2020

Orcus – Altar of Necropolis [UK, Dungeon Synth] (2020)

Standard

Realm and Ritual | 9-11-20

I am including the link to the Realm ad Ritual release for this album even though the edition of tapes sold out. Altar of Necropolis was self released in May of this year but has since been picked up by the wonderful Realm and Ritual label. Orcus is a UK based artist who seems to live in two different realms with one being the contemporary and the other traditional. While the sound of Altar of Necropolis is exploratory in its sound with a balanced production, there is an air of somber haze which unites the sound with a release which pays tribute to the traditional dungeon synth of yesterday. Altar of Necropolis, as well as its creator, is both joyous and melancholic with a release that transcends time and emotion.

Wistful Gardens – Hives Of The Hinterlands [Canada, Dungeon Synth] (2020)

Standard

Realm of Sleep | 9-7-20

“Buy Digital Discography $7.25 CAD or more (75% OFF)”. I have mentioned many times when talking to freinds who couldn care less, that Realm of Sleeps visual direction is perhaps one of its strongest selling points. Let us not forget that Realm of Sleep offers amazing lofi fantasy synth which inhabits the space between sleeping and waking but it is the uniform covers which really give the entire catalog an appeal. No longer are these disparate releases rather a cabal of dream artificers and nocturnal alchemists which craft tinctures of pleasantness and quiet nightmares. Wistful Gardens is another entry into the chapter of slumber with a record dedicated to bees which is as playful and odd as the label which has released the record. May they never stop being weird. Please make Tapes.

Demon Goat – Messenger of Doom [US, Black] (2020)

Standard

Self Released | 9-11-20

I want you to forget a few things. I want you to forget the tags on this Bandcamp page. I want you to forget the fact that this creator played in Khemmis for a spell. I want you to forget the fact that Demon Goat has a dizzying amount of releases since 2016. I want you to forget about the name Demon Goat. I urge you to forget all of these things and take Messenger of Doom for what it is minus everything that it is attached to. With that you are given an entry into a world of depressive black/doom which is a deluge of catharsis and maligned emotions. I do not want to discount past work or any connection with other bands rather I feel Demon Goat works the best when given a chance to speak and shriek its way into the fabric on your soul.

Mystiska Skogen – Den Förtrollade Gläntan [Sweden, Dungeon Synth] (2020)

Standard

Self Released | 9-3-20

I feel it is a special time and an album can also make one fall in love with the artwork. Alessia Brusco (Skogens Rymd Art) provided the cover for Mystiska Skogen’s second release Den Förtrollade Gläntan and its mystic dreamscapes of woodlands is so fitting to the musical dreamscapes, it is almost as if the two were meant to be paired. Mystiska Skogen is still finding themselves as the second release has crested a new hill in their musical journey with a release that is not only more realized than their debut but stands before a new valley is traditional dungeon synth that is full of morning haze and pastoral serenity. This is something that has both taken my heart in terms of sound and sight.

Deathvoid – Terrace [Switzerland, Noise / Black] (2020)

Standard

Xenoglossy Productions | 9-4-20

There are often times when the noise tag for an record comes as a cosmetic aesthetic. the addition of noise in production can add a certain raw edge to music that is already feral in sound. There are often times when the noise tag is apart of a genre and has surrendered its sound the the formless void of a style I might not fully understand. Deathvoid’s is something I understand though it is a record which I only have the most basic of grasp on with the threat of it dispersing into the void. Deathvoid appeared on a fantastically frightening split with Illuminated Manuscripts. That particular release was my first foray into a haunted world where ghosts did not linger in shadows rather cause bodily harm from the ceiling. Terrace continues the band’s descent into artsy formlessness with a landscape of horror, unease, and feral spirits.

Lone Adventurer – The Eternal Quest [UK, Dungeon Synth] (2020)

Standard

Vicious Mockery | 9-4-20

This was one of the tapes I picked up from the UK based label Vicious Mockery. Aside from the intimate melancholy of the sparse electric piano, there were a few things which drew me to the tape which include the edition of 25 and the almost handmade quality of the tapes. I feel production in both physical formats and music can be a boon to dungeon synth as well as the lack of those elements can enhance a record. The Eternal Quest is a record that could be someone laying at a piano to no one in particular except for someone just peering into the room. It is charming and “comfy” but with an air of sadness and loss. It drives me to take a place on a couch beside the piano and never interrupt the composer from their somber melodies.

Deathevn – Deathevn [Poland, Black] (2020)

Standard

Self Released | 9-20-20

This is a striking and exhilarating demo from a new Polish band that I most certainly shared to make a joke regarding the name. Deathevn is the work of Warped Blasphemer who also lends his talents to Dagorath, Nurt Ognia, and Xarzebaal. Detheven was said to be created in three days and the immediacy of it is apart of a network of standoffish atmosphere that makes me feel bad for mentioning their name and similarities to popular post black metal bands. Detheven doesn’t give a shit about my jokes and this 22 minute demo is a crawl against the fiery floors of damnation. It is unrelenting, without compromise, and above all else not in the mood for humor.

Månskensdvärgar – :I: [?, Dungeon Synth / Ambient] (2020)

Standard

Self Released | 10-1-20

I have my guesses where this composer is from but I could be wrong. It is not like it matters as a location is sometimes omitted by an artist if it is not relevant. Månskensdvärgar is “an acoustic journey through the moonlit root kingdoms and fog-covered moss fields of the northern dwarves of old folklore.” Perhaps that is all that is needed to frame a record that is quiet, contemplative and above all else immersive in its magic. Månskensdvärgar is dedicated to escapism and with a devotion to painter John Bauer, :I: is an esoteric journey into the underworlds of rocks and roots. At this moment there are a few remaining tapes available but I do not expect it to last as this sound is coveted by listeners who crave dreamlike landscapes and twilight atmopheres.

Töxik Death – Sepulchral Demons [Norway, Thrash / Death / Punk] (2020)

Standard

Self Released | 8-22-20

The tags for this record are black / thrash / death / punk and to what percentage is anyone’s guess. Töxik Death care little for being balanced or even correct as the band’s second full length does more for their thesis of destruction than any previous release. Reviewing a band with a larger history is unique on this site as most bands are new or have a few releases before the one being reviewed. Töxik Death is approaching nearly 20 years of being formed and Sepulchral Demons feels like a fiery debut that is setting the stage for a whole career of madness. Sepulchral Demons sharpness the band’s focus from their earlier work and presents a future of old school heavy underground metal worship in a sound that doesn’t feel costumed rather galvanized by the the decades old quest for disorder. Come on and come all for the festival of the ruined.

Xard – Dreams of the Strange Tower [US, Dungeon Synth / Dark Ambient] (2020)

Standard

Self Released | 8-28-20

Somewhere between the realm of waking and sleep likes Xard and their dreams of the strange tower. Somewhere between the sound of dungeon synth and the haunting of dark ambient is Xard and their dreams of the strange tower. Xard is an odd entity as it the debut for the composer who goes by the name of the main human antagonist on the 1957 film Night of the Demon.” Dreams of the Strnage Tower is also dedicated to the memory of recently decreased Power Trip member Riley Gale. With a traditional DS sound combined with a hip low brow visual aesthetic, Xard exists in many realms at the same time and Dreams of the Strange Tower is a dungeon synth record that exists on the edge of many different scenes. For all of its transitive properties, the sound of Xard is fitting as it floats in the aether of emissions with its spectral sound and haze of ambiance.