Are you a Seapunk?

As a movement and trend, seapunk was short-lived. However, like all trends, we expect seapunk to come back and influence other music, artistic and fashion styles.

What is seapunk anyway?

Think of a punk aesthetic with marine influences. Fashionwise, think of sea blue hair and tie-died clothing with neon-colored accessories. Artistically, seapunk features dolphins, mermaids, seashells, and starfish, but also universal symbols of the 90s, like the yin-yang and the smiley face. There’s room for creativity and seapunks, if there are still any, have room to experiment with the colorful theme.

Despite being born in the early 2010s in Twitter and Tumbler, the seapunk culture embraced elements of the nineties and made them their own, including low-poly 3D renders and random geometric shapes floating around as in a Windows 97 screensaver, and graphics redolent of New Age and Synthwave with nautical references tainted with aquamarine and green water.

There is no doubt that the seapunk imagery is appealing and has gained popularity amongst the SpongeBob generation. 

Musically, seapunk influenced Vaporwave, which was born around the same time. However, seapunk has its own sound, although hard to describe. Although different artists show that seapunk music is more diverse than one might think, there are a few common elements in the genre. Breakbeats, 8-bit sounds, chopped samples and lots of reverb create a seapunk atmosphere. Artists combined elements from southern trap, chiptune, and tropical house, and the result is, in a way, oceanic.

So, what happened to seapunk?

Seapunk is not dead, but it is certainly not mainstream. Not after celebrities such as Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani, amongst other big names, appropriated the aesthetic. However, seapunk has a timeless appeal that ages well; it is intrinsically nostalgic and tragically optimistic, feelings that will continue to resonate with young generations.

Do you want to listen to some fine seapunk? Here’s Unicorn Kid - Bois of Paradise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzQU7KmwRoc