The fifth segment of The Drax Files moves somewhat away from the central theme of the series to date, that of content creators and their work in Second Life and shines a light on the live music scene within SL. In doing so, it again demonstrates the rich diversity of opportunity which is available within the digital world.
Engrama is a partnership of musicians in both in the real world and in SL in the form of Argentine-born Pupito Helstein and his Spanish girlfriend Lakua Arriaga. Like many musicians who have embraced Second Life, they’ve found that the platform has provided them with a unique world-wide reach that provides an added dimension to their real-world lives.
“We have no backing tracks, it’s all live,” Pipito says of their in-world performances, “We prefer to play original songs; In fact we improvise in Second Life, we sometimes create even original songs.”
“It totally depends on the mood of the crowd,” Lakua adds.
Operating from their mountain village home, Engrama have developed not only a distinctive voice, focusing on post-rock era music (which includes covers of Sigur Ros, Radiohead and others as well as their own original pieces), but also a distinctive presence. They’ve taken to building their own stage sets and instruments to better reflect their music and style. More recently, this has led the couple into wider fields of content creation, making prefab homes, furniture and clothing. Pupito has even attempted to encourage his musician friends to embrace Second life, spending time creating unique avatars for them.
“There is one magic thing in Second Life,” Lakua says as the couple distinguish between their real world and Second Life experiences, “[That’s] when people send us messages like, ‘Hey guys, I heard Engrama music at the Colorado [Grand] Canyon on a trip!'”
“People record our Second Life shows,” Pupito adds, “And then they listen to them on their iPods.”
“They share with us how our music makes them feel,” Lakua finishes.
This is not boasting in any way; the statements are made in a tone of delight and wonder which demonstrates both Lakua and Pupito are themselves awed by the impact their music can have on an audience they might otherwise never reach. “This is real interaction,” Lakua states as the video closes, “Second Life is a parallel life, they [it and real life] can go together, and sometimes they can cross.”
And that is again the magical power contained within Second Life – not only that we can come into the digital world and free ourselves from the constraints of everyday life and business and create and play and have a lot of fun or share time with others – but that we have within this digital domain the ability to reach far beyond ourselves, to touch others and be touched by them, to share, uplift and help others, and be a part of lives, and make them a part of our own in ways which simply cannot be achieved in the physical world.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 