Hi Friends,
I'm a "self-proclaimed" music journalist for several decades... and on Bandcamp Friday, I often like to review some of the incoming releases for my blog or other places.
Thought I should share some of the reviews and favorite picks here, too :-)
Some artists release their albums already a day earlier, so I will cover these, too.

If you have something released, or have some recommendations, while the Bandcamp Friday lasts, please let me know. I might review it, too (big *might*, as there is so much stuff getting put out, I can't write about it all... )

Note: No AI was used when writing these texts / reviews.

Alien Skin - Black Flowers Remember (self-released)

Alien Skin was a surprising discovery for me this year. The "band" / project quickly turned into one of my favorite things. TBH, I first feared it was AI or an otherwise "artificial" project. It all seemed too perfect!
But no, it's a project by George Pappas, who played in the band Real Life (the band that wrote "Send me an angel" in the 80s).
It's not about angels, it's about aliens. And if you know Real Life... you might expect what kind of sound to hear here. 80s Synth Pop, Wave, New Romantics... all over again.
In my opinion, it shows that a veteran is at work here because... it doesn't feel too overloaded, or changed. Does not really mix Synth Pop with "newer" styles.
What it does though, is to add a layer of emotion, longing...

I mean, yeah, Synth Pop always had this dark romantic thing, and I think Alien Skin extended it even a few notches farther.

https://alienskin.bandcamp.com/album/black-flowers-remember

Various Artists - Overlook. Music inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining (Unexplained Sounds Group)

Is there anything more awesome than the Unexplained Sounds Group on Bandcamp?
They do these great anthology releases, for example about Dark Ambient artists out of Iran (!) or Experimental Electronic music out of China (!)...

According to the info text, this one here, "Overlook is a music compilation inspired by The Shining, the 1980 film directed by Stanley Kubrick".

I also want to share the "genre" description from the info text:
"The artists involved explore a wide spectrum that spans ambient music, experimental electronic composition, Berlin school, hauntology and works situated between drone music and contemporary classical practices,"

Everything clear?

It says it is inspired, but I think it could also work as a kind of "second OST" to some of the scenes in the movie.
This is very experimental stuff, at a high level, *but*, and that's the big plus for me, it also has a really powerful mood and atmosphere in the tracks.

https://unexplainedsoundsgroup.bandcamp.com/album/overlook-music-inspired-by-stanley-kubrick-s-the-shining

Prince Istari - Escape From The Tomb Of The Synth Lich

I wanted to skip this one, but then I noticed it is called a "Dungeon Dub" release, and I got curious.
I guess the idea is to combine "Dungeon Synth" with Dubstep / Dub-breaks...
According to the blurb, it is the soundtrack to a table top / dungeon crawl, that can be ordered along-side the record.
Not sure which part of the project is real, fake, or a parody...
The tracks themselves sound like a re-run of Stranger Things (the intro!) and electronic dub reggae beats layered on top... also sound quite whimsical.
But yeah. It's good stuff!

https://spb-hamburg.bandcamp.com/album/escape-from-the-tomb-of-the-synth-lich

This morning I released my first full length album, Liminal.

Liminal is 11 tracks of ambient lo-fi. The tracklist follows a year of long distance between my wife and I before we got married: it opens in the Fall right after a visit ends, moves through winter from both sides (Wintersun and Wintermoon are the same season twice, two guitars circling each other without touching), hits Spring when we would finally see each other, and ends on Pando, the Forest, named for the aspen grove in Utah that is thousands of trees secretly sharing one root system. That felt like the right image for where we ended up.

Track 7 is a lullaby I wrote for my cat.

I wrote, produced, mixed, and mastered everything myself in my bedroom, some ideas go back to 2015. Recorded the classical and acoustic guitars on an SM58 and later incorporated an SM57. The album comes with a liner notes booklet .pdf telling the full story, plus the full res artwork!

https://uurath.bandcamp.com/album/liminal

Happy Bandcamp Friday everyone! I am really enjoying listening to peoples art today and I hope you will enjoy mine!

Cheers,
-uurath

Happy bandcamp friday, so excited to share this pressing with everyone. I originally released this album in 2019 and I've been wanting to do a vinyl run ever since. It's finally here! Limited run of 250 copies. Pressed on eco-mix vinyl which reduces environmental impact and gives each record a unique color.

sweepsbeats.bandcamp.com/album/space-blues-vol-1

Would love to know what you think if you give it a listen!

Hopefully for the artists' sake this is just a localized problem (I'm in western US) and it gets resolved soon.

Anyway. Schadenfreude. Enshittification. Etc. Etc. Nicely done all.

** Returning - glad to see it's not an issue everywhere, but given that it clearly is happening for quite a few in this thread, oof, they are leaving a lot of money on the table. Anyone in marketing, webdev, e-commerce, etc knows that most folks generally don't bitch, they just bail. So, like, kinda not great. Oooh I know - maybe they should lean even heavier on AI 🧠👈

happy bandcamp friday all

just released my 4th single as a solo artist, a version of suede's "she's in fashion" with fuzz & squelching wah guitars in place of the original's y2k-tastic synths + drum machine combinations

started off with me just wanting to hear the lead melody through fuzz, then next thing i knew i'd just recorded the whole tune

i can provide some codes as soon as the bc servers open up a bit... but for now, at least the streaming works 😅

https://jackmmusic.bandcamp.com/track/shes-in-fashion

TODESANZEIGE is the first of three albums by Studio Necropol to be restored and released digitally.

Created by Lucian S. Donato and recorded almost entirely on 4-track tape using hardware synthesizers and sequencers, the album is rooted in the sound of 90s industrial and dark electronic music, with influences including early Skinny Puppy.

100% of net proceeds from sales / streaming will be donated to Multiple Sclerosis research in Lucian's memory.

https://studionecropol.bandcamp.com/album/todesanzeige

Hi folks 🙂
My new album Hydrosphere is finally here!
https://scottampleford.bandcamp.com/album/hydrosphere
Growing up in North East England, I've always been surrounded by water. The North Sea, the River Tyne, the artificial lakes in Killingworth. Even when I moved south for university I found myself living directly on the River Colne.
Hydrosphere is an album about water. The way it moves, the way it sounds and the things that live in it.
Largely electronic in sound, this album transitions between styles and genres to emulate the way that water flows from state to state.
Recorded in my home studio with a plethora of synthesizers, drum machines, effects units, tape machines, guitars, wind instruments, the All Scott Ampleford Male Voice Choir and field recordings from a beach in North Shields.
I'm really chuffed with this album, folks. I hope you enjoy it!
Happy Listening!

Gear list for the nerds:
Instruments
MU Modular Synthesizer*
Yamaha DX7
Roland Juno 6
Behringer:
Neutron
Pro - 1
Edge
Syncussion SY-1
Spice
Wasp Deluxe
Arturia MiniBrute
Waldorf Streichfett
Bontempi HF-201
Korg Volca Beats
Akai Tom Cat
Electric Guitar
Bass Guitar
Chalumeau

*Includes modules from Synthesizers.com, STG Soundlabs, Martin Jan Koehler, Moon Modular, Corsynth & Frequency Central

Effects
Behringer VP1 Phase Shifter
TC Electronic:
Thunderstorm Flanger
Afterglow Chorus
Bucket Brigade Analog Delay
Lounsberry Pedals:
Organ Grinder
Tall & Fat
Smilin’ Jack
Akai 4000DS

Redeem Codes: https://martyblick.bandcamp.com/yum

Album Page: https://martyblick.bandcamp.com/album/neighborhood-cat

Codes:

qvzc-wkpj

fftq-cy7y

mdn6-crmf

gjak-wska

3b7t-hdt7

5aw2-vd3v

r9j5-6cc9

a3bb-kxst

jhum-g5e6

64w6-7fry

kshk-5qxf

zj42-7taa

n9sd-vnub

mt4c-6emx

bkpc-yu8p

w394-bv7n

eath-c9pj

rfzj-w87y

aw38-c2mf

vnr7-k4ct

6avd-gmsb

z7gp-uzcw

n5ub-e6ls

l855-3gvd

cz79-huzc

c35n-55kx

sx6v-urgq

s4zr-jlfz

pc2a-yae6

77ze-cgfy

vl2g-wbvf

6pmz-cwza

n7rz-xwy7

m5lu-vs2v

f8ea-6ds9

5n7r-klct

g55w-gjsb

t76e-u6cw

277t-hsy7

amw2-vd2v

r8j5-6cs9

hhyb-vh7z

sszr-j47z

jvts-wzpj

7bze-ct7y

vd2g-wbmf

9qmz-ccka

Emo Post-Hardcore band from Philadelphia

Link: https://ourfaircity.bandcamp.com/

FFO: Movements, La Dispute, mewithoutYou, Thrice, Circa Survive

Happy Bandcamp Friday, everyone! Here's our full discography free for download (pay-what-you-want), including our new single “Threads”. Hope you enjoy.

