The Music Sewer System

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Lyrical Themes:

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Religious/Political Concerns:

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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Slow Suicide - Cultist

"Christian metal is so soft!" Cultist aren't very underground anymore, but their music is so worth mentioning. Slow Suicide is such a brutal hardcore/deathcore album and I would change nothing about it. It's loud and absolutely obliterates you when you hear it. The vocals are so good and I absolutely love the lyrics in their songs. The lyrics are so meaningful but fit the genre so well. The tempo stays fairly downbeat most of the time and that just makes it all the more brutal.

Cultist Music/Socials:

*Neither of their Bandcamp pages include Slow Suicide, BC1 has their debut EP which is split into five singles for some reason and BC2 has their album An Observation Of Grief which is formatted normally. Their Spotify also has two singles on it under their name but I'm not 100% sure if they're by the same Cultist. Digital downloads for Slow Suicide can be found on their Facedown Records page*

Lyrical Themes:

Christianity

Religious/Political Concerns:

Despite their name, Cultist is a very Christ-centered band. Their name represents how when you take Jesus out of Christianity it just turns into another cult and is also used as a conversation starter. Their lyrics go straight for the brutal truth and don't sugarcoat anything. As a Christian, I absolutely love their music and lyrics.

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

TOXIC - THEWHITESTNOISE

I'm extremely new to the "noise" genre. I've been intrigued by it for a month or so now but it wasn't until I came across TOXIC by THEWHITESTNOISE that I started to get interested in the genre. I've listened to several albums that blend some noise into their music like in Ancient Mariner's self-titled album or in Gnashing Teeth's album Antinferno, but I had never listened to straight-up noise. TOXIC would probably be considered to be on the lighter side of the noise genre since it includes some shoegaze and ambient moments but it's definitely noisy. To my own surprise, I actually kinda enjoyed this album and found it fairly relaxing. The constant drone of harsher notes being played that's countered with a softer synth in the background is just so peaceful for some reason. I would REALLY recommend checking this album out if you've been wanting to get into noise, heck I'd even just recommend checking it out in general for educational purposes.

THEWHITESTNOISE Music/Socials:

I'll be talking more about my journey to discovering noise music in the "My Musical Journey" section of this blog in the future along with more of my journey through the music scene as a whole in the future so make sure you stay up to date with the blog's Instagram page for announcements about that!

Monday, March 11, 2024

Kurald Galain - Forsaken Keep

This is definitely a new top 5 or even top 3 favorite dungeon synth album for me. Kurald Galain by Forsaken Keep (Froth) is such an amazing listen. Medieval Dungeon is such a great genre and Forsaken Keep did NOT fail to create an absolute masterpiece. The adventurous melodies paired with the ambiance and percussion go so extremely well together and leave you wanting more. This album honestly makes me want to buy chainmail and a sword.

Forsaken Keep (Froth) Music/Socials:

Tuesday, March 5, 2024

From The Grave - Corpse

From The Grave is a really raw but really heavy and good album by Corpse. It was originally released in 1997 then rereleased in 2015 and has a very old-school sound to it and can be compared to artists like Bolt Thrower or Mortification. The riffs are heavy, the drums are fast, and the vocals are absolutely brutal. Honestly, the vocals are probably some of my favorite that I've heard in death metal. I would definitely give this album a listen if you're really into raw, brutal, old-school death metal.

Corpse Music/Socials:

*The Spotify link goes straight to the album release because someone else has uploaded music under the same artist name, but there is another release from Corpse called Among the Dead on Spotify*

Lyrical Themes:

Christianity

Religious/Political Concerns:

Christians shouldn't have problems with this release unless they're one of those "METAL IS THE DEVIL" people. People who don't like Christianity probably won't care for this release (totally didn't copy/paste this from the HaShem post)

New Life / Martyr - HaShem

New Life / Martyr is an album that consists of the two EPs released by HaShem in 2013 (New Life) and 2014 (Martyr). The EPs can be bought on Bandcamp and the sort of compilation album is found on streaming services. I stumbled upon this album while compiling a Christian metal playlist a few months ago and the second I played one of the songs I was blown away. The riffs on this album are heavy and brutal, and the vocals are honestly perfect. The drums are programmed but they rarely sound robotic throughout the release and just sound overall pretty great. This album will forever be one of my favorites.

