Artist Of The Day: Virt

Every music fan has a watershed moment or two: for me, my watershed moment was listening to Jake Kaufman’s groundbreaking chiptune release, FX3, all the way back in 2009 (like any superhero worth his salt, though, he goes by his alter ego Virt). Every song was unbelievably moving: he was taking the sounds from our childhoods and pumping out sprawling, emotive pieces of progressive rock music. I was a boy consumed.

The really amazing thing about Kaufman is how much he does with so little. His music is a feat of cultural osmosis, as he absorbs lessons from prog, metal, bedroom pop, and even jazz. He’s also a fan of storytelling: FX3 chronicles a journey through space, and his most recent release FX4 continues the saga. His work as a chiptune artist combines simplicity with grandness: the chirpy texture of his blips and bloops lends his expansive thoughts a sense of pure wonder, an innocence that’s stuck with me to this day.

Right now, I’m scrolling through my iPhone playlist. Most of the artists I used to love are gone, but even four years removed from my moment of revelation, Virt has earned the rare honor of being a permanent fixture. With each listen, I reflect on how his work has shaped me—and how it will no doubt shape countless others to go conquer the galaxies in their imaginations.

You can download literally hundreds of free tracks and albums from Virt’s official website, but personally I’d recommend you start with the album that started it all.