Entry 1392 - Edge of Sanity - The Spectral Sorrows

Style: melodic death metal

Primary Emotions/Themes: early 90's death metal, it's a bit all over the place

Thoughts: Well this was an unexpected find. I was looking through some crates and I found my old copy of The Spectral Sorrows laying there. Not at all what I expected to find.

Edge of Sanity have always been one of the more interesting Swedish death metal bands. You never knew what they were going to do next. The first two albums were straight up death metal, and then they released this one... and what a ride it is. 

There's a bit of everything on this album. Some thrash influenced death metal, some melodic death metal, some fast songs, slow songs, and even a Manowar cover. It really is all over the place. It feels like the band created whatever they wanted and then had a field day putting everything and anything on the album.

Is it a bit chaotic? Yeah it is, but at the same time it's fun as hell. The band obviously were having fun writing and recording this stuff. Not all of it is great, but it's an entertaining listen regardless.

Entry 1391 - Dishonored 2

Style: Video game music, dark ambient

Primary Emotions/Themes: Vengeance is a cruel master.

Thoughts: I have not played the second Dishonored game, I've only heard the music to it. I'm not sure what it's about, but the music is largely an expansion of the first games soundtrack.

I loved the combination of ambience and melody that the first game had, the second game has a similar approach but it's more towards the ambient side of things for a majority of the soundtrack. The further you get into it though the more melody gets sprinkled in, like a trail of morsels leading us to the ultimate goal.

Dishonored 2's soundtrack is not as good as the first games. It drags on for just a bit too long to stand on it's own like the first one did. That said when this thing starts going it's highly enjoyable, those moments are just too few and far between.

Entry 1390 - Dishonored - Death of the Outsider

Style: video game music, dark ambient

Primary Emotions/Themes: solitude, mystery, murder

Thoughts: The Dishonored soundtrack is one of the best in my collection. The way that it balances melody and ambience is outstanding. With the expansion to the game the music shifts starkly in the ambient direction and largely forsakes the melody.

The music on Death of the Outsider is more primal and has less definition as traditional music. The tones that are created here are dark and honestly quite unsettling for most of the records length. Not quite easy listening but also excellent for setting a foreboding atmosphere.

Death of the Outsider is not an album I spin very often, I'll prefer the original game's soundtrack. Every now and then though this soundtrack provides a bit of uneasiness in my life if I so desire.

Entry 1389 - Bloodstained - Ritual of the Night

Style: video game music

Primary Emotions/Themes: the true successor to 2d Castlevania games

Thoughts: After Symphony of the Night I felt a huge dearth in the quality of many of the Castlevania games. Of course we got games in that style on Gameboy Advance and the DS, but they never really felt as grand as the first game to do that style. I missed it a lot, and I finally feel like we have a worthy successor with Ritual of the Night in both gameplay and music.

The fact that Michiru Yamane came back for this game to compose the soundtrack was huge. The music here is a direct extension of Symphony, in fact much of the games soundtrack sounds like it could be interchangeable between the two. It has the same sense of mystery and discovery that the original does and captures that same spark that so few soundtracks have. It's truly special.

I rarely put this record on, because when I start listening to it I feel compelled to finish it. I don't often have enough time to listen to four records back to back, but when I do I enjoy every single moment of this outstanding soundtrack. It's only a few years old at this point, but man it's already elevated to essential status for me.

Entry 1388 - Altar of Plagues - Trilogy Part 3 - Teethed Glory and Injury

Style: black metal, experimental

Primary Emotions/Themes: A massive change in scope and sound for the band

Thoughts: I don't know why it took me this long to get to this album. The last album that I wrote about in this trilogy was all the way back in entry 595. Needless to say it's been a while.

Teethed Glory and Injury sees the band branching out from their long form songs with hypnotic beats and riffs. There are eight songs on here and they span just under fifty minutes in length. After a near ambient intro the band shows the listener exactly how much they've changed with God Alone. These songs are heavy, they are dissonant, they are fast, they have little to no build up, and they are crazy. There is little that would resemble anything that the band created before. 

