kalameet
Peasant
Dungeon synth artist from Winnipeg, Manitoba, CA. Heavily inspired by Dark Souls and fantasy works
Posts: 12
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Post by kalameet on Mar 26, 2020 1:11:25 GMT -5
My new album The Age Of Fire now on bandcamp. Art done by Cavan Rian Hoover. Follow him on facebook at Rotting Reign Art & Alterations or on instagram at @rotting_reign. Also check out his band Nocturnal Departure. kalameet1.bandcamp.com/album/the-age-of-fire
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shalashaska
Squire
Croeso! Shalashaska dw i a dw i'n mwynhau dungeon synth.
Posts: 79
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Post by shalashaska on Sept 10, 2020 22:48:28 GMT -5
Love me some Dark Souls-themed music. I'll be sure to check this out.
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Post by ancientmeadow on Sept 11, 2020 8:05:38 GMT -5
Love me some Dark Souls-themed music. I'll be sure to check this out. The tape will be available from Ancient Meadow later this month.
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shalashaska
Squire
Croeso! Shalashaska dw i a dw i'n mwynhau dungeon synth.
Posts: 79
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Post by shalashaska on Sept 11, 2020 9:44:51 GMT -5
Love me some Dark Souls-themed music. I'll be sure to check this out. The tape will be available from Ancient Meadow later this month. Great shout! I'll see if I can grab me one. The souls universe has such potential for amazing dungeon synth. I've always envisioned an album like Taur nu Fuin but with voice lines from the game.
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Post by crystallogic13 on Sept 11, 2020 15:42:06 GMT -5
Well there are certainly people who also (like me ) think that speech detracts from the atmosphere, and we had not so long ago a couple of related discussions post here, regarding another I think souls inspired soundtrack that re-released the album without the samples... But still more DS is always a great thing
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shalashaska
Squire
Croeso! Shalashaska dw i a dw i'n mwynhau dungeon synth.
Posts: 79
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Post by shalashaska on Sept 11, 2020 21:28:25 GMT -5
Well there are certainly people who also (like me ) think that speech detracts from the atmosphere, and we had not so long ago a couple of related discussions post here, regarding another I think souls inspired soundtrack that re-released the album without the samples... But still more DS is always a great thing Interesting opinion! I can see why people don't like vocal samples in their dungeon synth. I know a lot of people use DS to unwind or put it on in the background while they focus on something and they're very easy to do poorly but I'm fond of well-used samples. Again, Taur Nu Fuin is one of my favourite albums, in large part because I love the sampling (it's like Tolkien himself is pulling the world together from out of the misty synths) and I fondly remember tracks from artists like Eskaiden and Death Grips that used vocal samples really well, granted those to aren't DS. I still feel like there's more room to explore vocals/samples in dungeon synth, maybe if (especially for fine gentlemen like yourself) artists would also always consider releasing their music without those elements too.
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Post by ancientmeadow on Sept 12, 2020 9:48:14 GMT -5
Well there are certainly people who also (like me :D ) think that speech detracts from the atmosphere, and we had not so long ago a couple of related discussions post here, regarding another I think souls inspired soundtrack that re-released the album without the samples... But still more DS is always a great thing :D A lot of really good dungeon synth includes lyrics, voices, or voice-overs, e.g. Depressive Silence, Lamentation, Burzum, Mortiis, Voices Of Winds, Grim, Mournlord, Gothmog, and so on.
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Post by crystallogic13 on Sept 12, 2020 17:18:02 GMT -5
Edited. And to get back on topic, about Kalameet, I wrote in the not so distant past : Listening now Kalameet and I really really dug this from the opening notes, the epic an atmospheric style you chose, I also liked as you might remember your previous work but I also immediately liked this one and now I'm already on second playthrough, it's tough to succeed in this genre to make a whole album continuously interesting , really good job!!
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Post by ancientmeadow on Sept 12, 2020 17:24:58 GMT -5
And to get back on topic, about Kalameet, I wrote in the not so distant past : Listening now Kalameet and I really really dug this from the opening notes, the epic an atmospheric style you chose, I also liked as you might remember your previous work but I also immediately liked this one and now I'm already on second playthrough, it's tough to succeed in this genre to make a whole album continuously interesting , really good job!! Yeah, Kalameet is awesome and the guy behind it is a very talented composer. I don't know anything about Dark Souls but I do know there's another Dark Souls-themed project called "Dungeons of Irithyll", which I will also be releasing in the future:
Ironically, it also includes vocals.
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Post by andrewwerdna on Sept 12, 2020 17:35:35 GMT -5
Edit: Ok, looks like the argument was removed, here's my two cents on the topic unrelated to that.
In any case, I think both of you guys can agree that it's an album-by-album thing, sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. I can't think of an example of where vocal samples have been used poorly, but I love the way Summoning did it, for instance on Lost Tales where the samples are present but not their usual vocals and guitars. And for vocals I tend to like them in DS more often than not these days, and even would like to hear more of that, whether it's whispering/mumbling or full-on black metal shrieks. There are definitely times I think when it hasn't worked so well though, like I think Elffor's discography would've been improved without them, though in that case they certainly didn't ruin it for me. I definitely did not like the vocals in the early Cernunnos Woods stuff, but I don't think removing them would've made me like those albums much more anyways (no disrespect to Bard though, I think he played a very important role in the history of the genre, just not my cup of tea).
