Lux Viridis - March of Thieves
The very first go at this new Dungeon-Synth related style called Pirate Synth. Lux Viridis hails from Ukraine, Kiev and this is (I think) the first album of his meddling with the world of pirates. The cover art clearly tells it, a piracy and skeletal character behind the ship´s rudder. The title March of Thieves fits the cover-design perfectly. 10 tracks, about 35 minutes long.
So how does pirate synth differ from dungeon synth? So far it seems more (physical) energetic and dramatic, no creeping along the walls of some hidden and forgotten dungeon here folks. Folksy merriness, neo-classical heroism, and martial epicness would be the 3 keywords to this. I think that the consumption of alcoholic beverages would go nicely with this, why?... The spirits are high in a good way!. A party/bar for dungeon synth fans maybe? Anyone???`...
The first track The Heastone Harbor clearly illustrates this. Accordion-synth, sounds of seaborn winds, swinging rhythmic tunes with storytelling trumpets and martial drums. Most the album will offer this merry (and a bit murky) moods. I am not exactly 100% sure... but at times in the album, I can almost sense/hear an admiration for traditional synth-pop melodies? At one time it sounded not that far-away from early Depeche Mode, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark even Kraftwerk!. Maybee it´s just me and my old ears. But in either way, I think that these synth-pop´ish elements give the album a very unique signature. Sort of in the same way that a martial-industrial act like Dernière Volonté has synth-pop elements.
This is the fourth Lux Veridis release (second album), with 2 EPs also out on his Bandcamp. A physical cassette with this act has been released via Ancient Meadow, called Lords and Ashes. A cassette release for this album would definitely be on my wishlist. I don't know much about other pirate-synth releases, but I would say that this release would be a good start/introduction to the style.
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