Review published on 21/05/2026.

Dungeon Synth is no stranger to unique themes, but Dungeon Synth about volcanic activity is something I would never come to expect. I will admit volcanoes have always been special to me ever since I first saw The Rite of Spring section in the Fantasia movie, so I was very curious when I first read about it. Fun fact of the day: the Dutch word for ashtray is asbak, which is very similar to the acronym AZBAC. I guess it’s a coincidence, but I find the similarities with the subject matter a bit too funny to let it go unnoticed. 😊

The man behind AZBAC hails from the Azores, a Portuguese archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean whose primary contributor for its existence is laborious and complex volcanic activity. In fact, the archipelago is a triple junction between three major tectonic plates, effectively creating a fiery crossroads for three continents, thus turning the islands into a hotspot for volcanic activity and earthquakes. As a result, the history of the islanders is very much centered around the geology of the islands. Green-encrusted volcano summits, flowing lava, rumbling earth, sulphureous smoke, desolation,… we come across all of these. I think it was a daring choice, but the result feels so fitting I can’t help but wonder why this hasn’t been done before (to my knowledge). Credit to the artist’s creativity for this decision.

The end result is a record which showcases a diverse color palette of various ambient and dungeon synth genres put together, but the inclusion of several original instruments gives it a very unique sound. It has some similarities to the legendary Slow and Heavy by Diplodocus, but AZBAC’s sound is much more polished and the compositions on this album are longer, more refined, and a bit more varied (and naturally devoid of dino sound effects). Opening track The Verdant Slumber starts off with tropical birdsong, but a volcanic eruption forces itself onto the foreground before we can doze off into a reverie. Interestingly, some birds take flight, but they don’t seem as startled as I had expected; as if they have grown accustomed to the natural order of this fiery land. Quite the contrary, the tropical ambient sound effects continue before relaxing pan flutes and light piano melodies mark the musical launch of the album. It’s an overt signal of the start of the album, but also deeply symbolic of the duplicitous nature of the islands. There is the semi-tropical environment which invites a sense of tranquility and peace, but there’s also the very real danger of the forces of nature, and the terrifying calamities and awe-inspiring beauty which they give form to. Dungeon Synth is often about invoking mental pictures, and AZBAC proves to be masterfully skilled at this. The second track of the album is a perfect example. Echoes of Magma Symphonies takes us on a trip towards the summit of a volcano where we can see volcanic activity in its most active form. We hear clever synergies of solemn seismic pulses serving as percussions, t(r)ickling synth melodies, tugs of a plucked stringed instrument which I failed to identify and brass instruments (I think I hear a French horn and/or a trombone), which results in the mimicking of smaller pot holes of liquid lava bubbling and spewing gouts of flame and acrid smoke. The brass instruments feel particularly important here, because they add a dramatic flair to the music which is needed to accentuate the primordial atmosphere AZBAC wants to create. Needless to say, I’m very impressed.

What strikes me as equally impressive is the choice and use of natural sound effects. Some of them, if not all, are the result of field recording (of his own making) or genuine samples, and their quality is good (though somewhat subdued in favor of the volume of the music). For example, the crashing waves in The Molten Tide and the bubbling lava in Caldera Shrine sound authentic to me. Speaking of the latter, this track contains some elements of traditional Dungeon Synth combined with original elements. We get a return of the same brass instrument(s) we heard during Echoes of Magma Symphonies, but there’s a new inclusion of clappers which I didn’t see coming. There are also choir elements which serve as a hymn (to me, at least) to the desolation found within a caldera.

We then come across my favorite track of the album, which is Volcanic Zenith Contemplation. The track starts with similar choir elements we were introduced to in the previous track, but they now serve as the music’s backbone rather than its climax. AZBAC takes his time to build up a hypnotic atmosphere using minimalistic synth melodies and a subtle electric drum rhythm along with the choir, which reach a magical climax around the halfway marker of the track, which is being reprised (in a way) near the end. True to the name of the track, I can very will imagine myself adopting a lotus position whilst sitting on a volcano’s summit as I take in the desolate landscape. It leans heavily on the more meditative subgenres of Dungeon Synth and reminds me in some ways of Valen’s Viarum. That’s a big compliment and no mistake.

While I believe the first half of the album is the slightly stronger half, I do believe every track is well worth listening to. Rites of the Abyssal Core has a brief choir which reminds me of Quest Master, while Lava Rain Dance is an almost heroic composition, which is in large part because of the occasional simple synth melody simulating bells and triumphant brass instrumentation. It is a significant contrast with the final track Crypt of the Ashen Crater, which showcases AZBAC at his most ominous. It reminds me of a sleeping volcano with a blackened summit, threatening to blow up at any given moment. As I listen to the music, I feel tremors coming from deep within the earth’s crust, ready to unleash a pyroclastic flow meant to engulf us. We run for our lives when the volcano finally does erupt. We try to outrun the flow, but we know it is in vain. The clouds catch us, and we become imprisoned in a crypt of hot ash, never to be found again.

Zenith beneath the Ashen Clouds stands as a dramatic reminder that humans are relatively small compared to the wonders and terrifying power of nature. We have mastered many arts during the course of thousands of years and will probably continue to do so for some time, but Mother Gaia and her temperament reigns supreme. She will not be swayed or tamed, which is both comforting and terribly disconcerting. This extraordinarily well-crafted record serves as a reminder of both.

Fenix Silvermoon approves, and declares: