Get ready for another lovely long play release by the notorious Pinkamena Party Crew! Released in celebration of this year’s Hearts and Hooves Day, this avid electronic collage contains 16 hardcore, gabber, and breakcore pieces. Jump right into it with the classic acidic gabber emotion of Dynamite Grizzly’s Genuine Pony Music. For flavors incorporating slightly more complex music theory, check out Pudding Vision by Neu KatalYst and 10 minutes is a long time by Facade of ages. For the addictive syncopations of the amen break along with a couple suggestive remarks, check out Enuna’s semi-serious track named Of Mares and Manchildren. Of course, an album of these stylistic themes wouldn’t be complete without some classic acid techno! For that aspect, listen to acid for twilight sparkle by aimaiiponyshitsu. In this album, Supersaw Hoover also reads a bittersweet goodbye to the Ponydome series in an ominous tone. And finally, Duskfall brings a wonderfully fitting close to the album with his sample-mangling song I WANNA BE WITH U. Once again, the PPC presents an electronic album fit for even the lightest electronic listeners. For the bigger fans of hardcore and breakcore, be careful, you might hurt yourself headbanging! And as always, proceeds from this album go to CLIC Sargent to help children with cancer.
Album post
Albums and EPs, with further details about individual songs.
MelodyBrony – Origins | Album | Metal
MelodyBrony burst onto the scene in 2019 and quickly gained attention as both a recording artist and live performer. Early on he achieved several high-profile collaborations and even earned a spot in the BronyCon Superband playing multiple instruments for several performers! Origins is a compilation of 5 collaborations he’s completed in just over a year in the fandom.
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Blackened Blue – Self-Titled EP | Metal
Another genre within the fandom that needs more love is talented hard rock and metal musicians within the fandom. You have your guys like PrinceWhateverer and Cyril the Wolf. There is so much more out there for everyone to check out. Like this dude from the UK. Fellow colleague Blackened Blue. He put his best hoof forward in his first official EP featuring 5 tracks of pure heavy metal goodness.
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Koa – To The Nines | Album | Pop / Electronic
Buckle up kids because this album is a must-have and has a little bit of everything! Koa started making a big splash on the scene last year with her hit single To The Nines and the full album follow-up named after the track packs all of the flashy and catchy tunes you would hope! The nine-song set contains several fantastic originals with a couple of excellent choice covers in the mix. Several popular fandom musicians appear over the course of the album including General Mumble, PegasYs, ShobieShy, and Luck Rock. While each song on this album is great and memorable in its own, here are just a few highlights:
Talk to Me – the light, ukulele-centered opening track has a very warm and welcoming message. With hints of pop-bass, a bit of chip-tune, and some humor, this song sets the stage for the personality that grows throughout the rest of the album.
Take Off – This electropop hit takes inspiration and impressively-mixed vocal chops from Hurricane Fluttershy. The theme is Rainbow Dash getting the pegasi in shape, and is set to a very catchy workout beat.
JFJF – This sassy track takes aim at people see a pair together and make blanket assumptions about the nature of the relationship. An interesting take on the concept of friendship, PegasYs lends his void to this upbeat bop and explains sarcastically and humorously how two people can be Just Friends, Just Fine.
Second Best – A very emotional and deep piece centered around a gorgeous, melodic piano riff, Koa explores the deep emotions of a dejected Great and Powerful Trixie. With supporting vocals from Luck Rock and ShobieShy (who provides a sick rap as well!), Koa really hits hard to anyone who has ever suspected others just want them to disappear.
Maressey – The Twiluna Album | Album | Jangle Pop
After a long 3 year wait, Maressey have delivered their fourth and final album, The Twiluna Album! As we’ve come to expect, Maressey is a tribute act that focuses on ponified versions of songs performed by The Smiths, a British indie pop/rock band that were around in the 80s. Freewave leads the Maressey project and has brought a large amount of guests on board to help with the music and vocals, such as FritzyBeat, Faux Snyder, Fire Frets and Sylverlining. Snyder’s vocal talents in particular are to be noted, and can be heard across songs such as Bigmouth Strikes Again, Luna in a Coma and Well I Wonder; her higher voice makes for a nice contrast in place of Morrissey’s deeper baritone range. Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want showcases Zatslol‘s vocal work, which is also noteworthy for featuring a striking resemblance to Morrissey’s own voice. Standout tracks include Some Mares…, Luna in a Coma and Back to the Old House, which stand as very faithful renditions to their original tracks.
Equinity – 02: Catalyst | Compilation Album | Multi-Genre
The second installment in Equinity’s power compilation album series, Catalyst blasts sounds from the future and masterpieces all around from many pony musicians and familiar faces. Newcomers participated as well, and in harmony everypony created this wonderful painting of memories shared. From the Zecora-themed Mumbo Jumbo by Cynifree, to the dank Brohoofdab from the duo of TPressleyJ and ShobieShy, to the divine DnB beauty Sea Stack from Tw3Lv3 and Niłch’i Poni, to the mega collab opener of the album… and many, many more inbetween waiting for you to discover them, if you haven’t downloaded the album already! All funds raised will go toward TeamTrees! Kudos to Equinity staff and all the contributing musicians for their dedication and incredible work, certainly acting as a catalyst for even more wonders to come!