HaShem Music/Socials:

*The Spotify link goes straight to the album release because someone else has uploaded music under the same artist name and this album is the only release from HaShem on Spotify*

Lyrical Themes:

Christianity

Religious/Political Concerns:

Christians shouldn't have problems with this release unless they're one of those "METAL IS THE DEVIL" people. People who don't like Christianity probably won't care for this release.

Friday, March 1, 2024

The Fire and the Flood - Shaunb

When a lo-fi album is done well, I can't help but be in awe, and The Fire and the Flood by Shaunb is no exception. I don't usually listen to folk music but the way Shaunb went about this album is too amazing to pass up. The songs aren't repetitive and the quality isn't so low fidelity that it makes you want to rip your ears off. The vocals are really soothing and the guitar instrumentals are beautiful and relaxing.

Shaunb Music/Socials:

*If anyone knows of any other socials or music platforms please comment them below*

Lyrical Themes:

"It’s about life and how we will be dead for a long time. Happy stuff (:" - Shaun

Religious/Political Concerns:

N/A

Monday, February 26, 2024

Arda's Herbarium: A Musical Guide to the Mystical Garden of Middle-Earth and Stranger Places - Vol. V - Ithildin

This album is an absolute journey. Going from uplifting to kinda dark and a little creepy in a matter of minutes. Volume V of the Arda's Herbarium series by Ithildin is a masterpiece, it's extremely ambient and overall very comforting to listen to. There's some nice bits inserted into the album too, my favorite being in Hemp where they take dark ambient track and put in some lo-fi, upbeat black metal instrumentals into the mix. The whole album is a work of art and is definitely among my favorite dungeon synth albums.

Ithildin Music/Socials:

Friday, February 23, 2024

Five Songs - Bright Islands

The Five Songs EP by Bright Islands is a really fun and laid-back EP. It's got a really nice nostalgic sound to it the whole way through and has simple yet extremely enjoyable instrumentals the whole way through with great vocals and harmonies. Kick to the Past and Road to Nothing are definitely highlights of the EP. The EP also has a slightly lo-fi edge to it's sound and I absolutely love that.

Bright Islands Music/Socials:

Lyrical Themes:

Religious/Political Concerns:

N/A

Monday, February 19, 2024

Antinferno - Gnashing Teeth

Antinferno by Gnashing Teeth literally blew my mind the first time I heard it (yesterday). The blast beats and usage of noise mixed together works so insanely well and the results came out extremely heavy. It's a fairly short EP, only being about 17 minutes long, but it leaves you starving for more.

Gnashing Teeth Music/Socials:

Lyrical Themes:

The lyrics in Antiferno are a retelling of Dante's descent into the lower chambers of hell based on Alighieri's poem called Inferno (read the poem on archive.org).

Religious/Political Concerns:

Since this EP is about someone's descent into hell, some Christians or people of other Abrahamic religions might not want to listen to it. However, it isn't pro-Satan, pro-hell, or anti-Christian/religion to my knowledge, and the poem the EP is based on isn't meant to be either. The writer, Dante Alighieri, was a Catholic.

Saturday, February 17, 2024

Beyond the Pines - Duress

Beyond the Pines is a 5 track death metal EP by Duress. The production quality on this EP is great but also lo-fi enough to have some soul to it. The riffs are great, the vocals are amazing, and the drums are on point. Technocracy is probably my favorite song on the EP with a bunch of sick beatdown riffs and awesome breakdown moments.

Duress Music/Socials:

Lyrical Themes:

Religious/Political Concerns:

The vocalist and bassist for Duress are both Christians and a few of their songs have Christian lyrical theming to them so Christians shouldn't have problems with this EP.

Ancient Mariner - Ancient Mariner

Ancient Mariner is a self-titled dungeon synth album made by Ancient Mariner. The album has a more distorted, slightly harsh sound to it throughout itself that I REALLY enjoy. The album artwork and overall sound just really go hand in hand with each other and fit well. Listening to this feels like a voyage through treacherous waters.

Ancient Mariner Music/Socials: