Sonic Cartography

Written by Chris Magdalenski

The Simple Joys of Sonic Cartography:

A Meditation on the Act of Discovery and Where the Road Leads Next

Besides playing guitar or mindlessly noodling on a synth, one of my favorite musical pastimes has become diving the depths of Bandcamp in search of new music. 

This has always been something I've been somewhat lackluster about. I never quite shook off my Gen X experience of corporate media having an outsized influence on what I was listening to at any given time, despite the fact that I know full well that these days one may have to do a little work to find those diamonds hidden in field after field of the rough.

Thanks in no small part to my new role on Absynth's editorial staff, I've made it my focus to become far more proactive in my efforts to discover interesting new music in the darker, grittier genres like metal, postpunk and darkwave, among others.

While this is largely where my own personal tastes lie, it also nods to the future of Absynth itself. The time has come for the platform to expand beyond the synth community, offering content that encompasses work from our dark artist brethren all across the musical landscape.

You might've already read the stories about, (and hopefully listened to), some of our efforts already. Prog metal newcomers Dread Majesty are a find that we are all still banging our heads to, while smaller more personal projects such as "Finite Planetary Possibilities" by Vernal Ecosphere and "A Violent Egress" by Stygian Ruin offer fresh takes on the dark ambient and black metal genres respectively.

Both the act of discovering and getting the word out about these artists is something myself, and the rest of the staff at Absynth love doing. Bandcamp has become my primary excavation ground, and though there are plenty of other sources to tap, it is the one I find myself revisiting over and over. It the place I often start my journeys of musical discovery, or as I know like to call it - my own personal sonic cartography.

I’m not sure what prompted that particular phrase, I might well have picked it up from somewhere else along the way, but I can’t get the concept out of my head. The Sonic Cartographer, studiously charting the ever expanding realms of music in an effort to make what was previously unknown known. To discover exciting new worlds of sound and expression and share our findings with anyone and everyone willing to listen.

To continue drafting the map of our musical adventures so we can always reference where we’ve been and where we are going.

Becoming a Sonic Cartographer has provided me a simple, yet powerful joy in my life. One that I would wholly recommend to anyone no matter what types of music you listen to. 

Won’t you join us on our next journey?