zephiX, did you write this?
CTRL.SHIFT.ESC. OUT NOW!!! (13.12.2025)
After over 3 years, a new GVLAG album has released.
This blogpost may come of as egotistical in my honest opinion, but I hope this kind of information may be interesting to someone out there. I am sorry.
I am very glad that this project is finally seeing the light of day (even though most of you can't understand it), this kind of thing been on my mind for a long, long time. But the start was just only recently.
After I recorded stuff for /VFO GOBLIN/, like everything I try to do, it started with creating a folder with my tried and tested title template: project [INSERT TITLE HERE], with this one bearing "no regerts". It was supposed to be very influenced by the POSTAL series, mainly the first installment, with its visuals and soundtrack of course.
Cover art concept for no regerts
The plan was to make an experimental noise/acid/trap fusion that was very aggressive, very harsh. That didn't lead really anywhere due to lack of ideas, but it did lead to the creation of my other EP, CŽETO?!?!.
Because of that, I had a different idea, almost polar opposite to the previous attempt. What if I stuck to the noise idea, but just made it more ambient? It would leave a ton of room for vocals and thus, more experimentation. This would go very far, laying out the groundwork for the at the time 7 track album.
But it lead to another problem, writing lyrics for the instrumentals I made. At that time, I had trouble of coming up with anything and it was very frustrating for me, because I had ideas for other stuff, like the cover arts, the theme etc. I knew that I can't really force the texts out of me, but like few months have already went by and there was no progress whatsoever. When I had the chance, I wrote everything that even resembled a bar, hoping I would use that as a stepping stone, but to no avail.
The result, among others within the year, was the release of ACOPAK(DEMO)
So I had to change something drastic in this creative process. And then it clicked. I was doing the instrumentals in the presumption that I will think of something later. The key word here is later, I had to make the stuff at the spot and not procrastinate.
So when I found that out, after some time of getting used to, I was on a roll. Finally, the texts were coming left and right and the tracks were starting to get done. By that time, the project was changed again, to a videogame, 2000's internet/computer aesthetic, but still trying to retain the ambient and dream aspect, with a hint of the noise influence as well.
In the meanwhile, I was trying to come up with a good cover art, trying to incorporate this theme into one something recognizable and hopefully in the future, iconic. Had a couple of the ideas, this was one of the earliest:
A upside down Vitruvian Man with a pentagram, depicting a videogame console on each tip.
This was supposed to be shot IRL, but I didn't had the resources to get a proper photoshoot, so because of that, it was quickly scrapped. But it was for the better, for the now official cover art was next that came to mind.
Having completed Final Fantasy VIII prior and using a ID photo of me as the base, it was everything I hoped for. The inspiration was obviously the faceless Squall seen for a split second during the end cutscenes, because I think it encapsulates everything nicely. It has the depictions of the videogame influence of course and the addition of jpeg compression artifacts holds it all together.
The title of the album was untitled for the most part, with some placeholder names put there until I came up with something better. It was not chosen just because, it has some meaning, although maybe pretentious, but that's up to you to decide.
So, again, very happy that this is finished and out there, the unrealized ideas will be hopefully utilized more in future projects. I did not write about everything here, because most of it is mundane or it just doesn't fit here. Maybe next time :)