Winding Hallways – Beneath the Seventh Deep
“Created using various archaic video game soundfonts in an outdated DAW.” Sometimes a simple Bandcamp footnote is all I need to know about an album and indication that I will like the record. Winding Hallways is one of many projects for LT of Dungeons Deep who uses each of their many masks to present a different mood. The mood for Winding Hallways is much like its namesake where the listener is in a labyrinthine complex with adventure and danger around every corner. Beneath the Seventh Deep could be classified as chip synth or chip tune but even these words feel reductive to its sound which feels like a marquee attraction sort of like when you put down the controller to just vibe to the game’s music. Winding Hallways, even without knowledge of its creator and his various masks and outfits, is a stellar release which fulfills all of the needs and wants of its audience.
SPECTRAL FIRS – THE MIST-CLOAKED KINGDOM OF THE NORTH
You might have seen Ancestral Flame Productions on social media specifically when they have videos of a tape cover with a walkman playing the tape beside it. It is an extremely simple set up but something that has an aesthetic package for people who are into it. THE MIST-CLOAKED KINGDOM OF THE NORTH (all caps for everything) is one many releases on Ancestral Flame Productions and maybe for all intents and purposes another project from the labels creator and architect The Shadow. It also might be another project from a semi well known DS musician as this label released material from Coniferous Myst and Hvergelmir (Mystiska Skogen / Γrnatorpet). The true answer is a mystery and that is part of the atmosphere behind these releases as there is an intentional worship of dark dungeon and dark ambient tapes which look like they just came out of their 12th time through the copier. SPECTRAL FIRS offers icy landscapes whose only source of warmth is the analog tape hiss which hangs in the air. This is music for distant castles and silent forests untouched by footprints and really is a proper tribute both sonically and visually to a time and place.
Kalle Wyrsch – Wallfahrt
I have been in contact with Kalle Wyrsch for a few months regarding this release and I told this creator that I was interested in writing about whatever they release regardless of what it was. There are sometimes I trust an artist to make something that I know will be interesting. Kalle Wyrsch has always used the term “naive synth” for their music as an indication that there is some sort of self guided intuition when it comes to composition or production. It is clear by even the opening preview of the album that the creator is experienced in composition and even production and if there is anything naive about this music it is a full knowledge they are not going to follow genre distinctions. “Egilsveld,” the album’s preview track masquerades as a chip synth track but in reality pulls influences from Kraftwerk and minimal / coldwave. Wallfahrt is truly an experience where one will be in a sidescrolling action game one moment and then experiencing field recordings of folk singers. The one thread which unites the various sounds is the creatorβs intuition on including things that are interesting. It may not sound like it all fits together but after shaking off preconceived notions of what dungeon synth is or even what music should be, one can understand why you would put your trust in an artist to make cool things.
π¬ππππππππ πΎππππ – π΄πππππππππ
I can still remember 2024’s π¬ππ ππ π―πππ by the UK based project π¬ππππππππ πΎππππ. Part of this reason is the bold medieval script that I am always surprised Bandcamp allows in their code. The other reason why I remembered this release was the level of immersion the creator crafted as this was dungeon synth but sounded far from the bedroom in terms of production. Atlantean Sword offers an immersive experience when it comes to listening to a record. From the swooping melodies which sound as if they are being heralded from the tall spire of a mountain keep to the almost lullaby atmosphere of a few notes being played in a fading mist, the range for Atlantean Sword is impressive. This sort of experience also complements the artwork which is either classic works from fantasy artists or original works by Daniel Porta (@thepitforge). π΄πππππππππ is the first album in more than a year from this project and once one travels enough inside its world, they will understand that this is cinematic experience which is perhaps everything they ever wanted.
Swordcerer – The Hungering Keep
I usually do not like to oversaturate my digests with the same artist but i honestly didn’t realize this was a Skeleton Mage release until I read the credits on the Bandcamp. When I saw this release, I noticed the cool name, well designed cover, and the opening two seconds of loud tape hiss and I knew I was going to like it. Swordcerer is a project from Skeleton Mage that is intentionally raw and made on hardware with all of the aesthetic mess which comes with it. The Hungering Keep as a record is also based on the second book in the Black Company series by Glenn Cook. Not only is this a unique aesthetic choice for fantasy material but combined with the raw execution makes for a memorable experience made from a creator who seems to be everywhere.
Amon Lanc – Dhak Krul
“Amon Lanc was the highest point of the highland at the southwestern corner of Greenwood. It gained its name from the fact that no trees ever grew upon its summit. Once the Silvan Elves had lived near the hill under Oropher in the Second Age, but Oropher abandoned the dwellings upon Amon Lanc after becoming disturbed by Sauron’s rising power, and he moved to the western side of the Emyn Duir.”
I always like citing when artists use obscure locations from Tolkien as I feel I have a musical Atlas of places in his Legandarium. Amon Lanc is a music project from two members in the death / doom outfit Atavistic Decay. Amon Lanc is a depressive dark dungeon project who throws themselves into the spirit of “metal musicians making ambient side projects” with haunting chamber music which sounds like a grim funeral that no one showed up for. Between two glacial tracks, Amon Lanc channels the spirit of old school dark ambient with a lengthy mourning session which mixes wretched vocals and funerary melodies. This is a specific type of sound which is a party for some people despite it sounding like the end of life.
Bubble Wizard – Vape Dragon
Fantasy Audio Magazine has been a longtime supporter and vendor for weird things. From games to music to idiosyncratic merchandise this entity serves a module for how labels should act with art being first and profit being a distant worry. Bubble Dragon is a project by the label’s creator who usually does projects that are unlisted or unaffiliated with the larger label. Bubble Wizard isn’t a secret project just hanging out catching vibes. Vape Dragon is an outsider synth release which engages with the idea of dungeon synth but in their own way. With dashes of crypt hop beats, liminal atmosphere and a ludicrous aesthetic of vape culture, Bubble Wizard exists for the weirdos and those appreciative of doing things because it’s funny.
Onionville x Gorgons Alter – The Sorrow, the King, and the Onion Horde
Tags: depressive food synth, drone, experimental, food synth, food drone, uncomfy synth, ambient, dark synth, drone ambient, dungeon noise. We have finally reached food drone. We made it everyone. If you have never heard of food synth before it is basically the punk rock of dungeon synth where absurdity and a carte blanche approach to making music is the one and only rule. While the music and themes are undoubtedly silly, the freedom which comes with starting out in absurdity allows the music to travel to some progressive locations and be a solid release despite its costume. Both Onionville and Gorgons Alter are vanguards in experimental dungeon synth and aside from the silly fanfare, The Sorrow, the King, and the Onion Horde continues to carve out a strange place for whatever the hell food synth ends up being.
Necromoss – Necromoss
Necrossmoss is a project from Spaceseer who has proven themselves as a peddler of strange merchandise which is laid out on a blanket in the middle of a bazaar. What I have come to enjoy about Spaceseer and also other artists who follow the same invisible path is that there really is no care about what genre they make music for. One could call this experimental electronic or dream drone or even nightmare synth and it would all sort of make sense. What is consistent about this artist is the energy and optimism to completely throw themselves into a project seemingly making an album for an unseen audience. This audience is usually a group of people who have been listening to music so long that the idea of a carousel of weirdness isn’t repellent but rather intriguing.
Mzinirkngth – Unwelcome
I feel there is a joke here and it’s only if you have heard the previous album on this Bandcamp page. Average Adventures’ Lost, But Not Entirely Upset About It is a whimsical foray into near VGM soundscapes which feels like a comfy indie video game. Unwelcome, the debut by the same creator under the name Mzinirkngth is a harrowing descent into the realms of discomfort. Rather than a sense of folly and cheery abandon, Unwelcome is a delve into dark electronic which explores texture through hardware. Also it seems that this album was recorded under the duress of a broken air conditioner and made in a room at 98 degrees. IF one ever needed music to fit a “broken air-conditioner”, I might have a recommendation.