POGO uses ingenious ways to make catchy music
–By Megan Kessler
Unbeknownst to me, I have been a fan of the artist called Pogo (pogomix.net) for many, many years. I’m still unclear if this Australian musician has an actual album out but I have been listening to his tracks on Sound Cloud almost obsessively for the last few days.
The first time I heard one of his songs was on a website specializing in random entertainment to stave off boredom. I enjoyed it so much that I created a bookmark to “Upular” that has followed me through 8 years, 4 phones and 3 states. I thought it was a one-off project and was delighted when I heard more of his work as some background music on a YouTube video blogger guy.
What makes THIS guy so special? Why, thank you for asking! Instead of using traditional instruments to create his music, Pogo takes samples of sounds from other things (movies, TV shows, animated films, political speeches) and uses only those sounds to create addictive songs. Its like when Willy Wonka made the 3 course chewing gum. You get the essence of the original but instead of turning purple and swollen, you just have catchy beats stuck in your head for the day. It’s a win/win for everyone, I say.
Pogo strikes a careful balance between using recognizable phrases and charming gibberish in each creation so that it does not sound like the original with a drum machine overdubbed. Bouncy enough to make you want to dance in your seat and mellow enough to keep playing as something to fill the silence when have to do grown up things.
Some of the songs I liked best were “Upular”, “Hermione Mix”, “Data & Picard”, “Soft Disney Jelly”, and the song with the trains in it (“The Ghan”?). I especially enjoy that this is music that I can listen to with the kids. Many of the songs have sounds they recognize from their favorite films and, thankfully, it is put in an adult friendly package.
Thank you, Pogo, for saving me from one more day of non-stop “Let It Go”.