At the Satosphère on September 24, George Clanton’s audiovisual performance—under his pseudonym ESPRIT—took the form of a contemplative, nostalgic, and hypnotic experience. Seated in front of his instruments—notably his trusty Roland SP-404SX—the artist controls both the music and the visuals, in a setup reminiscent of the early days of his project, when he crafted his tracks in the privacy of his bedroom.
Rather than seeking direct contact with the audience, Clanton remains focused and almost motionless, allowing a continuous wave of sound to fill the space. Heavy layers of ethereal synthesizers, textures evoking VHS tape distortion, and samples manipulated in slow motion create a hazy universe, true to the vaporwave aesthetic. The set notably revisits classics like “Wormpop” and “Secret Esprit.wav,” while incorporating recognizable samples, including one from Seal’s “Crazy,” used in “Seal,” a track released on 200% Electronica, now considered a landmark vaporwave album.
Surrounding the audience, a series of analog televisions serves as a backdrop for visuals inspired by the web and video game culture of the 1990s. Glitches, pixelated textures, and pastel colors—dominated by pink, cyan, and purple—create an artificial space filled with a familiar melancholy, that of forgotten digital worlds.
At the end of the concert, amid applause, George Clanton clasps his hands together in a namaste gesture toward the audience, before striking—with a smile—the famous pose from the Seal album cover. But his farewell doesn’t end there: he then makes his way into the crowd to shake hands with his fans and spend a few moments with each of them. After a performance during which he had remained focused and almost impassive behind his instruments, this moment reveals a completely different side of the artist. It’s a particularly generous way to wrap up the evening, taking the time to personally thank those who came to bring his world to life.
