Dungeon Synth Digest
Image credit: Jonathan Carbon

Naïve Magic: A Dungeon Synth Digest #14—Roundup


Old School

Dungeon synth is the sound of the ancient crypt. The breath of the tomb, that can only be properly conveyed in music that is primitive, necro, lo-fi, forgotten, obscure, and ignored by all of mainstream society. When you listen to dungeon synth you are making a conscious choice to spend your time in a graveyard, to stare, by candle-light, into an obscure tome that holds subtle secrets about places that all sane men avoid

— Andrew Werdna (2011)

Andrew Werdna coined the term “dungeon synth” in 2011 as a new term that would describe a host of fantasy, medieval, and dark ambient acts that all worked towards the same thematic aesthetic. Dungeon synth was the name of both the original acts of the 90’s, side projects from black metal musicians, as well as the revival acts that operated in the early 2010’s. “Dungeon synth,” in its revival concept, has existed for more than a decade and shows little signs of waning. On a long enough timeline, what will be “old” to us versus what will be new?

The term “old school dungeon synth” has been used as a description for the sound of dungeon synth in the 1990’s. During the mid 2010’s, many modern acts played tribute to the sounds of this period, taking inspiration from acts like Mortiis, Burzum, and Depressive Silence. When different styles, such as more melodious and idyllic sounds became popular, “old school dungeon synth” was used as a dillenation between the sounds of the old and the new. This idea was in line with Wernda’s vision of “the sound of the ancient crypt.” Old school dungeon synth made sense as a style when there was modern dungeon synth and old school tribute. On a long enough timeline, however, the term old school will lose its meaning. What will be “old” in 2032 and 2052? What will dungeon synth history look like when it enters its twenty and thirty year anniversary?

It is my supposition and uneducated prediction that dungeon synth will develop in waves, similar to music like its black metal relative. Dungeon synth will have a first, second, and subsequent waves to delineate its progression of styles. What we know as old school dungeon synth or classic dungeon synth will be its first wave, which is the work of the artists who developed its sound but had yet to coin it as a style. The dungeon synth revival of the 2010’s will either be its second wave or third, depending if there is an excavation of the dark ambient releases in the 00’s. At this point, it is impossible to predict how the timeline will develop, but if one would like my unwelcome opinion, the global pandemic and subsequent boom of comfy synth in 2020 provides an easy juncture where dungeon synth became a plural community that was just as much about celebrating the old as it was at embracing the new.

We as humans take comfort in segmenting information and making it simplified. Music is full of timelines and simplified histories as we enjoy having one thing lead to another. I would love to write dungeon synth’s history and to catalog its styles which fits into ten year periods. History is often without clean edges and even something as niche as a fantasy ambient timeline will be ugly and unkempt. I know using the terms “First Wave DS,” and “Second Wave DS” now makes little sense, but perhaps on a long enough timeline it will be more utilitarian for us to classify information.

We begin our roundup with the always reliable and never faltering Gondolin Records. Henbane is the project of Chris H, a musician also behind the Danish raw black metal act Seiðr. Grimyrk is the unofficial / tribute soundtrack to the 2022 fantasy novel of the same name. If I get anything wrong about this it is only I am navigating through Danish fantasy blogs trying to pick out information. Henbane by Grimyrk, however, is a bit more forthcoming as an unassuming lofi dungeon synth which perches upon solemn and lonely hills. Henbane, even without its roots in fantasy literature, is an immersive experience which sprawls through 11 tracks of absolute sadness. Gondolin’s history with Henbane dates back to the very beginning of the label with 2018’s Vildfaren Og Jagtet being the first release for the label. Grimyrk is the 5th release from Henbane and while initially released in 2021, finally makes its way to a tape release from Gondolin in 2022. I might not know everything related to the book that is attached to this record, but I can understand the beauty in loneliness which the music offers.

In 2021, I praised Poseidonis, the debut from French act Arcanist. This release was a strong statement from a progressive electronic act which took dungeon synth and Berlin school synth and sent it sailing into the mystical ether. Hyperborea is based around the literary work of Clark Ashton Smith and very much like its thematic influence, exhibits some mind melting elements. While still adhering to the sound which surrounded their debut, Aracanist embraces doom and black metal elements making an alchemical solution that starts as dungeon synth but soon becomes something else entirely. The opening track “The White Sybil ” is a fantastic indication on the scope of the project leading from benign fantasy ambient into a metallic instrumental. If one thing can be said about this group is each of their records is a journey into uncharted territory where the rules of the old world no longer apply.

2020 seems so long ago and a part of a different time. The Sleeping Sword was the debut for Runecaster and was my introduction to a project which always felt like it was going to eventually evolve. Despite the local punk rock / black metal show flyer aesthetics of its cover, Runecaster resides in a different world. The Temple Revealed is the third release for the project and more so than any other release, this is the one where things make the most sense. With dungeon synth as a starting point, Runecaster throws themselves into a world populated by the echoes of exotica, new age, Berlin school, and cosmic ambience to bring a truly unique take on at home fantasy synth. Though the cover may look like a black metal demo, inside the music is truly mind warping progressive synth that is unlike many things already heard. I have always supported the migration of dungeon synth into new lands as I feel it is habitable in other places. The Temple Revealedis a success story of what happens when dungeon synth settles in distant lands.