Teethed Glory was not an album I enjoyed when it first released. I didn't care for the change in direction and I couldn't get behind the dissonance. So much of what I liked about the band was lost. Now that I've had about a decade to digest it I can take this album for what it is. The band was trying something different and to a large part they succeeded. It would have been interesting to see if they continued where they would have ended up, but alas we'll never know. 

Entry 1387 - 輕描淡寫 x Kuroi Ame - 眼泪含泪

Style: Ambient

Primary Emotions/Themes: Kuroi Ame's dynamic song writing with the profound atmosphere of 輕描淡寫 

Thoughts: This is it. The final entry before I move to finish out my boxed sets. It couldn't have ended on a better album.

To say that I was excited about this album when it was announced was probably an understatement. 輕描淡寫 had only ever released the one album to my knowledge and to hear that she was teaming up with Kuroi Ame made me excited beyond belief. My hopes for the album were massive, but also so was my fear. Could it live up to the legacy set by both artists? Yes it can.

These six tracks blew me away the first time I heard them. They blow me away still. They combine the sense of profoundness that 輕描淡寫  brings but also makes it more active with melodies and beats injected by Kuroi Ame. Add in some longing vocals by Currentmoodgirl and you have an absolutely phenomenal album. 

This isn't an album I'm going to try and quantify in words. It simply must be heard in order to be understood. Absolutely essential listening.

Entry 1386 - 輕描淡寫 - 小圈子

Style: ambient

Primary Emotions/Themes: somehow this album forces me into a deep sense of self reflection and contemplation every single time I play it

Thoughts: There are good ambient albums. Albums that sweep me away and carry me off to distant lands. There are excellent ambient albums, ones that weave their own story with little more than a few sonic pads and minimalist melodies. Then there is this album... an ambient album that somehow strikes me with a profound sense of meaning every time it hits the record player.

I really don't know how it does it. The music on here is so incredibly simple, yet it's layered so well that is swells up emotions in me that normally lie dormant. I wrote a while back about feeling a deep sense of nihilism in the world, well this album is the exact opposite. This album craves meaning, it injects meaning into everything it touches. It brings life where there was none before. 

I have less than ten albums like this in my entire collection. Albums that can instantly change my mood from one thing to another. I don't know how it does it, but there is something in these notes that is truly incredible. 

Entry 1385 - 沙漠鱿鱼 - 上海／香港

Style: ambient, drone, a tiny bit of slushwave, field recordings

Primary Emotions/Themes: a night on the streets of Hong Kong

Thoughts:  Do you want to be transported half way around the world instantly? Look no further than 上海／香港. This album emulates being on  a city street in the mighty city of Hong Kong instantly.

This is another album that I have not listened to in several years. Most of the time I forget I have it, and that's a damn shame. Slow builds, lazy washed out melodies, field recordings of city streets, long and winding songs that blend into each other... these are the staples that are contained in the album. 

I've been keeping a log of albums that I need to revisit more often. By going through my collection I'm finding these hidden gems (to me) and I'm remembering why I bought them in the first place. With 上海／香港 I find that it provides me with an escape from modern life and takes me back thirty or forty years to when life was a bit simpler and I didn't have a care in the world. Sometimes we need simplicity. 

Entry 1384 - 暗号零 - 暗号零

Style: dreampunk, ambient

Primary Emotions/Themes: traveling through an empty cosmos, nothing but a few hydrogen atoms to keep us company

Thoughts: Man this has been a blast from the past. This was another one of the first albums that I got when I was into the dreampunk movement. I really had no idea about what dreampunk even was at that point, but I knew I liked what I heard and that was good enough for me. 

The essence of 暗号零 is simple melodies that repeat over the course of three to five minutes with a massive backing of synths. There are little to no beats and the music often feels static or with minimal movement. It feels more like I'm floating through space in audio form than anything else. 

暗号零 is a fascinating album. It's one I put on when I want to be able to concentrate on the task at hand. It offers just enough content to get my mind occupied, yet not so much that it demands all my attention. Probably one of the better dreampunk records I own.

