Synthwave Producer Color Theory Shares 'This Whole Nothing'

One-man synthwave act Color Theory has announced the release of 'This Whole Nothing' with B-side 'Juggernaut' on 13 March via 11th Records. 'This Whole Nothing' premiered via Atwood Magazine. Color Theory has received significant support on YouTube, having been picked up by renowned channels such as NewRetroWave, The '80s Guy, LuigiDonatello and SoulSearchAndDestroy. Overall, his work has received nearly 3 million plays across streaming platforms. Winning the grand prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, having three songs featured in the Just Dance video game series and two in the Rock Band video game series, plus several song placements on MTV's The Real World, are just some of Color Theory's notable achievements. Color Theory has also been featured in several interviews, including Vehlinggo, MusicTech, and Dope Cause We Said.

Raised in sunny California, Brian Hazard (aka Color Theory) was originally a pianist in his high school jazz band before he went on to earn a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance. You may recognise his early work through 'Ponytail Girl', which sparked mass confusion when it spread like wildfire on Napster, mislabeled as a Depeche Mode b-side. The musician responded with understated humor, saying "It's pretty neat to be mistaken for your favorite band". On the basis of that incident, he went on to create an entire tribute album, Color Theory presents Depeche Mode.

Finding the brooding undercurrents from Depeche Mode, The Cure, and Baths oddly uplifting, Color Theory pursues a style he calls "melancholy synthwave". The resulting sound sits in close comparison to Kavinsky, The Midnight and Gunship, however, if you listen closely you'll hear a unique style that is clearly his own.

With lyrical ambiguities, Color Theory creates a world of nostalgically transfigured memories which allow the listener to place their own emotions into the music without being overly guided by thought. Finding inspiration in blank space and filling it with electronic embellishments and gently rolling synths, 'This Whole Nothing' is an exercise in contemplation.

Color Theory reveals a little more about the inspiration behind the single: "This Whole Nothing" is one of those songs that people will read into as they will. The lyrics are just vague enough to be universal. My inspiration was the spacious emptiness one experiences when the voice of the mind quiets and the world can be seen as it truly is."

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