Stream of Consciousness & Music Reviews

       Soulside Eclipse I, the artist's second album, is a departure from their first album, Forgotten Conquest. Where that one focused on ambient droning synths, Soulside Eclipse I takes on a more complex composition, now being a self described symphonic black metal work. And while this album retains the same proficiency at creating tone and atmosphere, I was left wanting a little more. The melodies and loops are still good but I feel like they lose a little bit of the charm that it had when it was purely a synth-focused effort; the more complex tracks make me wish it had a little more to offer. That being said, what it does offer is still good and an enjoyable listen, if a tad unengaging (I found myself getting distracted a few times while listening, but that may just as well be a fault of mine rather than of the album). The pacing and structure of the album are good, gradually getting darker and more dramatic the deeper in you get, and it has a nice feel listening...

      Hooray, another obscure micro-genre for me to dig my teeth into! Today's prey is Soulside Eclipse's Forgotten Conquest, a dungeon synth album. If you know me, I love a good synth instrumental (which should be readily apparent from a number of other reviews on this site) and this is no exception. The soundscape that this album creates is captivating, pulling forth of number of emotions throughout its runtime. It's ability of storytelling is fantastic, with it being able to truly evoke vivid imagery through it's instrumentation, especially with accompanying blog post by the artist . The droning tones and overly repetitious melodies and motifs really get across that feeling of loneliness and dread that the "story" is trying to convey. I might say that it can be a little too monotonous and repetitious sometimes, occasionally losing my interest before it shifts towards something else to pull me back in. Sometimes along with this the music can feel a little fl...