Entry 1383 - チェスマスター - I am Chesumasuta

Style: dreampunk, noise, ambient, experimental

Primary Emotions/Themes: A musical potpourri that drags the listener through both musical bliss and pain

Thoughts: Now we're getting into the final records in my collection. The last of the records I've had since starting this blog. It's a bit ironic that it would start with I am Chesumasuta as well as this was the first true dreampunk album that I ever purchased.

HKE has always been experimental with his music, and it seems he was doubly so here. Some of these songs have absolutely massive electronic atmospheres that overwhelm the senses. Then there are others that seem to be put together in such a way that the music is hard on the ears. Like it clashes with expectations, and makes the listening experience harder than it needs to be because of it.

When I say the music is unpleasant I do need to say that this is nothing like the FLAP that would come later. This is still musical. I've found myself listening to this a few times in a row just to refamiliarize myself with the album. I've not listened to it for several years and honestly I had forgotten a lot of what it has. It's an interesting journey to say the least.

Entry 1382 - Zero ft. Solomon Alber - Faded Memories

Style: lounge music, smooth jazz

Primary Emotions/Themes: soothing music with a whole lot of sax

Thoughts: This was billed as the first sample less barber beats album.... but doesn't that just make this a smooth jazz album instead? The whole idea behind barber beats is reconstructing music from different parts to create something entirely new.

That technicality aside, this is actually a quite enjoyable album. I've seen several people critique it saying that it has too much sax... I'm not sure I agree with that. The saxophone adds in a distinctive element to the album that binds the songs together despite their diversity.

I wasn't sure what I thought of the album at first. It seemed like just another barber beats album, but over time the fact that these are live performances gives this album a bit more credence than a lot of the other material in this musical wavelength. Not a bad listen, and certainly one I should come back to more often.

Entry 1381 - Zelda and Chill

Style: video game music, lofi hip hop

Primary Emotions/Themes: a lofi mix tape of Zelda music

Thoughts: Not much to say about this one except it's Zelda and it's lofi. It's well done and it pays tribute to the source material... but that's about it. 

Entry 1380 - Legend of Zelda - Breath of the Wild - Memories of a Heroes Journey

Style: Video game music 

Primary Emotions/Themes: the final entry into Breath of the Wild, the conclusion

Thoughts: It's been a trip listening to all of these Breath of the Wild records again. There is so much music in this game that it's nearly overwhelming. Memories recalls the fateful moments of the game's story through the cutscenes and other notable moments.

Out of all of the records in this set, this one is likely the most diverse. The events that happen in the cutscenes are anything from Link waking up to charging head first into Hyrule Castle. It's simplicity and complexity all in one. It contains some of the games best music, and some that just moves the story along. 

This was the last release that I got in the set, and it's fitting that it closes out my trip down memory lane as well. Living through the games main story points is a great way to close things out and this album does just that.

Entry 1379 - Legend of Zelda - Breath of the Wild - Reveries of Hearth and Home

Style: video game music

Primary Emotions/Themes: a warm welcome to a place once thought forgotten

Thoughts: Of all the Zelda records in my collection, this is the one that I cherish the most. The is so much good music in Breath of the Wild, and this record contains the best of the best.

After a long day out adventuring it's always wonderful to come back to a familiar place and rest. This is exactly the feelings that are portrayed throughout the entirety of Reveries. Warm, welcoming songs that make me want to cozy up to a warm fire and fall asleep. 

This album is the audio equivalent to a cup of hot chocolate and a blanket on a cold winters day. It's like coming home after a long trip and sleeping in your own bed for the first time in months. It's welcoming home a loved one that has been over seas for years. It's finding that lost pet that was gone for weeks then randomly shows up at your door step one morning. It's joy. 

Entry 1378 - Legend of Zelda - Breath of the Wild - Ballad of Champions

Style: video game music

Primary Emotions/Themes: gather round as we tell a tale as old as time, join me in the ballad of champions

Thoughts: As with every other record in the Breath of the Wild record sent this one has a theme. This record extols the feats of the champions that were to help Zelda fight the terror that is Calamity Gannon. These are their ballads.

