An electronic musician, a singer and an illustrator from Preston have collaborated on a new mini-album.

Ste Whiley, under the musical alias Myths and Monsters, has collaborated with artist VVzyk (Vi-vi-Zik) and singer Typhaine Patron on the new release titled Beyond.

Along with a standard version available digitally and on CD, a very limited special edition is available consisting of nine mini-CDs that feature both art and music that is exclusive to each.

Ste said: “Anyone who picks up one of the nine multiverse mini-CDs will have a version of Beyond that is theirs alone.

“The idea came to me after seeing AI-generated music and art flooding social media. There’s no soul or creativity in that kind of cookie-cutter content.

“We wanted to create something truly unique and human, offering one-of-a-kind audio visual experiences with thought behind it and a collaborative spirit.”

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For the special Multiverse Edition, Ste used a music device called an M8 Tracker programmed with various selectable loops and randomisation functions to create unique live recorded remixes of the first two tracks on each mini-CD.

With additional manual tweaks to the sounds when recording the songs, and exclusive CD labels illustrated for each mini-CD, the aim has been to create an experience bespoke for the nine people that pick up a copy.

Vvzyk, who created the unique watercolour illustrations on the nine mini-CD covers as well as the main cover art, said of the collaboration: “Each mini-CD is a piece of art in its own right, and all of my original illustrations will be available to purchase as part of the release too.

“I’m excited to offer people something that feels authentic and human through this collaboration. It’s vital for us artists to continue making the effort to create meaningful experiences.”

The opening track on Beyond is the first in a series of recordings by Ste and singer Typhaine, of folk band Midnight Café, who has been joining live Myths and Monsters performances.

Ste said: “The song with Typhaine is called ‘We Must Resist’ and on some level it’s about the resistance to AI at the heart of this release.

“AI has benefits. I do use it and it’s going to become unavoidable. But, without moderation, it does risk devaluing art, creating job losses, causing misinformation and stifling collaboration. I’ve much preferred working with Typhaine and VVzyk in the real world over any algorithm!”

Beyond by Myths and Monsters is available for pre-order now, before being shipped and released digitally on Friday 27 September. It contains over 20 minutes of music.

For updates, visit Myths and Monsters on Blogspot.

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