Oh Dungeons Deep, what mysteries do you have for us today? Deep in the Dungeons Of The Dragonlord sounds like a Dungeons & Dragons module from the early 80’s but is in fact the debut from US based act Wrath Knight. Looking for information on the project brings up wiki pages for Warhammer40K which is probably as much information as you are going to be given. Wraith Knight is the work of OldNick (different than the GrimeStone Records artist) who has a resume of work in black metal as well as fantasy ambient. What is given in the absence of information is a lush and cinematic presentation which feels like a soundtrack to perhaps a tabletop RPG from the 1980’s. Through extensive tracks sometimes reaching into the 13 minute mark, Wraith Knight paints landscapes that are dramatic and breathtaking. From glittering packs or the blackest of shadows, the music for Deep In The Dungeons of the Dragonlord is an experience that takes its listener on an adventure.

At present, the US act Dyvyná has three demos and one full length all released within a two week period between late June and early July of 2022. The total running time for all Dyvyná material is currently 1 hour and 38 minutes. Dyvyná is a fantasy synth project of Elminster who has so many projects that it would take up this entire review just to list them. What matches the impressive nature of the running time is the craft and care which comes from dungeon synth that are both lofi in production yet immersive in practice. Dreams Of Novgorod is the fourth demo from the artist and has the fewest yet longest running tracks of all previous material. At track lengths over 10 minutes, Dyvyná paints medieval landscapes which are both relevant to history and open to epic fantasy. I have always enjoyed Elminster’s material and Dyvyná is a project which succeeds in its aesthetic. With enough room to elaborate in its sound, Dreams Of Novgorod is the perfect entry for one interested in the slumbering dungeon synth. Both dreamlike and somber, Dyvyná is something for the history books.

The world of Hole Dweller is one I would like to live with. If anyone was following the world of dungeon synth, they were aware of the departure and then soon return of US based act Hole Dweller. This small sabbatical is common among artists who oftentimes desire to live in fantasy realms but sometimes have to take respites in the real world. Another Chance At Peace is not just the first album from Hole Dweller in two years but a gleeful celebration of one of the moist influential artists of contemporary dungeon synth. Its raining melodies sound from worn horns and are a tapestry of hazy day drinking among forest folk. We have all seen the journey this artist has gone on from lofi idyllic synth to progressive electronic which sounds like it was pulled from BBC library music vaults. Another Chance At Peace is a regal feast played from the ancient halls of some kingdom very far away. I am glad to be invited to this celebration as I feel it will last for a while.

I don’t know if anyone checked in on Serpent’s Sword in a while as the page for their releases has been cast in an eternal shroud of darkness. The catalog for this label is a constant struggle between brightly colored covers to ones that look like they were pulled from raw black metal crypts. The darkness has won over for now with a string of neoclassical and dark ambient releases including a debut from Orlok’s Mourning. At this point it is impossible to parse out the artist behind this project as it seems to be a dead branch apart of a larger and more ghastly tree. What is known is that A Black Incantation Cast Upon His Kingdom is an extravagant “old school dungeon synth” tribute which sets rich melodies loose in a world of vampires, bats, and abandoned castles bathed in moonlight. If one enjoys the mood and tone of this release, trust in the fact there is a library of similar sounding despair which lies inside the crypts of this label.

Come with me to Ancient Egypt! Skhemty (Pschent) is “the headdress of the later Egyptian pharaohs formed of the two crowns worn by the respective pharaohs of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt before the union of the country under one rule.” Skhemty is also the name of a French artist who also is behind the cosmic project Weress. Sunrise on the old Kingdom is a fantasy project embracing the exotic locale of Ancient Egypt as it exists in most imaginations. The music of ancient Egypt has, for the longest time, been a source point for mystical reconstructions and because of the lack of actual musical source material, what exists is creative estimations. Sunrise on the old Kingdom is another creative estimation, though the artist is more interested in the fantasy of the region rather than musical history. Skhemty joins the traditional sounds of Middle Eastern music with a dungeon synth backdrop taking the fantasy of ancient Egypt and making something entirely new. While one can get caught up in the cultural implications of a project like this, Skhemty approaches this subject matter as others have approached medieval Europe and taken partial truths and partial fiction to create an entertaining and immersive experience.

Leaking Crypt is from Japan and I do not know how it appeared in my collection. From the sounds of its ghostly tones, I am going to assume this release has always been a part of my collection like the end of some horror film. Both デモ一 (“Demo 1”) and デモ二 (“Demo 2”) are incredibly short presentations of comfy / ghostly synth which border on the sweet, sublime, and supernatural. Beneath the veneer of sweet melodies which sound like they are being played by a grandmother from an electric piano is a sense of surreal unease. Being immersed in this release brings more questions without answers. Why is this project called “Leaking Crypt”? Why does the logo look like it is a raw black metal act? Is this project really from Japan? Who is playing the piano right now if my Grandmother has been buried for 10 years?

To begin with the important things first, Siege Golem is perhaps the best name in current memory and I laugh each time I hear it. Enter The Golem is ludicrous, even approaching the levels of sublime. A crude mixture of dungeon synth, raw black metal, and the Castlevania OST which somehow opts to be spooky rather than horrid. This is not a specter which haunts your very existence rather a ghoul who is serenading you by the moonlight. Enter The Golem is absurd and I can not think of a better sound which makes me laugh each time I hear its name.