arf
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Album Edits 6,583

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Last Active 01-16-23 9:34 pm
Joined 02-11-13

Review Comments 494

 Lists
02.05.23 arf's january 2023 haul 09.13.22 arf's august 2022 haul
08.07.22 arf's july 2022 haul07.06.22 arf's june 2022 haul
06.06.22 arf's may 2022 haul05.09.22 arf's april 2022 haul
04.05.22 arf's march 2022 haul03.01.22 arf's february 2022 haul
02.20.22 VOTE DUNGEON SYNTH 01.31.22 arf's january 2022 haul
01.07.22 Dungeon Synth 2021 12.16.21 arf's mixed bag 2020/21 edition

arf's june 2022 haul

The rules are simple: I listen to as many albums as possible, and report back to sputnik with a selection. Some will be new releases, some will be old stuff I'm discovering, some will be stuff I already know from long ago that I gave a proper listen again. Aside from personal favs, I'll try to avoid anything that's getting attention otherwise already.
1Esoctrilihum
Consecration of the Spiritüs Flesh


Sorry to disappoint everyone... my AOTM is, once again, a metal album. After several tries in similar occult crisp black metal style, Esoctrilihum finally gets a 4.5 from me. Well-deserved.
[ death / black metal ]
2022-06-17
https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/consecration-of-the-spiritu-s-flesh
2High Castle Teleorkestra
The Egg That Never Opened


Album that had a good chance at the top spot, but in the end I feel it's a bit short of a 4.5. I would consider this a spiritual successor to Estradasphere (with which it shares some members), combining a diverse range of regional popular styles of pre-1970 Europe and America with avant-garde progressive metal and lush jazz instrumentation. High point is certainly the closing song, Romanian folk inspired banger titled Mutual Hazard.
[ avantgarde / progressive / fusion / hodgepodge ]
2022-06-17
https://highcastleteleorkestra.bandcamp.com/album/the-egg-that-never-opened
3Baazlvaat
An Old Forgotten Text


The young lads are at it again, folks. This time, they're going even more psychedelic rock - shedding black metal almost completely, save for the vocals, general lo-fi sound and complete lack of any production whatsoever. Guitar noodling is all over the place, and it feels like there could be enough material for 3 or 4 albums packed in here. However, I think The Higher Power was overall a better album - the songs held together better, perhaps they could do better with spending a bit more time on polishing the songwriting. But they've developed an unique sound now & they seem to have good momentum.
[ blackened progressive psychedelic rock ]
2022-06-04
https://baazlvaat.bandcamp.com/album/an-old-forgotten-text
4Suduaya
SoulQuest


Psychedelic ambient electronic concept album exploring the chakras. Surprisingly varied - jumps between different influences, from raga to (surprisingly) metal, almost seamlessly from track to track. Hard recommend to anyone who wants to give psybient a try and doesn't know where to start.
[ psychill / psydub ]
2022-06-17
https://suduaya.bandcamp.com/album/soulquest-album-2022
5Vega Trails
Tremors in the Static


Nocturnal atmospheric chill modern jazz. Make sure to follow Gondwana Records, they got good stuff.
[ chamber jazz ]
2022-05-06
https://vegatrails.bandcamp.com/album/tremors-in-the-static
6Patristic
Apologetica


Another band in similar vein as Esoctrilihum - crisp, occult, dissonant, goes hard.
[ death / black metal ]
2022-05-06
https://pulverised.bandcamp.com/album/apologetica
7Parker
E-MACHINES


A tribute to Klaus Schulze (RIP). Parker knows his synths and he does a good job integratig the classic Berlin-school sound into more modern-day post-rock composition style. In a way this closes the circle, that started with early krautrock...
[ post-rock / kosmische musik ]
2022-06-13
https://jparkersound.bandcamp.com/album/e-machines
8Wind Rose
Warfront


Extra cheesy (that's the way we like it, don't we) dwarf-themed fantasy power metal. Songwriting is tight, appropriately rhythm-heavy, and props to the singer for the lyrics are quite verbose.
[ power metal ]
2022-06-10
https://wind-rose.bandcamp.com/album/warfront
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mtKCZGWMuNTULH4z-iZqHWsp1ypP72RGo
9The Steams
Mild Conquest


Warm Mediterranean-sounding psychedelic rock. Vocal lines remind me of Hällas for whatever reason? Might be the dorian mode - I believe that's the harmonic system being used here?
[ psychedelic rock ]
2022-06-10
https://thesteams.bandcamp.com/album/mild-conquest
10Hole Dweller
another chance at peace


