It is with great relief and joy that NOCCA’s Media Arts Department presents MARS III, a retro-futuristic concept album spanning the work of many students, from freshmen to seniors, graphic designers to filmmakers, and every producer and composer in between. The album was finished with guidance from NOCCA Media Arts faculty, each of whom are active artists in the recording industry. We collectively poured our hearts and souls into every facet of this record, and hope you will help us commemorate this unforgettable school-year by listening and sharing its songs and images.
The MARS III album is held in a sleeve that features beautiful artwork designed by NOCCA students. The album will also be distributed via streaming services--stay tuned for additional details! You can also find tracks on SoundCloud.
“The 2020-2021 school year brought many challenges to students and teachers alike, and NOCCA’s Media Arts Department found itself technically limited by numerous restrictions on both student interactions and access to the professional calibur of equipment that NOCCA’s campus usually provides. The prospect of producing a full-length vinyl record comprised of only original compositions from 2020-2021 was daunting, to say the least, as students dealt with stresses and tragedies, privately, through the often claustrophobic tiny rectangles they used to virtually connect with their teachers and classmates. To make it worse, the pandemic forced live, public performances of music to be replaced by streaming events-- something which our (then strictly virtual) department was not able to provide. MARS III exists despite all of this and we cannot wait to share it with you.
“We believe that by persevering and processing this pandemic, the music derived from our collective experience can help you do the same. Thank you for listening!”
- Joe Ceponis, Media Arts Recording faculty
“Not only is this album a sonic masterpiece, but a collection of fantastic graphics as well! Each record is a unique work of art, composed of a one-of-a-kind color-blend of vinyl pellets (THANK YOU, N.O.R.P. New Orleans Record Press!) AND comes with a gorgeous double-sided poster insert. The brilliance of the cover art speaks for itself. We are so proud of this dazzling display of our students’ talents.”
- Kourtney Keller, Media Arts Graphic Design Faculty
Click the following links to view student-produced music videos:
“Lover Like You” | Carson Williams - https://youtu.be/1tDrMn7ElKI
“Em Spectrum” | Connor Mitchell - https://youtu.be/ldAQ0kdDebI
“Leave Me Be” | Evan Michell Bango - https://youtu.be/DM8DzUwFuN0
“Dig Dirt”| Teiron Motley - https://youtu.be/lMEe-LUezTk