The music here is much more to my liking than that of Battles. This record captures the feel that I loved so much when exploring the world. The wide open music, to match the wide open spaces. The simplicity of the music matches the beautiful simplicity of the world, yet it carries so much hidden depth within itself. The inclusion of most of the accordion songs here is also a welcome treat. They were always fun to listen to when the bird told the stories of the olden days.

Ballad of Champions is not the best record in the set, but it certainly is one that hits the turntable rather often. It's one record long and that's a perfect length for relaxing between tasks or turning on to clean the house or some other mundane task. A glimpse into the true beauty that is Breath of the Wild.

Entry 1377 - The Legend of Zelda - Breath of the Wild - Tales of Battles and Bravery

Style: Video game music

Primary Emotions/Themes: the more combat and shrine focused part of the Breath of the Wild soundtrack

Thoughts: Lets talk Breath of the Wild Records for a bit here. This soundtrack was split up into five separate releases, each containing different parts of the soundtrack. This was the first one released, and it's arguably my least favorite of the bunch. 

While the battle music in BOTW isn't bad, it's not the best part of the soundtrack. My favorite parts are the exploration and discovery moments (and Terry Town, but we'll get to that later). The music here is the most energetic and brass driven of the entire soundtrack. The individual songs themselves work great in the game as a break from the tranquil exploration music, but on their own they are a bit more difficult to digest. 

The music in Breath of the Wild is one of the first times that Nintendo broke with the main themes that we've all gotten used to and love with Zelda. It's a risky move that ended up paying off in spades. The music is an integral part to the experience of the game and has become one of my favorite soundtracks in the entire franchise. 

Entry 1376 - Legend of Zelda - Twilight Princess

Style: VGM

Primary Emotions/Themes: A grittier and a bit darker take on the Zelda franchise

Thoughts: Zelda was in a weird place on the Gamecube. The series had been accused of being too kid friendly with Wind Waker (a statement that aged pretty poorly), and people wanted something a bit darker. Enter Twilight Princess.

The music in Twilight Princess has all of the whimsical nature of most Zelda games, but it recalls the same darker tones that Majora's Mask would end up featuring heavily. The resultant soundtrack is a bit more balanced than most Zelda soundtracks which tend to lean more towards the side of adventure. Twilight Princes still has that, but the music has darker undertones throughout the run time. 

Twilight Princess is a game that is a bit of a mess story wise. It doesn't know really what it wants to be at first, but as soon as the mid point of the game is reached things start to become a bit clearer. The music does not have this challenge. It's well composed throughout the entire game and is one of the main reasons why I enjoyed it to the extent that I do. 

Entry 1375 - Legend of Zelda - Link's Awakening

Style: video game music

Primary Emotions/Themes: Probably the best soundtrack on the original Gameboy

Thoughts: Of all the Gameboy games I played, this was probably the one I spent the most time on. I have very fond memories of this game and those are relived when I listen to this soundtrack.

In essence this is the stripped own version of the Link to the Past soundtrack. There are a lot of the same songs but they are much simpler here. The soundtrack has a lot of it's own original compositions of course, and those are equally as fun to listen to. In fact the whole soundtrack is really a treat to listen to, it takes the limited capabilities of the Gameboy sound chip and does the absolute maximum with it. 

Mystery, adventure, wonder, and musical instruments - they are all the main themes of Link's Awakening. The soundtrack portrays all of these with expert skill, especially for a soundtrack that is so inherently limited. A prime example of how to do more with less.

Entry 1374 - Legend of Zelda - Link to the Past

Style: video game music

Primary Emotions/Themes: One of the definitive soundtracks not just on the SNES, but in all of video games

Thoughts: I'm going to try to keep this short, but truly this entry deserves a full essay to it's importance. The Legend of Zelda is one of the most important game franchises in the history of gaming, and Link to the Past may very well be the finest game in that series. Outside of the gameplay elements, the music in this game created the foundation for many of the ongoing themes found in every single game hereafter. 

