One Song

Professor Soap

The Young, The Ideas

Joel Frieders | January 27, 2016

Last weekend, I was going through SYFFAL music submissions while also reading packet information for my meetings this week. This isn't me being lazy on either the reading or the listening, it's just become something I've learned how to do since SYFFAL somehow caught on and at the same time I took on some responsibilities that require 700-1000 pages of reading a week. I click over and open a few videos and hit play, then click back and keep reading.

I do this for hours. Pretty much every weekend. 

This particular round of R&L ("read & listen") had me deleting emails from all over the fucking world, and reading dozens of pages top to bottom, and skimming hundreds more. I must've deleted fifty submission emails before finding something I could listen to all the way through. But when I realized what I was doing while listening to the music that DID NOT SUCK (like all the other submissions), I had to click away from my reading and see why I was staring at my fucking feet under my desk. 

Who the fuck is Professor Soap? Why am I following the details of my bare feet, as the raised veins intersect with my ankle bone, like I'm in some alternate version of Osmosis Jones when I'm supposed to be reading? The music was captivating in its distraction, and while I was relaxed, I sort of felt like the music itself had handed me a magnifying glass and I was given only one instruction: "Just look!" 

My feet were the first victim, but then I turned towards the creator of this oddly comforting and intellectually stimulating 321 Contact of electronic instrumental music. 

After probably my seventh time listening to his new single "The Young, The Ideas", I was forced to close up the shit I was supposed to be reading and I started googling the Professor. Within five seconds I had a half dozen new tabs open in Chrome and I was ready to begin exploring the inner depths of the internet, as they pertained to the musical ministrations of an entity named Professor Soap.

The first link I opened was the video for "Spirit Quest Journey", and after about 45 seconds I was joined by an 8 year old boy and a 6 year old boy that I helped create by having sex with their mother, and who I have been raising as my sons since they were born my children. To call us all fascinated would be an understatement. We had absolutely nothing to say. In the video, it seemed every time a new instrument was added, a new animated friend joined us on the screen, and with each new friend, at least one of us would squeal in delight at their uniqueness and humorous posture. My favorite was the sassy green and grey pine tree shaped sock in the sunglasses, my oldest preferred the orange skinny slouching lizard, my youngest was extremely fond of the purple avocado with the rosemary sprig legs. 

Where was this Professor Soap wormhole going to lead us? Once "Spirit Quest Journey" ended, we decided on the video for "Oceans, Robots, & Outer Space". Again, none of us spoke, none of us blinked, and none of us saw time as needing to speed up, as everything felt like it was in its right place. The hypnotizing and relaxing music behind this little yellow submarine's sea voyage introduced us to Broseidon, and a toothy whale, and a gummy shark, and a half a Titanic, and a happy motherfucking starfish, and a crab that works at an airport on some east coast island that possibly the set location for the tv show WINGS, and then things went black.

And then we got all roboty, with our heads all nodding in sequence, watching mister spraypaint nozzle head robot jam the fuck out, and then it was the video we just watched, "Spirit Quest Journey"! But we didn't mind in the slightest, and actually found ourselves reconnecting with our old alien friends purple avocado with rosemary sprig legs, and tall slouchy lizard, and fuzzy strawberry, and blue-scream face sock, and cthulhu-faced snake with rosacea, and all the other pals from the last video we watched.

What the fuck did we just stumble into?

Professor Soap sounds like a calmer and more scientific Lemon Jelly, but with visuals to match it and a vibe so comfortable my two sons were instantly engrossed. It was a family bonding moment that none of us can remember, I'm sure.

I found out this dude is dropping a new EP in February of 2016, and all of the other stuff I found on the guy is just as romantically chillballs as this. So while we geek out over the freshness that is the Professor Soap, why don't you crawl down the rabbit hole and make yourself a fanatic like me and my boys bros?