arf's august 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. |
| 1 |  | Trha
mã Héshiva õn dahh Khata trhândlha vand...
AOTMing a BM album, again... I believe this is confirmed to be a project by Damián Antón Ojeda, also behind Sadness, Life, and several other projects. This is getting a solid 4.5 from me - I'm a sucker for late romanticism & this single piece of almost 50 minutes incorporates a lot of it into the signature alien atmospheric black metal. Were it a little more cohesive, it'd be even a candidate for a 5 from me. Tremendous work. And check out the other one that came out last month too, which has a kind of videogamey feel instead.
[ neo-romantic black metal ]
2022-08-16
https://trha.bandcamp.com/track/m-h-shiva-n-dahh-khata-trh-ndlha-vand-fd-datnen-aghen-ec-s-drh-tdlhan-savd |
| 2 |  | Wraithlord
A Dance in the Ghostlight
Shoutout to another atmospheric black metal, Wraithlord from Flint, MI - the same circle of young musicians that also gave us Baazlvaat. Certainly a collective to keep an eye on. But I gotta say I preferred the first half of this, both tracks (plus the intro) are just so big, as an EP I'd even be considering a 4.5 here.
[ atmospheric black metal ]
2022-08-04
https://wraithlord.bandcamp.com/album/a-dance-in-the-ghostlight |
| 3 |  | Phantom Spell
Immortal's Requiem
Old school prog & proto-metal. This was a surprise drop & I'd say it is certainly going places. If you like Hällas, you should check this out too.
[ progressive rock / heavy metal ]
2022-08-19
https://phantomspell.bandcamp.com/album/immortals-requiem |
| 4 |  | The Fae
Books with Maps: Vol. I
Another 70s rooted metal album, but this one instead looks more to the rustic side of 70s prog. They call themselves "bacchanalian metal", is quite spot on. Alternate timeline stoner metal, where it is instead adjacent to power metal and infused with psych folk? Inclusion of acoustic instruments adds a lot of flair to the songs. Besides original songs (which are great) I guess band wanted to fill in their material with an interesting selection: there's a cover of 70s Argetine metal band El Reloj, a cover of Schubert's Erlkönig (! this song should be played by metal bands more often, only the 2nd time I've seen it done properly) - with a guest vocalist, and a cover of Queen's Death On Two Legs. A very varied selection that I think doesn't do the record a favour in keeping cohesive, but it's a nice debut & I certainly would like to hear more.
[ psychedelic folk metal ]
2022-08-26
https://thefae.bandcamp.com/album/books-with-maps-vol-i |
| 5 |  | Murgrind
The Power of Yourself
We've already heard one track off this back in 2020 when it was released as an EP; now it's been expanded into a full-length. This is dungeon synth at its most epic and uplifting. Murgrind is also the artist behind Tolkien-themed Haryon that I featured in the April's list... And to cite dedex under the EP's review; "is this Howard Shore doing some DS ?" Might as well be.
[ epic dungeon synth ]
2022-08-21
https://murgrind-music.bandcamp.com/album/the-power-of-yourself-2 |
| 6 |  | Driftloss
Derealization
On the other side of dungeon synth (and philosophy - compare the titles) we approach dark space ambient stuff; this might not really be dungeon synth but I'd say it has similar mood to Neptune Towers, though more on the drone side than Berlin school side. Driftloss is a duo of Colin Marston (of Krallice, Behold.. the Arctopus, etc.) and Marc Kate. I really like the resonant beats on here - I don't know what they are but they sound like big metallic bowls? And thanks to Space Jester who suggested me to listen to this. Would have probably missed it otherwise.
[ dark / space ambient ]
2022-08-08
https://driftloss.bandcamp.com/album/derealization |
| 7 |  | ZYNY
All Is Fine
I also do like me some gloomy jazz and ŻYŃY does an interesting combination, of jazzy chords, proggy guitar, juicy bass, live drums, psychedelic organ, and trip-hop production. Missed out on it back in May but it's too good to be overlooked & adding it on the list here alongside other releases of similar vibes from August.
[ jazz fusion / trip-hop ]
2022-05-20
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVnTB-nwQ2g |
| 8 |  | Aleczandah
Geovisual
T R O P I C A L W A V E - seriously, this makes some great late night driving music. There's some afrobeat (?) samples in there too. And samples of tropical rains and frogs and birds add to the charm. A recipe so successful that there's now three of them already.
[ vaporwave ]
2022-08-19
https://aleczandah.bandcamp.com/album/geovisual |
| 9 |  | Kauko Lampo & Tuomion Tomppelit
Kaukomatkat
"Remote Heating & the Fools of Judgement", I think? I don't understand enough Finnish to get the joke if there's any. But this is good trip hop, more nocturnal vibes.
[ trip-hop ]
2022-08-10
https://forgesoundhki.bandcamp.com/album/kaukomatkat |
| 10 |  | Daylight Robbery!
Moons of Jupiter
Jazz and hip-hop beats can also be combined in a less gloomy way, and here we have a nice example of how well some post-bop blends with them. This is proper jazz given a hip-hop production, rather than just "jazzy lofi beats for late night study"!
[ jazz-hop ]
2022-07-15
https://daylight-robbery.bandcamp.com/album/moons-of-jupiter |
| 11 |  | Commoner
I
Surprise releases like this sometimes turn out the best. This is a damn good stoner record with extra hardcore punk grit and energy. Because hypnotic riffs don't have to be boring.
[ crustened stoner metal ]
2022-08-05
https://commoner666.bandcamp.com/album/i |
| 12 |  | Telekinetic Yeti
Primordial
Some more damn fun stoner metal stuff. Dank riffage, what more to say about this.
[ stoner metal ]
2022-07-08
https://telekineticyeti.bandcamp.com/album/primordial |
| 13 |  | CB3
Exploration
And if you want to check out the more chilled out side of heavy psychedelic stuff, I can recommend this space rock record.
[ space rock ]
2022-08-26
https://cb3jams.bandcamp.com/album/exploration |
| 14 |  | Luxferre
Faces
Cult of Luna style post metal; nothing out of ordinary but very well done debut release from this Chilean band.
[ post-metal ]
2022-08-05
https://luxferre-band.bandcamp.com/album/faces |
| 15 |  | Splintered Throne
The Greater Good of Man
Traditional style power metal to pump you up, and Lisa Mann kills it on the vocals.
[ heavy / power metal ]
2022-08-19
https://splinteredthrone.bandcamp.com/album/the-greater-good-of-man-2 |
| 16 |  | Tales Under The Oak
Swamp Kingdom
The Toad King is back! Dungeon synth with some proper old style fairytale magic.
[ dungeon synth ]
2022-08-07
https://talesundertheoak.bandcamp.com/album/swamp-kingdom |
| 17 |  | Supernatural Darkness
Flying Fortress
Very old school dungeon synth, with analog synths and hints of black metal. EP of just under 20 minutes but takes you to realms.
[ dungeon synth ]
2022-08-12
https://supernaturaldarkness.bandcamp.com/album/flying-fortress |
| 18 |  | RNLT
Chernobyl Dreaming
Experimental tape music from the HDK label. According to the story, this was a found tape done by three musicians who went into complete sensory isolation and were exposed only to stimuli related to Chernobyl disaster - reports & objects otherwise related to it, then their brainwaves while dreaming were directly recorded into music. Real? Either way, this is a quite interesting tape music experiment.
[ experimental ]
2022-08-25
https://heimatderkatastrophe.bandcamp.com/album/hdk-123-chernobyl-dreaming |
| 19 |  | Iguanacondas
Mudda Fuggin Big Wave
SURF ROCK BABY - summer's now over but let me jam this a bit more.
[ surf rock ]
2022-07-04
https://iguanacondas.bandcamp.com/album/mudda-fuggin-big-wave |
| 20 |  | Ukandanz
4 Against The Odds
You may have heard their album Awo from 2016, Ukandanz are a French-Ethiopian group (French band, Ethiopian jazz legend Asnake Gebreyes on vocals) playing jazz-rock informed by Ethiopian jazz; with all its wild harmonics. This time only the 4 French musicians managed to make it to the studio against the odds due to all the shit going down, globally and locally - but nonetheless deliver an instrumental record in similar vein, with Gebreyes contributing composer credits on one of the songs.
[ ethio-jazz-rock ]
2022-06-17
https://ukandanz.bandcamp.com/album/4-against-the-odds |
| 21 |  | Calliope (HUN)
Incognita
On my list of very random finds, here's a cello rock quartet from Hungary playing some instrumental folky prog.
[ avant-folk / jazz-rock ]
1998
https://archaicinventions.blogspot.com/2018/11/calliope-quartet-incognita-1998.html |
| 22 |  | Khana Rung Thawi
Live Folk Parade Music 8+9
This album is a meme & I unsuspectingly put it on while I was cooking some panang curry and proceeded to be blown away by the relentless riffage. The jams just keep going at insane rate. To cite MC Ride, "ITGOESITGOESITGOESITGOESITGOESITGOESITGOESITGOES" Thai psych at its finest. Now I wonder where to find parts 1 through 7...
[ phin sing ]
2000
https://monrakplengthai.blogspot.com/2010/03/khana-rung-thawi-hae-sot-dontri-phuen.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwBfpTB-bCY |
| 23 |  | Les Friction
The End of the Beginning
And at the end, for me this is a blast from the past. I was big into the "epic music" 10+ years ago, and Les Friction are one of the groups (besides Globus, which is still one of my favourite acts) that took that BIG PRODUCTION sound into symphonic rock. The End of the Beginning continues the rock opera about mankind's fight with an alien threat ~2050AD, this is now the 3rd part already.
[ epic symphonic rock ]
2022-06-07
https://lesfriction.bandcamp.com/album/the-end-of-the-beginning |
| 24 |  | Two Steps From Hell
Myth
You can't talk about "epic music" without mentioning TSFH. Yep they still got it.
[ epic music ]
2022-06-03 |
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