:｡･:*:･ﾟ'♫

I'm tired and incoherent, so. Time to talk about some cool tunes! Here are some albums that I've been enjoying lately; maybe some of you will like them too.

♫ Illusion and Doubt by The Dead South. Toe-tapping gritty bluegrass fusion from Saskatchewan. They have the sort of sound that a lot of people either love or hate, but those who do like it really like it a lot. This one is their most recent album, but I'm totally going to have to look through their earlier stuff too.

♫ Cavalry in Thousands by Tengger Cavalry. Intense Mongolian folk metal; a must-listen if you like your metal with a dash of throat singing and traditional instruments. They have another album coming out in February, Cian Bi, and I'm looking forward to it.

♫ 箫韶 Xiao Shao by Black Kirin. These guys typically do operatic death metal, but this album is acoustic folk versions of their songs from the album National Trauma; pretty instrumentals with a traditional sound. But if the idea of operatic/folk-influenced death metal sung in Chinese appeals to you, I suggest taking a look into National Trauma or their more recent album Nanking Massacre - their sound is really good, but the vocal style doesn't suit me. As for Xiao Shao, I really love it, and rec it with zero caveats. It's gorgeous.

♫ In the arms of Mara by GRAI. Russian folk metal with pretty female vocals. The title track in particular is so very much my aesthetic, oh man.

♫ Ovayok Road by Scary Bear Soundtrack. Shoegaze-y arctic dreampop. The title track is great, but I also really love "My First Northern Lights". Their genre is one that I can usually take or leave, but there's something about their sound that I really like, can't quite put my finger on it.