Review Summary: Synths and sorcery.
Oublieth is a one-man dungeon synth project hailing from Canada, who masterfully blends together the spirit of old-school dungeon synth music and the sound of Tangerine Dream, Vangelis and Klaus Schulz.
À l'Ombre du Royaume en Cendres is Oublieth’s second full-length release, which turned out to be one of the best dungeon synth albums this year so far.
What makes
À l'Ombre du Royaume en Cendres such an extraordinary release is its ability to be the perfect starting point for an all inclusive, dungeon synth experience. It utilizes many elements from both past or modern eras of the genre. The influence of old-school dungeon synth is especially dominant during the whole album, strongly resembling the sound of grand masters of the genre, such as Depressive Silence, Mortiis, Old Tower and so on. As such, the easily flowing, idyllic yet adventurous edge of the modern-era dungeon synth is perfectly inserted into the overall soundscape - similarly to what was heard in Malfet’s releases. Moreover, Oublieth’s latest contains a significant amount of cinematic drones, nature sound samples and these had a great impact in building up the desired enchanting atmosphere. The variety
À l'Ombre du Royaume en Cendres's runtime is very impressive already on its own, but it is also important to note the beautifully textured and organic sounds of the album, thanks to the artist’s strict focus on using analog synthesizers.
What could possibly make a dungeon synth album outstanding? There could be many answers for this question, but I always thought the most important factor is a certain
atmosphere. A magical, enchanting feeling which embraces and takes the listener to unknown realms on the wings of imagination. From this aspect,
À l'Ombre du Royaume en Cendres perfectly fulfills this requirement, and offers a gorgeous sonical experience.