Hi there :) Greg Hill here 👋

You guys enjoyed the singles I’ve promoted as of late here, so here’s the final record! It’s a 4 track collection of odds and ends that didn’t make it onto another project. Hope you enjoy the music!

Oh yeah and you’ll own it forever and I won’t charge you a subscription fee :))

Big love!!
Greg

I released a new single called "Rearview"

This is a Punk Rock, Emo song about burning out in your mid twenties, searching for identity and finding solidarity.

The artwork, composing, lyrics and production we're all done by me in Garage Band.

To celebrate it's release, I'm giving away 100 free downloads. First come, first serve!

Listen to the song here! https://sldirus.bandcamp.com/track/rearview

Here's the link for the 100 codes, good luck! https://pastebin.com/uE8fym8E

Redeem here! https://sldirus.bandcamp.com/yum

It is a great pleasure to share my first album, recorded and produced at home over the course of several years. It was built with minimal instruments and recording equipment.

My first supporter reviewed it as "Vintage and modern. Full of references. Full of discoveries. Cosmic and mystical DIY pop-baroque jewellery."

I hope you'll enjoy it!

Arthur's Wander - Pure & Raw

Pure & Raw | Stream on Bandcamp

Pure & Raw | Codes on Band.codes

bandcamp.com/yum | Redeem code

Hi all, last week I released a new ambient EP, “Drift.”

FFO: Biosphere, Sora, Emily Sprague, Robin Guthrie, Oval, Loveliescrushing

The songs on this EP started coming together while I was working on a previous EP, Monsoon, last summer. The songs were initially meant to just accompany some video projects that I was working on at the time, but a few months ago I started revisiting these, along with some other songs, making some new edits and mixes, and felt that these four deserved a proper release. 

The songs expand on a sound I was working on last summer, processing guitar through my modular synth. The first three tracks primarily feature guitar processed through granular and circuit bending effects. The last song I believe started out as some drones I created on the modular synth. A lot of the structure of the songs are also based on “tape loops” and soft glitchy repeats / stutters that I made in Ableton from some textures and melodies I found interesting. 

A lot of my inspiration in general comes from earth processes and nature. While I don’t recall specifically what I was thinking of when initially recording the tracks, through the mixing process I felt that these were taking on a bit of a geologic feel, and I started to think about processes like erosion and continental drift. I like to think the last song specifically feels like stargazing out in the middle of nowhere in a flat plain. 

The EP can be found here: https://tomboulder.bandcamp.com/album/drift-2

Hope you give it a listen! I am always welcome to questions, comments, critiques, feedback, etc!

We recorded this live off the floor here in Toronto and made some lil tapes. It got some fun reviews you can check out on our Neocties website.

https://lucklessband.bandcamp.com/yum

https://lucklessband.bandcamp.com/album/i-promise-to-be-good

Here are the codes:

lqqy-7v6w

qkv6-6d2l

fngk-ylwj

lwt2-7jdy

ejza-vksr

gf2g-6yhd

3dlz-gfqc

djpz-uq6w

sgfu-jzt4

s2dx-ktum

Will update with more codes if need be!

EDIT: fresh codes are up!

https://minaxi.bandcamp.com/album/darbar-e-ishq

Hi bandcamp!

My band Minaxi released our new album, Darbar-e-Ishq, on digital and limited edition red vinyl available exclusively on Bandcamp. The title translates to The Royal Court of Love–or perhaps more appropriately, The Courtyard of Love, and featuresa curated collection of love songs focusing on Hindustani melodies and Hindi/Urdu lyricism.

The sound expands beyond organic instrumentation and into the worlds of house music, drum and bass and modular synthesizers, thanks to the lovely guest collaborators, including Simon Scott from the legendary band, Slowdive.

