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.

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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.

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Lyrical Themes:

Religious/Political Concerns:

N/A

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.

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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.

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.

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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.

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Upon The Dawn of the Vermilion Glaive - Hermit Knight

Upon The Dawn of the Vermilion Glaive is a dungeon synth album by Hermit Knight and my favorite DS album to date. The album artwork is amazing and the music keeps a very medieval "vibe" throughout the album. Each song is extremely well done and extremely calming. The longer songs "The Vacant Fields of Sorrow" and "Beneath the Tower of the Silent Twins" are extremely well done too, keeping the same mood throughout them but not getting even remotely repetitive.

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