VibePoniez – Hearth’s Warming EP | Compilation Album | Lo-fi / Chillout
This is a great time for pony music. New faces are are showing up while old ones are returning, already existing labels are developping while new ones are being created. In terms of chill music, 2019 began with Spikey Wikey’s mix showing there was demand for this family of genres that had been previously left aside by the fandom. Later this year, Tw3Lv3, Steryotype and TheTaZe undertook the responsability of building a scene from the ground up in some sense and produced decent amounts of music to relax/study to, to quote the YouTube stream that rose lo-fi to the popularity it has today. In september they created the label VibePoniez that sought to “promote brony artists who make chill music”. They had expected to have 3 to 4 lo-fi tracks overall on their debut album but it went much beyond their expectations as they recieved submissions from a great diversity of genres and even some from big names in the community.
This long EP starts off with meme tracks from the label founders themselves that are nonetheless very pleasent to listen to. Single Purpose‘s track Setbacks is short, sweet and minimalistic and uses a heart wrenching Octavia sample. Paloris‘ i still miss you makes creative use of Twilight vocal chops from I Have to Find a Way and has a great deep bass which creates a terrific chilled out atmosphere. TheChristmasSong(ChestnutsRoasting) from Steryotype is exactly what you’d expect from him: clean classic lo-fi beats. Reflection by Rayne Dear, an alias of PhonicB∞m apparently, uses some nice percussions made up of various sounds they recorded in their dad’s kitchen. Tw3Lv3 made a liquid drum & bass remix of GrazySmash‘s Dream from Helpie’s Corner: Other Side Of The Mirror, which definitly falls under the chill category. :Twi: by TCB will get a post of its own soon. Happy Mood is Insane Domi aka Mr.Sunset’s first ever released track. Even though it didn’t quite make it in Equinity 02: Catalyst, with a few tweaks and help with mastering from Tw3Lv3 it became a rock solid track to relax to. Lorris Power Note‘s Sentiments brings yet another genre to the album being a cute vocal chops-heavy synthwave track. VibePoniez’ first album and sucess ends on an ambient piece by GrazySmash which comes off as a surprise considering Grazy had only made hard hitting music so far.
Now we almost have enough for a 24/7 pony lo-fi radio! Make sure to follow VibePoniez on Bandcamp and YouTube to catch their latest releases!
Toby Macarony – Shenanigans | Album | Electronic
Toby Macarony makes incredible and unique music that only Toby Macarony can make! For years now, they have been pushing the boundaries of conventional dance music and thrilling those paying attention with a hybrid electro swing/horror style while occasionally dabbing into other genres as well.
Shenanigans puts the full array of talent front and center with a variety of amazing tracks! The vocal chop work is out of this world, with the timing, tuning, and modulation.
The first track The Starlight Glimmer Express has a powerful and very jazzy feel. The beat bounces to a train-like cadence and sets the stage for a crazy album.
Songs like Sunset at the Farm, and AJ’s Muscles utilize some country instrumentation and get a very homely, Applejack feel with the twang from a banjo among other stylized instrumentation.
One of the biggest standout tracks on this album is Forever which is a sound bath of incredible vocal chops, expertly panned. It uses only a little bit on piano, focusing almost entirely on the layering of familiar tidbits from several show songs. The track amazes from very early on and only gets better and better throughout the 6 minute run-time! You do not want to miss out hearing this song and it follows that you should do yourself the favor of listening to the full album. There is absolutely no musician in this fandom (or probably outside of it either!) who does what Toby Macarony accomplishes!
Thrasher – Welcome To Insanity | Album | Industrial Metal
Industrial metal musician Thrasher’s third studio album is finally here, and it’s definitely a treat. With 11 tracks of industrial metal goodness, this is an album you won’t want to pass up. Emanon, Blackened Eyes and A Villain’s Descent were released as pre-release singles, which leaves us with 8 brand new stellar songs to hear. After the album’s ominous opener, Evolution, we’re greeted with powerful metal tracks in the form of Emanon and Annihilation. Both of these songs are erratic and fast-paced, filled with chugging guitars that you’ll easily find yourself headbanging to. Track 4, – Disoriented – starts out with a unique Indian-inspired atmosphere, with tablas and sitars leading the intro before bringing the rhythm section and distorted guitars into the mix, making what can best be described as a heavier Tool-sounding song. The middle of the album sees a minute long interlude, consisting of a distant electric guitar ringing out before heading into the transition for the next track, Insanity. The two stand out tracks on this album are Colossus and The Word Above, both of which are longer than 6 minutes. Both tracks are heavy, filled with electronic elements and feel a lot shorter than they actually are. Overall, this album is a must-listen if you’re into industrial metal such as Fear Factory. You won’t regret it in the slightest.
Francis Vace – Horses In Real Life EP | Ska Punk
It’s never too late to release an album on our favourite sextuplet of pastel coloured horses, which is exactly what Francis Vace recently decided to do. Horses In Real Life is a 6 track EP of all original catchy ska punk songs based on the concept of the Mane 6 living in the real world. Track 1 is My Rainbow Horse and Me, first released on Ponies at Dawn: Eternal, and depicts a scenario where Rainbow Dash is living in someone’s house after popping through a TV. She’s said to be a messy freeloader, living with no job and using the character’s utilities for herself. AJ’s Honest Apples tells the story of a new brand of apples reaching town, with the chorus being sung from her point of view. These apples are free of pesticides and taste like no other apples you’ve ever had! Interview With A Fashion Icon tells the story of Rarity being interviewed about her time in the human world as well as her fashion endeavours. While keeping the familiar ska elements, it’s a slower number that feels like something Rarity would have no problem singing. The fastest track on this album, Bright Pink Horse, is about Pinkie simply dancing in the street, with the fast pace capturing Pinkie’s hyperactive personality with flying colours. Overall, with six fast tracks about our six favourite ponies in six unique scenarios, this is an EP you can’t pass up. If you’ve enjoyed Francis’ work over the years, this will be a great addition to your collection!
Horse Music Herald 