut clutter. Remove low end from pads and guitars unless you want them to carry weight. This keeps the mix airy.
• Sidechain lightly to the kick or a ghost kick to make room for percussion if the mix gets muddy. Sidechain is a process where the volume of one element is ducked by another element. It frees space without cutting frequencies.
• Automate reverb decay times across the arrangement. Longer decays make sections feel larger. Shorter decays bring intimacy.
• Use contrast. Bring elements in and out. A track that is all wash can become background music. Introduce a dry moment so the listener has a place to land.

Mastering for the Vibe

Mastering should keep dynamics and the dreamy texture intact. Heavy loudness is not typical. Preserve transient depth and warmth.

• Light compression with a slow attack to keep the feel and glue instruments together.
• Gentle saturation to add harmonic content without harshness.
• Limit for peak control but avoid squashing. Vaporwave often benefits from headroom and subtle dynamics.

Visuals and Titles That Sell the Sound

Vaporwave is audio and visual together. Album art with retro computer graphics, Roman sculptures, early web imagery, or mall photos help listeners understand your intent before a note plays. Titles can be ironic corporate phrases, pin drop thoughts, or single words that feel like a memory fragment.

Relatable title idea: Name a track after something mundane you saw in a grocery store. That specificity will hook people because it feels like a visual memory they share.

Release and Promotion Tips

Vaporwave audiences live on streaming platforms but also in micro communities. Here are ways to reach them.

• Bandcamp is great for direct sales and gives you control over high quality files.
• Upload short clips to social apps with matching visuals. Vaporwave visuals get traction on video platforms if the loop is hypnotic.
• Submit to niche playlists and blogs that celebrate vaporwave, chillwave, and hauntology styles.
• Make a limited run cassette or CD for collectors. Physical objects are beloved in the scene because they feel like artifacts.

Practical Songwriting Exercises and Templates

These drills get you from idea to finished track fast.

Two Bar Loop Drill

1. Find or record a two bar sample. It can be a sax stab, a keyboard pad, or a vocal phrase.
2. Pitch it down two to six semitones and time stretch to match your tempo.
3. Layer a soft pad on a major seven or minor seven chord that follows the sample.
4. Add vinyl crackle and a field recording under everything at low volume.
5. Automate a low pass filter to open at chorus and close in verses.

Vocal Chop Mantra

1. Record a friend saying a banal sentence like we are open weekdays.
2. Chop the phrase into several slices. Keep one syllable per slice.
3. Arrange the slices into a rhythmic pattern that repeats as a hook.
4. Delay and pitch shift the repeated slice on every fourth bar for surprise.

Ambient Field Recording Song

1. Record 90 seconds of a public place like a mall. Export as stereo file.
2. Create a pad that matches the major key implied by nearby music. If none, pick a key you like.
3. Blend the field recording under the pad. Use sidechain to the pad so footsteps and conversations poke through.
4. Place a long reverb piano chord every 16 bars as the anchor.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

• Over processing makes tracks indistinct. Fix by leaving one element relatively dry so the listener has a clarity anchor.
• Too much nostalgia without concept can feel shallow. Fix by adding a sharp detail or a critique line that gives context.
• Busy low end creates mud. Fix by carving space with EQ and removing bass from non bass instruments.
• Ignoring sample clearance invites trouble. Fix by using cleared samples or recreations for official releases.

Real Life Scenario Walkthrough

You find a smooth jazz record at a thrift shop. You digitize it. A sax phrase at 1 minute 12 seconds has the exact feel you want. You chop four bars. You pitch it down three semitones and stretch to fit 75 BPM. You add a warm pad playing G major seven that changes to E minor seven. You record a short vocal saying I will return which you pitch down and chop. You add vinyl crackle, a soft kick, and a gentle sidechain to the pad. You automate reverb decay to grow in the second half. You decide to release it on Bandcamp as a limited cassette. That complete chain is a realistic way to make and share a vaporwave track.

Advanced Techniques for Producers

When you are ready to experiment further try granular synthesis where a sound is broken into tiny grains and rearranged. Use convolution reverb with impulse responses from shopping mall spaces for authentic spatial character. Use multiband saturation to color different frequency zones individually. All these tools add nuance but are not required.

Action Plan You Can Use Tonight

1. Find one two bar sample from a thrift store or a royalty free pack.
2. Set your D A W tempo to 72 BPM. Import the sample and pitch it down two to four semitones.
3. Create a pad with a major seven or minor seven chord and place it under the sample loop.
4. Record one short vocal line that is mundane. Chop and process it into a hook.
5. Add field recording or noise texture under everything. Add vinyl crackle at low volume.
6. Mix for space not loudness. Preserve headroom and long reverb tails.
7. Upload a short visual loop to social with a caption that hints at the concept or memory that inspired the track.

Vocabulary Cheat Sheet

• D A W Digital audio workstation. The app where you make music.
• B P M Beats per minute. The tempo or speed of the track.
• EQ Equalization. It is used to shape frequency balance by boosting or cutting frequencies.
• Formant The character of a voice that makes it sound like a particular body shape or size.
• Sidechain Routing the volume of one track to be controlled by another so space opens automatically.
• Time stretch Changing audio length without changing pitch.
• Pitch shift Moving the pitch of audio up or down without necessarily changing timing.
• Saturation Adding harmonic distortion to emulate tape or tube warmth.

FAQ

Do I need to sample to make vaporwave

No. Sampling is common but not required. You can create original chord progressions, use vintage synth patches, and design textures that emulate the nostalgic feel. Sampling adds immediate context but original composition can be equally potent and avoids legal complexity.

What instruments define the vaporwave sound

Keyboards like electric piano, electric organ, and old synth pads are common. Smooth jazz sax and lounge guitar textures are frequent. Classic digital synths from the 80s and 90s such as FM synth tones are useful. The key is to choose sounds with warm midrange and soft attack.

Can vocal pop be vaporwave

Yes. Pop vocals can work if processed to match the textural palette. Use reverb, pitch and formant shifts, and chopping to integrate vocals into the atmosphere. Keep lyrics simple and repetitive if the voice is a texture rather than the story engine.

How do I make the track feel nostalgic without copying a specific song

Use textures and references that evoke a time but avoid direct melodic or lyrical lifts from a recognizably copyrighted work. Small details like a particular synth patch, a field recording of a mall, or a font in your artwork signal nostalgia. Pair that with a personal lyrical line or motif to keep it original.

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