For this though I want to try and just focus in on the music. Link to the Past took the musical themes found in the first two games and expanded on them with the SNES' improved sound chip. The songs are more involved, the instruments more grand, the compositions more dynamic... everything is bigger and better. It's a showcase on what the system could do.

I really love how whimsical yet entirely serious the soundtrack sounds at nearly all points. With the main Zelda theme on the overworld being the central focus of the game it makes sense that this is the triumphant anthem that it is. For a lot of the worlds sub areas we get similar instruments used, but with different arrangements, it's a cool feature that I never really noticed the first time playing the game. 

I'm going to have to stop myself here, I feel like I could go on forever for this one. This is one of the very few soundtracks I had been missing from my collection that I desperately wanted. Now that it's in my collection I can finally say that I have every essential Zelda album. 

Entry 1373 - Yuri - Magdalene

Style: barber beats, vaporwave

Primary Emotions/Themes: 

Thoughts: I'll be honest here, I did not expect this album to end up in my collection. I have just about reached capacity on barber beats and feel I have a solid representation throughout my collection of the genre. So when I first heard Magdalene I was expecting it to be a one and done... that was about as far from the truth as you can get.

The whole album is sexy. The artwork, the songs, the titles of the tracks... everything. It has a seductive sway that I was not expecting, but it fits perfectly with the theme of the music. Even the song titles let you know exactly what is happening in each track, even though there are no lyrics. 

The music itself is so well put together, and this was the deciding factor for me. The first track is a bit of a slow burn, but after that the album really starts to get its hooks in you. Slow piano driven songs with groovy beats is the flavor of the day. There's some lounge, there some smooth jazz, and even some porn music here. It all works excellently together and creates an album that often finds itself on the turntable for multiple spins at a time. 

Entry 1372 - Yahar'gul

Style: black metal

Primary Emotions/Themes: black metal inspired by Bloodbourne

Thoughts:  Having a black metal EP flavored around one of my favorite games... yes please. 

Yahar'gul is unsurprisingly themed around the game Bloodbourne. This short album seeks to be the musical accompaniment to the mix of gothic and Lovecraftian horror that the game balances so well. For the most part it accomplishes just that. 

There are only five songs here, and the titles are taken directly from the game. Celestial Emissary, Ebrietas, Daughter of the Cosmos, The One Reborn, The Hunters Dream, Moon Presence are all bosses and locations within the game. For the most part the cadence of the song matches that of the source material. Ebrietas is a swirling and dissonant track to match her horrific form. The Hunters Dream is a slow ambient piece giving the listener a small respite from the horrors of this crazy dream world. Moon Presence is a triumphant anthem that celebrates the stars and all of the unknown horrors that come with it, just like the true last boss of the game.

Yahar'gul didn't just take some inspiration from Bloodbourne, it fully steeped itself in the infested ichor the game is so known for. In many ways I wish that there was more for this project, but in many ways I'm happy that this is all that we have. These twenty minutes are excellent and touch on some of the best moments in the game, if more was created I don't know if it would be the same quality as what we have here. Regardless, this is a must listen for fans of Bloodbourne, if only once.

Entry 1371 - Xasthur/Nortt

Style: black metal and blackened funeral doom

Primary Emotions/Themes: fast and slow obscure black metal

Thoughts: I've had this record in my collection for quite some time. I never listen to it. When I put it on the turntable I really wonder what kind of music is on this thing.

Nortt's side is exactly what you would expect, slow melancholic black metal with keyboards providing a sparse melody. The Xasthur side is exactly what you would expect, faster black metal that is has such an obscure production that it's hard to tell the noise from the notes.

Once I listened to the record I knew why I don't listen to it much... it does nothing for me. Both sides of the record are uninteresting and I find myself wanting it to be over to move on to the next record when it's spinning. This one probably won't remain in the collection much longer.

Entry 1370 - w u s o 命 - You'll be Okay, I Promise

Style: beat driven ambient, dreampunk

Primary Emotions/Themes: subtle beats and melodies slowly break through the veil of silence 

Thoughts: Ambient pads, slow melodies, cinematic builds, powerful beats. This is the foundation of You'll Be Okay, I Promise and it works exceptionally well.

