From Dungeons Deep - Out September 3rd 2018

Dungeon Synth Compilation Out Soon!
For the uninitiated dungeon synth may seem like just another arbitrary micro genre, but this brand of dark dungeon music is so much more. Taking cues from everything from classic 90s black metal over obscure 8- and 16-bit video games to fantasy roleplaying games and literature, dungeon synth came from humble origins and has since blossomed into a large community, spanning a great deal of influences, styles and sounds.

H.P. Lovecraft: "I-II"

Highly overlooked band from one of the most exciting eras in music

It was far from horrific or esoteric when H.P. Lovecraft, the American rock band named after the famed weird horror author of the same name, rode the wave of psychedelia in the late 1960s in the US. Created partly by folk singer George Edwards, H.P. Lovecraft's only two true albums (a few others were later released under Lovecraft and Love Craft without Edwards) feels a bit more backwards-reaching than similar contemporary bands.

Friendship: "I&II"

Hateful mires of liquid metal

Sentient Ruin Laboratories from Oakland, California, have never been a label to skimp on music's outcast misfits. Be it grindcore, extreme metal or noise, this indie label are true purveyors of extremity. SRL have just now compiled two EPs of absurdly crushing Japanese powerviolence into one single nuclear crucicle of raw disregard and abrasiveness with Friendship's I&II.

Master Fury: "Circles of Hell"

Obscure heavyweights on CD for the first time

No doubt the US played an essential role in the rise of thrash metal in the 80s. While bands like Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, Megadeth, Testament, Overkill, Flotsam & Jetsam, Forbidden and more are usually the first that come to mind, hidden gems like Holocross, Heretic, Powerlord and Master Fury must not be forgotten.

Anatomia: "Dead Bodies in the Morgue"

The gorefest that is Japanese death-doom beckons to those who live for death

To connoisseurs of gore-soaked Japanese metal, and aficionados of death-laden doom, Anatomia should already ring a bell. Since their debut album in 2005 - aptly named Dissected Humanity - the band has, together with the likes of Coffins and Grudge (both of whom also appeared on the 2007 split between the three bands), put Japan on the map with their endless offerings of the heaviest and filthiest death/doom metal.

Deviator: "Way of Warriors - Hymn to Immortals"

Illustrations of mediocrity

Compilations can various purpouses. Some are merely a collection of a band's best efforts, while others yet portray a group's evolution, tracking their progression through styles or as songwriters. While most ambient black metal isn't normally associated with change and transformation bands within the genre obviously aren't immune to progression and stylistic change.