22nd Century Compos Mentis Man (2024)

April 15, 2024

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YouTube Playlist

Explore the full album on YouTube: 22nd Century Compos Mentis Man Playlist

This wholly AI-generated music video album is a blend of alternative rock, goth, electronic, quasi-classical, and ambient music, taking you on a journey through innovative new and old sounds and AI-generated visuals. Dive into each track to experience an example of the fusion of human creativity and emerging technology.

Allegro 🇮🇹
Troposphere
Infinity
Scientifiction
Ko te Toi te Ora (Maori: Art is Life)
Codetta 🤌

Allegro

Track 000 sets the tone for the album with its futuristic and atmospheric soundscapes. Listen to the blend of alternative rock, electronic, and ambient music in this captivating opening piece.

Troposphere

Track 001 takes you on a journey through shifting dynamics and unexpected changes in tempo and mood. Explore the complex themes and emotional depth of this mesmerizing composition.

Infinity

Track 002 delves into unconventional arrangements and haunting melodies. Experience the Middle Eastern feel and sultry textures that define this unique musical exploration.

Scientifiction

Track 003 combines deep, fuzz bass-driven grooves with intricate instrumentation. Let the acoustic and hand drums, folk guitar, and exotic instruments transport you to a realm of musical innovation.

Ko te Toi te Ora (Maori: Art is Life)

Track 004 infuses Maori influences into the album, adding a cultural richness to the sonic tapestry. Immerse yourself in the artistry and vibrancy of this captivating Indigenous piece.

Codetta

Track 010 brings the album to a close with its consonant blend of sounds and textures. Experience the seamless fusion of AI-generated visuals and cutting-edge music in this final composition.

This AI thing is very interesting, from a media perspective alone. As I have done lately, I created a long form piece, aka album, in parts, aka songs. For the audio the prompts were thematically similar:

“Write a futuristic song. British. Include elements of alternative rock, goth, electronic, neo-romantic and ambient music. Make the mood atmospheric, eerie. Dark but not negative or sad. Use electronic effects and unconventional instrumentation. Synthesizers and sampling. 3/4 time. 125 BPM. Key of B.”

Full disclosure: I was thinking Radiohead. Specifically “OK Computer” (1997), what I consider their analog-digital masterpiece of man mates machine, but whom am I kidding?

Keeping with that theme, I tweaked the prompts for each consecutive track, and gave the AI carte blanche. For example:

Complex song structure.
Unconventional arrangement.
Shifting dynamics.
Unexpected changes in tempo and mood.
Compose think outside the box.
Experiment with different sounds and textures, and explore complex themes with emotional depth.
Deep, fuzz bass-driven groove.
Haunting melodies and production.
Middle Eastern feel.
Have all instruments follow the pentatonic scale.
Acoustic and hand drums, folk guitar, a sitar, lute, Zither, Lyrem and an occasional Trumpet for accents.
Sultry and smooth.

You get the idea.

An aural concept album, a popular approach with Art Rock, Progressive bands in the ’70s and ’80s, and a resurgence today. So, hopefully, each track is an organic extension of the previous.

So, par for my odd course, I wanted to take it to another level. Video, courtesy of AI. I found a free platform (hence the WZRD.ai watermark) that provided numerous conceptual templates for their random, AI-generated images, which the AI auto-sequences then nicely blends together as a video, which is reportedly responsive to the audio I uploaded. I was only able to create 30-second clips, but when I edited the first batch together with the first audio track, it worked, for me, and again, leaving creativity to chance is always a great way to go about it. Yes, I let YouTube select the thumbnail image for each video, of course.

No, I don’t necessarily believe in muses, or fate, but I do logically assume there is an unknowable (for now) order to the universe and when it comes to genuine imagination – something from nothing (which we know is not true as our subconscious is always at the wheel) – we can let go and let it flow through us.

We’re not the creator.

The creator is the creator.

We’re just one of billions of off-ramps from the collective superhighway.

It was time consuming but worth it. The “mix” track is embedded above, and the individual tracks are below, under which you can download as you might wish.

Enjoy.

I sure do.

Watch the streams here or download the media below.

P.S. The title of the album, 22nd Century Compos Mentis Man is my smart-ass retort to King Crimson’s 21st Century Schizoid Man.

The balance and harmony to come. Always the optimist futurist. And since it ties in nicely to both TATANKA and The Church of AI, I cross-posted this for your listening and viewing pleasure.