Bandcamp Roulette is a feature from contributor Secat that scours Bandcamp for interesting, new, and under-the-radar releases. This edition features albums from Spectrum Ryder, Swami Raja, and PinaeppplaGog.
Three gems that all flirt heavily with the unknown and esoteric; listens for the head and the heart. Let’s jump right in:
Spectrum Ryder – Spectrum Ryder
Hailing from Austin, Texas, Spectrum Ryder’s self-titled debut LP is a difficult project to write conclusively about, but for the right reasons; over its seven sweeping, moody, rumbling soundscapes (my personal highlight of which being the stellar “Moon Bloom”), Spectrum Ryder creates its own singular universe of sound, exerting a gravitational pull that anchors you to it firmly. Low-key enough to serve as effective background noise, but complex and varied enough that a focused listen proves endlessly rewarding. In the hands of a lesser creator, these compositions might unravel themselves, dissipating into meaningless echo and fuzz; but, instead, they engage and challenge the listener: drop whatever you’re doing, and pay attention. Your ears will thank you later.
Listen if: you’re the protagonist of a Silent Hill game but you can spare a few minutes away from the game loop to relax and sit on a beach chair somewhere
Favorite Tracks: “Moon Bloom”, “Realism in Blue”, “Rippling Chemtrail”
Swami Raja — भगवद् गीता
The latest release from Louisville, Kentucky-based record label Infinite Sync Studios, भगवद् गीता is a sublimely cacophonous and deeply moving statement of identity that brings an overlooked creative perspective in ambient and vaporwave to the forefront; it shimmers and shakes and grits its teeth in modes that may be outside your understanding. Come for this, the newness, and stay for the beauty; the way it moves through water, how it holds its breath.
Listen if: you have lost contact with the abyss, and wish to reestablish it
Favorite Tracks: “विभूतिविस्तारयोग”, “ज्ञानत्रयधारायोग”, “श्राद्धत्रियविभागयोग”, “मोक्षसंन्यासयोग”
PinaepplaGog – PinaepplaPOP
Stutterpop contortions: blown-out wastelands of reminiscence, signifiers that cry out to each other from across the dark. Gaunt, frail reverb: ghosts wailing from the walls and the ceiling; everything is compressed, bending in on itself. The songs seize up; they stop and start at whim. Strange, joyous, fleeting, indistinct. Made to be lost in. Keep your hand on the right wall of the maze. Look straight ahead.
Listen if: you’re trapped inside a copy of Mary-Kate & Ashley: Magical Mystery Mall (ugh, again?!)
Favorite Tracks: “Samok 4_2”, “Didn’t Mean It”, “Break Apart”, “Chase”
‘Till next time; keep on, rockstars!
Secat is a musician and writer based in Houston, Texas. To see more of their work, you can follow them on Twitter (@secatsecat) or check out their personal blog at secatsecat.home.blog.
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