This album - like most of wuso's other works - has a distinctly urban flare to it. There are frequent uses of city field recordings, the synths are massive and sound intentionally man made, even the quieter parts are more like a quiet alleyway at night rather than an open field or a forest. 

There's so much to like about this album. The way that the music flows in and out; it knows when to be quiet and it knows when to counter balance that with in your face moments... these moments often come within the same song. The album also feels complete - the songs blend together more often than not, and one track will allude to the next through subtle melodic foreshadowing. The whole album just works, and it's one of my favorite albums to come out of the dreampunk scene because of it.

Entry 1369 - Wounds and Formants - Haustorium

Style: ambient

Primary Emotions/Themes: a sonic exploration of different textures and emotions

Thoughts: What is music? What do we consider music and what do we consider noise? Where is that line drawn? Those are questions that Wounds and Formats explore on Haustorium.

These discoveries of sound tread the line between random explosions of sound and melodic excursions. They often clash and end up creating music that is often a bit obtuse and honestly hard to digest. This is not easy listening, rather it's like were listening to an experimental artists musical thesis. 

Haustorium is a fascinating album. When I want something to envelop and give my brain something to dissect, this is the type of album I put on. In days like we are currently living a distraction like this is very welcome.

Entry 1368 - Wormed - Metaportal

Style: Brutal death metal

Primary Emotions/Themes: fifteen of the most intense music you'll ever hear

Thoughts: Wormed has been around a long time. They release a new album rarely, and when they do it's a bit of an event for me. Normally I expect their music to be above average, however with Metaportal it went beyond that... this may very well be their best work.

Metaportal is fifteen minutes long. From the instant it starts it begins to pummel you with riffs and it doesn't stop until the album closes those fifteen minutes later. The riffs are brutally heavy, the vocals match in their violence as to the drums. There is simply no mercy. 

Metaportal also has brief moments where they incorporate melody and atmosphere into the fold. These are brief but highly welcome moments throughout the album. They give my brain a morsel of normality to hold onto before I'm destroyed again by the next riff. 

Whenever this short EP hits the turntable it will remain there for several spins. I'm of the mind that the short play length helps the appeal of this album. It has me salivating for another fix of the bands brutality. This is the very definition of wanting more. 

Entry 1367 - Worm - Foreverglade

Style: atmospheric death metal

Primary Emotions/Themes: murky and dark death metal that resonates with the underworld

Thoughts: Well this came out of nowhere. I had never heard of worm before this album, but this thing kept popping up on my feed so I eventually gave it a listen. I'm glad I did.

Worm play a particularly nasty form of atmospheric death metal. This sounds like it came from the depths of some long forgotten church buried in a cave forgotten by time. The worshipers there have long since strayed from the original religion and formed their own twisted variation, devoid of light, devoid of hope. That is the Foreverglade. 

The music itself relies heavily on long delayed clean guitars played over massive death/doom riffs. This gives the music a vast and open feel, one may even say cavernous. When needed the band will employ keyboards to add in additional atmosphere, usually in the form of a pipe organ. It's fantastic.

Worm released a fantastic album with Foreverglade. I went on to check out their other releases after this and nothing struck me as much as this one did. A bit disappointing, but in all honesty it makes it easier on the wallet and the collection. I only need one Worm album and this is it.

Entry 1366 - Wolves in the Throne Room - Two Hunters

Style: atmospheric black metal

Primary Emotions/Themes: black metal with an atmosphere so immense that it's ridiculous 

Thoughts: Wow, what an album. There are very few albums that have this kind of atmosphere, and fewer still that maintain it throughout the run time. Two Hunters does that and more.

If there was any doubt about how massive this album is, the first track should tell you everything you need to know. An atmosphere so thick that even the greatest search lights in history couldn't pierce it. A slow build of layer upon layer of keyboards and clean guitars that crush me under their immense weight. It's the perfect intro, one of my all time favorites.

This atmosphere carries on into the black metal, but slightly different. Instead of focusing on layer upon layer the band focuses on a wall of sound created with guitars instead. The riffs are slow compared to most black metal and have a hypnotic effect as they progress through the lengthy songs. 

The real treat here though is the version presented on the vinyl records. We are given nearly thirty minutes of extra music from these recording sessions. I never knew that these existed until I picked up the record years back. An unexpected treat for sure.

Entry 1365 - Wizard of Loneliness - Overworld

Style: Vaporwave

Primary Emotions/Themes: A trippy ride through distant and unknown lands

Thoughts: As with so many albums lately, I forgot what this one sounded like. I knew it had beats, but other than that I really had no clue what to expect when putting this on the turntable. 

Overworld is not like any of the other albums that I own from the Wizard. The only real similarity is that it's got a strong sense of rhythm. The music itself is quite diverse and does everything from near ambient to almost a party atmosphere on some songs. It's really all over the place. This really feels more like a mix tape than it does a full on album; a collection of songs that they had lying around and needed to release. 

Overworld isn't bad per see, it's just not as great as the other albums in my collection. It's something to put on while working around the house. Something to have on in the background, but as for active listening it's a bit disappointing. 

Entry 1364 - Wizard of Loneliness - Seasons

Style: vaporwave, beats

Primary Emotions/Themes: beats over music that fades in and away, just like the seasons

Thoughts: I don't like all of the Wizard of Loneliness's albums. I have four of the twenty something that they have released. The thing is when they release an album that I enjoy, I tend to really enjoy it. Seasons is exactly that kind of record.

This was my first exposure to The Wizard. Their music on Seasons is spacy and tends to fade in and out of existence. Like driving by a structure in a car, you see it in the distance then it's immediately in front of you before fading into nothingness. This process of growth and decay is central to Seasons and why I like it so much.

This cycle is dedicated to all of the instruments and samples used on Seasons. The beats are layered underneath them to create a backbone of a really solid vaporwave album. I don't hear as much hip hop on this album as I did on Mutio, but that's not important. What is important is that Seasons is a fantastic listen and one I really need to come back to more often.

Entry 1363 - Wizard of Loneliness - Mutio ミューティオ

Style: vaporwave, beats, instrumental hip hop

Primary Emotions/Themes: Beat driven vaporwave that sounds like it's underwater

Thoughts: The Wizard of Loneliness is a curious case in the world of vaporwave. They are one of the few projects that I was able to tolerate... no actually I truly enjoy their music. I got into them when I was looking for any and all vaporwave that I could find, and their music stood out. It didn't sound like vaporwave.

The music on Mutio is sample based loops built around beats. The samples themselves are varies, anything from acoustic guitars to full orchestras. The beats are just as dynamic in creating interesting loops and interactions with the samples. 

The overarching theme on Mutio is water... specifically being in and under it. The whole album has a wavy feel to it and often will cause my body to sway as the beats wash over me. In many ways I feel like this isn't so much vaporwave but more hip hop in it's approach. The traces of vaporwave are there, but the way that the samples are mixed together feel much more like an instrumental hip hop album than anything out of vaporwave. Interesting distinction, one I had never really thought of before writing this.

Entry 1362 - Winterfylleth - The Hallowing of Heirdom

Style: acoustic folk

Primary Emotions/Themes: the definitive statement of what Winterfellyth is capable of without metal 

Thoughts: I have been looking forward to this album. There are few albums in my collection that reach this level of peace and beauty. 

Winterfylleth have always incorporated folk and acoustic elements into their albums, The Hallowing of Heirdom expands on this by creating an album that completely foregoes the metal elements of their sound. The end result may very well be one of their strongest albums. 

As expected the acoustic guitar is the lead instrument on the album. This is joined by violins and other traditional instruments along side exclusively clean singing in the form of choirs. The vocal work on this album is what drives it to the next level. The vocal harmonies that the band utilizes are some of the best I've heard in a long while. They truly bring out the best in the songs they are utilized in.

Now that Winterfylleth have this out of their systems I don't anticipate them ever releasing something like this again. It's a beautiful one off album that stands as a pillar of peace in their typically more violent discography.