Are there really many other people who feel that vocals completely ruin DS? I feel like I've seen the opposite sentiment much more, people explicitly looking for DS with vocals.
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Post by ancientmeadow on Sept 12, 2020 17:46:57 GMT -5
In any case, I think both of you guys can agree that it's an album-by-album thing, sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. I can't think of an example of where vocal samples have been used poorly, but I love the way Summoning did it, for instance on Lost Tales where the samples are present but not their usual vocals and guitars. And for vocals I tend to like them in DS more often than not these days, and even would like to hear more of that, whether it's whispering/mumbling or full-on black metal shrieks. There are definitely times I think when it hasn't worked so well though, like I think Elffor's discography would've been improved without them, though in that case they certainly didn't ruin it for me. I definitely did not like the vocals in the early Cernunnos Woods stuff, but I don't think removing them would've made me like those albums much more anyways (no disrespect to Bard though, I think he played a very important role in the history of the genre, just not my cup of tea). Are there really many other people who feel that vocals completely ruin DS? I feel like I've seen the opposite sentiment much more, people explicitly looking for DS with vocals. It's definitely an album-by-album thing, I agree 100%. Maybe even a "style-by-style" basis. For some seminal dungeon synth, like Bard's work, I think it's the uniqueness of the vocals or voice-tracks that really "make" the music. Most of the black ambient LLN material in the same vein; the creepy vocals "make" some of those incredibly uncomfortable pieces of music, haha. After years of digging through all the old and new stuff, it could be said that there's quite the range to choose from in terms of what style of vocals or voice-overs you're looking for in dungeon synth. Rarely, however, does an example as masterful or original as, say, MournLord come along. Even though Weiser is one of my good buddies, I still can't get into some of the vocal styles used in some Uruk-Hai material and the various side-projects, and his body of work is still among my favorites. There's always the factor of personal preference, which is fine. "Different strokes" as they say. To that end, though, some of the most important (and to some, the best, or very very good, at least) music in the genre is also rife with some kind of voice work.
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Post by andrewwerdna on Sept 12, 2020 17:55:48 GMT -5
It's definitely an album-by-album thing, I agree 100%. Maybe even a "style-by-style" basis. For some seminal dungeon synth, like Bard's work, I think it's the uniqueness of the vocals or voice-tracks that really "make" the music. Most of the black ambient LLN material in the same vein; the creepy vocals "make" some of those incredibly uncomfortable pieces of music, haha. Not a fan of LLN stuff either, but I can understand the appeal there, something totally bizarre and alien like the Hekaloth stuff (there's some interesting vocals for ya, objectively horrible but still fascinating). I think Crystallogic does have an interesting take though. One could make the case that any inclusion of electric guitars and/or blastbeats ruins the dungeon atmosphere and arguably cannot even be considered DS, and I don't think there would be much pushback there, and maybe for some people vocals fall into that same spectrum.
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Post by ancientmeadow on Sept 12, 2020 18:01:12 GMT -5
Not a fan of LLN stuff either, but I can understand the appeal there, something totally bizarre and alien like the Hekaloth stuff (there's some interesting vocals for ya, objectively horrible but still fascinating). I think Crystallogic does have an interesting take though. One could make the case that any inclusion of electric guitars and/or blastbeats ruins the dungeon atmosphere and arguably cannot even be considered DS, and I don't think there would be much pushback there, and maybe for some people vocals fall into that same spectrum. Definitely agree there: that's the beautiful and sometimes frustrating philosophical reality of music. Two people can listen to the same thing and feel two completely different ways about it.
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shalashaska
Squire
Croeso! Shalashaska dw i a dw i'n mwynhau dungeon synth.
Posts: 79
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Post by shalashaska on Sept 13, 2020 18:44:57 GMT -5
Maybe we could start another thread at some point discussing vocals in dungeon synth? I have a few things to say and I'd be really interested in reading more opinions on this. Dungeon synth kinda lives and dies by its atmosphere in most cases and while I think guitars, blast-beats and black metal shrieks can add to an atmosphere, I absolutely understand why that sort of thing turns people away. Anyway, back on topic!
I'm impressed to say the least with this release. The synths themselves strike that perfect balance of digital and analogue. There's so many weaving, hidden little melodies that I can't help but tilt my head back and listen in. My only "complaint" is it's over too quickly and I don't feel like I got enough time to soak up those beautiful soundscapes.
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kalameet
Peasant
Dungeon synth artist from Winnipeg, Manitoba, CA. Heavily inspired by Dark Souls and fantasy works
Posts: 12
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Post by kalameet on Sept 15, 2020 20:52:37 GMT -5
And to get back on topic, about Kalameet, I wrote in the not so distant past : Yeah, Kalameet is awesome and the guy behind it is a very talented composer. I don't know anything about Dark Souls but I do know there's another Dark Souls-themed project called "Dungeons of Irithyll", which I will also be releasing in the future:
Ironically, it also includes vocals.
Well I do my best. But clearly, my best has gotten a ton of attention. So thanks to everyone that has supported it and thanks again to Ancient Meadow Records for releasing it.
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