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Post by magicwillow on Oct 13, 2023 23:08:18 GMT -5
Hello folks, My new project Wizards of Aldur just released it's debut album "Pawn of Prophecy", based on the first book in the famous and highly influential Belgariad series. Listen here: wizardsofaldur.bandcamp.com/album/pawn-of-prophecyStylistically it is inspired by Fantasy, medieval and neoclassical Synth like Fief, DIM and Sequestered Keep, but heavily influenced by more recent Dungeon Synth artists such as Fogweaver, Aura Merlin, Aindulmedir and Castleseige, among many man y others. I have also taken some inspiration from Comfy synth on a few tracks. I chose this series because it resonates a lot with me, and because it inspired many of the video games that have influenced Dungeon Synth, including most notably the Elder Scrolls, especially Elder Scrolls arena, but really all of Elder Scrolls lore is very influenced by the Belgariad and other fantasy series of this era. Written in the 80s the Belgariad brings together a bunch of themes that are very important to modern fantasy in a new and unique way, the chosen one, the prophecy, the different races and lands, and their cultures and idiosyncracies. I love the vibe of the Belgariad, of it's pleasant atmosphere, likeable characters and a story that's epic and full of adventure. I hope I can capture that feeling for you in musical and aesthetic form as I present the first installment of my own Belgariad album series with this first album. I hope you all enjoy! - Magic Willow aka Wizards of Aldur P.S. Dear Moderators: I've also posted this in the main dungeon synth folder, sorry if that's not appropriate I posted it here as well just in case it gets removed there.
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Post by andrewwerdna on Oct 15, 2023 1:01:08 GMT -5
It feels very eclectic. The clashing fonts and AI art for the cover give the impression of fast work, but it also all has an earnest magic, which makes it seem more like the rush of excitement to share the visions rather than a lack of care. And that vibe extends to the music as well I think; it is using very clean and modern fantasy synth sounds most of the time, and there is clear production skills and visionary spirit, but it doesn't feel very lived-in. The emphasis on the "fantasy synth" tag is appropriate I think, there are some dungeon qualities but I do think it leans a bit more toward video game soundtrack type music. This would be great to throw on during a tabletop game I think, strong moods and atmospheres and never too distracting. The Palace of Cherek Kings stood out to me, very cool DOS game type sounds. Have you ever listened to Aardia – Fairy Tales from Beyond? I think they were really onto something special there, and I've always thought that was like the perfect fusion of those sort of Radio Rivendell and Mortiis type worlds, but yet still something new.
I don't know anything about the Belgariad series, but I'm going to look into it, seems interesting.
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Post by magicwillow on Oct 17, 2023 6:18:14 GMT -5
It feels very eclectic. The clashing fonts and AI art for the cover give the impression of fast work, but it also all has an earnest magic, which makes it seem more like the rush of excitement to share the visions rather than a lack of care. And that vibe extends to the music as well I think; it is using very clean and modern fantasy synth sounds most of the time, and there is clear production skills and visionary spirit, but it doesn't feel very lived-in. The emphasis on the "fantasy synth" tag is appropriate I think, there are some dungeon qualities but I do think it leans a bit more toward video game soundtrack type music. This would be great to throw on during a tabletop game I think, strong moods and atmospheres and never too distracting. The Palace of Cherek Kings stood out to me, very cool DOS game type sounds. Have you ever listened to Aardia – Fairy Tales from Beyond? I think they were really onto something special there, and I've always thought that was like the perfect fusion of those sort of Radio Rivendell and Mortiis type worlds, but yet still something new. I don't know anything about the Belgariad series, but I'm going to look into it, seems interesting. Thankyou so much for the constructive feedback. I made this album a few months ago and in the months following, I do feel I've tightened a bit of it up in following albums that I've yet to release. The music is definitely done quickly as I am an extremely prolific producer. I can't help that I'm afraid, I just make a track or three a day and that ends up causing very fast turnovers. Oh well, I guess if someone likes my style they do if not that's too bad. The not-lived-in criticism is fair as this was what I made having read the first book. As I got more immersed in the world I ended up making what I think is much more immersive and careful compositions on later albums, more of that later. Wizards of Aldur as a project is definitely inspired by modern fantasy game soundtracks like Skyrim and Minecraft. The lo-fi aspect of dungeon synth is more present in my magic willow and even moreso in some other projects I'm working on. Fantasy Synth is definitely what I'd call it for sure. I have not listened to Aardia but I'll definitely give it a look. I am really grateful for your positive feedback that I'm onto something special and that it's new and unique. That really means a lot to me, with Wizards I am definitely trying to experiment a bit with the fantasy synth formula and make something that one might not have heard before, but feels destinctly Belgariad-esque. Belgariad is fantastic I highly reccomend it. This album I feel is even better when you know who, what and where the tracks are about, it gives a bit extra depth (if I do say so myself lmao). Anyway, thankyou for your feedback I really appreciate it.
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Post by andrewwerdna on Oct 17, 2023 23:09:50 GMT -5
I'm glad you took the "not lived-in" criticism well and understood what I meant. I'm not used to giving that type of feedback, so that's reassuring to hear.
I think it's good to be prolific, especially when starting out because I think it's a way to develop skills rapidly, and also it's possible to make classic albums very quickly like that massive initial batch of Sequestered Keep albums.
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Post by magicwillow on Oct 17, 2023 23:55:39 GMT -5
Yeah sure! No worries! For what it's worth I love the in depth feedback you give newer artists, its great to help them develop their craft. I love those old sequestered keep albums btw. Very much my style.
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Post by magicwillow on Oct 25, 2023 19:34:34 GMT -5
New Youtube release!
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