New Hole Dweller y'all. Warm lo-fi hobbit synth. What adventure has Jamwine the Brave got into this time?
[ dungeon synth ]
2022-06-26
https://holedweller.bandcamp.com/album/another-chance-at-peace
11Riders of Rohan
Riders of Rohan


Tolkien-themed hard rock / proto-metal at its finest. Very impressive debut, pure old-school fantasy. If you don't feel like listening to the entire album, at least give the single Fog on the Barrow Down a try.
[ hard rock ]
2022-05-26
https://cryptofthewizard.bandcamp.com/album/riders-of-rohan
12Astral Spectre
Phantom Nightmare


Old school psychedelia combined with old school heavy metal - it's nice to see the sound pioneered by BMSS finally bloom, in all different interpretation of the occult, and different combinations with other genres.
[ psychedelic heavy metal ]
2022-06-03
https://astral-spectre.bandcamp.com/album/phantom-nightmare
13Vape Warlok
Inhale Death


EP of three stoner metal tracks with the dankness knob turned to 11. Production is non-existent, but who needs production with distortion like this. If you love weed and Satan, you'll love this.
[ stoner / doom metal ]
2022-06-03
https://vapewarlok.bandcamp.com/album/inhale-death
14Osaki Seiichi
The Tale Of A Long Forgotten Sunken City


I'm fairly sure this mysterious Japanese producer is actually two guys from Slovakia... either way, they seem to have gamed the algorythm to get to my ears and I liked it. Nice aquatic ambient album in the vein of Japanese new-age with some progressive synth undertones going on.
[ aquatic ambient ]
2022-05-30
https://osakiseiichi.bandcamp.com/album/the-tale-of-a-long-forgotten-sunken-city
15Sweatson Klank
Postcards


Warm synth ambient mixed with jazzy downtempo and ambient recordings.
[ ambient / downtempo ]
2022-06-17
https://sweatsonklank.bandcamp.com/album/postcards
16AstroWeed
Smoking Planet


For some reason this one to me seems to stand out from the many instrumental stoner jams that are pumped out on bandcamp. Retro drum sound and a variety of keyboards help sell this album too. Certainly a jam band I'll follow more closely.
[ jam / stoner rock ]
2022-05-28
https://astroweed1.bandcamp.com/album/smoking-planet
17Haiku Garden
Loose Contacts / Tense Present


Summery dreamy effect-heavy colourful psychedelic indie rock. Last album was more shoegaze-y, this one goes a bit harder, now with some krautrock style synths as well.
[ space / indie rock / shoegaze ]
2022-05-20
https://kaparecords.bandcamp.com/album/loose-contacts-tense-present-2
18Hashishian
Hashishian


Dune-themed stoner metal, strongly influenced by both Sleep and Om. The spice must flow!
[ stoner / doom metal ]
2022-04-20
https://hashishian.bandcamp.com/album/hashishian
19Resinator
Warp Lord


What if... dungeon synth started out of space rock and stoner doom, rather than black metal? While this album owes most to stoner doom songwriting, the atmospheric space synths colour up everything perfectly. Resinator is a one-man-band I've had bookmarked for a while, and I regret not checking it out earlier!
[ stoner / doom metal / dungeon synth ]
2021-04-20
https://resinator.bandcamp.com/album/warp-lord
20Jomo Tuun
One Tuun


Polyrhythmic instrumental progressive metal trio. Goes surprisingly smoothly, given the rhythmic complexity (which often leaves the drummer playing in counterpoint to the bass and guitar).
[ progressive metal ]
2021-12-17
https://jomotuun.bandcamp.com/album/one-tuun
21Nemecek
Prokletije


I discovered this band at a festival in my home city. I was looking at where to go next after Deva finished her set - and I noticed a relentless hypnotic beat coming from one of the venues. I didn't catch the first half of the set, but I knew I need to check out in full what was going on later. It's a hypnotic, immense, noisy, wall-of-sound reinterpretation of Croatian folklore, and supposedly this is just the first album of a trilogy to come.
[ psychedelic / croatian folk / noise rock ]
2021-11-23
https://nemecek44.bandcamp.com/album/prokletije
22Sumuyo
Sumuyö


I would have AOTM'd this one had I heard it in April already. Oh well. Heard it in June, not too late. Hella out there hypnotic Finnish space rock, with influences from both krautrock (synths) and zeuhl (at least I hear it in rhythms and vocal delivery).
[ space rock ]
2022-04-20
https://sumuyo.bandcamp.com/album/sumuy
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