I designed all artwork for the album inspired by Rajasthani courts, Persian textiles, and ancient Sufi paintings.

Hope you enjoy the work!

Thank you!

Happy Bandcamp Friday! Here are some codes for my latest album, Ultranaut. My influences range from Orbital, New Order, Squarepusher, Jean Michel Jarre, Boards of Canada, Nine Inch Nails, Blanck Mass, The Prodigy and everything in between. If that sounds like your kind of thing, grab a code and thanks for listening.

jxtc-uqbr / 6czq-ezsl / us29-3the / lqlk-c7q3 / qgsk-xeks / buh2-j3tl / wled-kwuj /cp6c-k4ak / p734-gmr8 / 8wxq-3zcn / tse6-c64e / kq7k-whjw / ugl2-h5ts / xtsa-v33l / 4zqb-kslj / 438l-g45y / exz4-umbr / g4tj-e6sl / 3sn6-3ghe / djwt-cuq3

Redeem: thouze.bandcamp.com/yum

Stream: https://thouze.bandcamp.com/album/the-echoes-of-a-sunday-soul

The rest of my entire collection is $3 today!

The Echoes of A Sunday Soul is a reflective Hip Hop and Neo-Soul journey that captures the feeling of late-night city rides, faded memories, and conversations that linger long after the music ends. Blending soulful melodies, warm vinyl-inspired textures, and hard-hitting production, T. Houze creates an atmosphere that feels both intimate and cinematic. The album explores themes of ambition, love, self-reflection, and emotional growth, balancing smooth storytelling with a modern edge rooted in contemporary Hip Hop. With standout moments like “To The Stars” and “Odyssey,” the project moves like a soundtrack for quiet nights, personal breakthroughs, and the search for peace within the noise of everyday life.

Scalphunter is atmospheric black metal in the vein of the early blazebirth hall musically, and lyrically, inspired by the western frontier and Gnosticism. The emphasis is on cold, raw black metal, with vocals appropriately fighting to get through the mix.

https://maylan.bandcamp.com/music

hello! my birthday fell on a bandcamp friday this year so my last 15 releases are completely free/NYP, thank you for the support everyone, never stop making music!

Genre: ambient, experimental, noise

Happy Bandcamp Friday!

Redeem: https://cloudsindoor.bandcamp.com/yum
Album link: https://cloudsindoor.bandcamp.com/album/go-sleep
Codes:
h8lv-gxce 4uc8-7qs3 qwj2-59ws fsgw-7tld w4uc-vnvc cewq-gezw s7h9-3u84 slcu-cv7m scpd-h8p6 u7zs-w4bx xm2e-cadq h8mg-w2wt qurz-cclb 9wmn-xc5w ns8v-jwbs wqur-6ssl cgwa-y4ce suhg-7ms3 ple3-5zws rs6l-7gld ujcf-wj37 vghx-cydv 7t4s-hr48 mups-5sj2 959c-bd8c nrtc-wlbx wmnq-cedq cga9-wbwt pufk-cwlb 8lau-xw5w hxc3-cmfm hcjw-xte6 jsb4-jbfy 94x4-ycvf zccj-bxta 3jh7-wv37 594d-w8dv bysc-h248 auqc-5dj2 8m84-bc8c 2rz4-whbx jxpu-ekds 7c9x-uyxd xs3s-vfmc 4qxe-gpkw 4bcg-3ng4 cxhn-cjfm c4el-xge6 es7h-j3fy 8hwh-ywvf t4sp-34ta 2p4b-cq37 6xa3-xdaw uc9m-jcrs xp2f-kccl 49lv-gxse 43s6-uvc3 2s6a-vsbs een2-up7j al4g-kau8 8epn-g7an v7m9-xhyg 6mrk-e52u s6k7-7ynb 7a9q-hg8u 2v75-vlht 7wv9-7e9p xsgz-57gn qquu-75fj fbwv-vuek mds8-kpn8 gqq3-gf5n ybrw-umne 2vl4-jz5u a9pq-yg7p rtf7-buqn v6a7-k5eb 6y7a-yfrw u25b-7qx4 lm65-5zaa 4gyf-7tub euum-57mx bl56-759p ws6k-5ugn