Many of us are being ordered to stay at home, which sucks in a lot of ways. It’s easy to get stir crazy or bored. Luckily, we’re facing the apocalypse scenario we were never told about: the one with the internet is still available.
So, being stuck at home has its silver linings, I suppose. Today, I embarked on a quest to find some killer new music to rock out to during this time we’ve come to know as, “The End Of Days.” I spent hours digging on Bandcamp to find some truly exceptional playlist material. All of this has come out in the last week or so and varies dramatically.
Van Shed by Vanished
https://vanishedd.bandcamp.com/album/van-shed
Favorite Track: Voyager
This seven-track chillwave album is just what I needed today to make data entry seem like a Nintendo game. If you like happy, chill electronic albums, this is perfect for you. When I listened, it gave me a happy swelling feeling in my chest. It felt like what I used to call “optimism”. I can’t tell you anything about this artist other than they go by Vanished and live somewhere in Charleston, South Carolina. Whoever you are though… keep up the good work! This album came out on March 24, 2020.
. by Sharker Knife
https://sharkerknife.bandcamp.com/album/-
Favorite Track: Islands
This album is the opposite of Van Shed. It is dark, harsh, thrashy, grimy, and industrial to a tee. Though the album is mildly unsettling, it fits very well with my lifestyle right now. When I listened through this the first time, I kept thinking about how it made me feel like I needed to stay in stealth mode as I gathered my essentials before heading to the nearest checkpoint. The album has a way of conveying the unnerving aspects of isolation. The weird knocks and creeks, the strange distorted noises coming from nearby. It’s almost sci-fi, but more on the mad scientist angle. This album was released on March 23, 2020.
The Artless Cuckoo Vol. II by DJ Scientist
https://equinoxrecords.bandcamp.com/album/the-artless-cuckoo-vol-ii
Favorite Track: Rega, Rega, Rega
This EP comes out on March 27 and I’m super geeked. DJ Scientist is off Equinox Records, the German label out of Berlin. Right now, you can listen to, “Rega Rega Rega,” and “Road To Tashkent”. Both the tracks that are available to listen to right now are bangers and I’m stoked to hear more. I think I cling to this so much because the samples are all over the place and vary in how they are distorted and effected while still sounding like chill soulful songs. This album is a fun one to listen to when you’re dying for a chill beat to bob your head to while out for a nature walk.
EX NIHLO by Grant Ulysses
https://grantulysses.bandcamp.com/album/ex-nihilo
Favorite Track: safety first
When I’m outside playing while maintaining my social distancing as instructed by the CDC, I need something a little more driving and poppy. I stumbled upon this new release from March 24th and felt my heart melt. This instrumental dream-pop album by Grant Ulysses from Toronto has the ups and downs that make the world seem like it has a retro camera filter on. Maybe it’s the tone of the guitar, the catchy riffs, and hooks, or maybe it’s the variance in the drum beats, but this album is fun and uplifting in a much-needed way.
pour celles et ceux qui nous croient condamné(e)s by BLATTE
https://blatte.bandcamp.com/album/pour-celles-et-ceux-qui-nous-croient-condamn-e-s
Favorite Track: L’Écuell
When I was scrolling through Bandcamp’s sub-genres under ‘electronic’, I found out about ‘witch house’ music. This piqued my curiosity, so I clicked the first band under the sub-genres tag and was happily greeted by this amazing EP. If you need a beautiful soundscape with shoegaze and post-rock vibes, this is for you. I got lost in the tracks of this album getting hit was ambient waves of distorted keys, guitars, and drums and I loved every second. This album was released on March 23, 2020.
Departure by Rayne Reznor
https://raynereznor.com/album/departure
Favorite Track: Survivors
Sometimes you need a good sci-fi playlist. For example, currently, when I have to leave my house, I like to listen to really dark synthwave to set the tone for a post-apocalyptic raid for essentials. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still going to pay for my groceries, but if I walk in with a tough face on that says, “I’m all outta bubblegum,” no one gets within six feet of me. This album is fantastic if you’re in dire need of killer retrowave electronic montage music. I’m pretty sure I can say this with confidence… we all always need good montage music. This album dropped on March 24, 2020.
The Love you withhold is the pain you carry by Sunsetter
https://sunnsetter.bandcamp.com/album/the-love-you-withhold-is-the-pain-you-carry
Favorite Track: The Love you withhold is the pain you carry
When I heard the first second of this albums featured track, I knew I was going to love it. This beautiful bedroom pop album is the first album released by Sunsetter since the 2018 album, “Worrybody”. Sunsetter is the project of Andrew McLeod from Hamilton, Ontario. McLeod describes the last few years as some of the hardest. After fighting a tremendous battle with his mental illness and spending a lot of time isolated while trying to work through things, he describes being at an all-time low, feeling empty and uninspired. After a year without music, he joined the bands Zoongideewin and Deep Bright which got his musical gears turning and got him talking about music with friends again. This new Sunsetter album is so wonderfully deep. It gives you a pit in your stomach at the same time it warms your heart. This album came out on March 20, 2020.
Paranoia by Tenseventeen
https://tenseventeen.bandcamp.com/album/paranoia
Favorite Track: Tag You’re It
If you’re craving something darker but still along the electronic vein, this may be more down your alley. Paranoia is much darker and ambient with a beat driving it along, but soundscapes setting the tone. For example, it’s hard not to feel a little creeped out when listening to the tracks when one of the tones sounds a lot like the ominous wind. This album was released on March 20, 2020.
I hope you enjoyed this installment of “Katy’s ‘End of Days’ Playlist. I’ll keep my eyes on the web for cool new stuff coming out during our elongated time at home. Stay tuned for part 2 coming to a computer near you soon. Until then, stay safe, stay healthy, and wash your damn hands!