By Madison Wathen
Creative Director
Soul. This is the word sophomore Markus Cook uses to describe his musical project, MC & the Visions. His eclectic influences range from Andy Warhol to James Blake to Kanye West. “Sans-1995” is the nostalgic lo-fi debut track recorded in his closet. Cook croons over the alternative neo-soul beat, “Won’t you gravitate to me? Won’t you elevate with me?” It’s somehow mysterious and inviting at the same time. Like a lived-in haunted house. It’s neither happy nor sad, it just is. The music video gets the same retro treatment with Cook singing in an arcade interlaced with old clips from “Pulp Fiction,” Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” Power Rangers and Nirvana’s “Smells like Teen Spirit.” “I was thinking of the visuals when I produced the song, specifically the whole idea of nostalgia and people missing things they’ve never experienced,” said Cook. “This kind of misplaced sadness.”
Currently, MC & the Visions have two songs to their name on the Soundcloud, but Cook has plans to write and produce more music so long as the ideas warrant it. “I have tentative plans to go out with some creatives to Palo Alto and work on a more lengthy project.” Despite a limited catalog, MC & the Visions already have over 1,000 plays on Soundcloud and articles circulating around various hip music blogs.
“I really just want to open people’s eyes and take them on a journey with every track.”