Buried Echoes – Umbra Lucida (Album Review)

Buried Echoes has a new album, Umbra Lucida. It’s an instrumental carnival, meaning that there are no vocals on any of the seven songs I tend to think of as IDM. The album was released on the 14th of August 2026.

The artist describes their project this way:

‘Unique and experimental electronic music; the album’s theme is mostly cinematic, with the opening track Time to Live, Time to Die inspired by Blade Runner’

‘Time to Live, Time to Die’ starts the project. It’s a demanding IDM track. It starts with some synths that stretch at one’s ears as they progress. Beneath the synths, you get a lethargic one-step kick that plays at lengthy intervals. Then later on comes what sounds like a continuous piano key that gives the song its melodic touch. The melody plays fast at first, but becomes lazier and prolonged afterwards. This new key starts sounding like an ice-cream van. Throughout the song, you get a bassline that gives the song its sombre mood. In all, you have a light and dark song. The light part of the song is, of course, serene and soothing. While it might be tempting to argue that Buried Echoes should have stuck to a single mood for consistency, this duality is exactly what gives the track its depth.

‘From Ashes into Light’ carries the melodic key, making the song ethereal. But there are more pling-like elements that blend in. There are also some strings or synths to complicate the song, but it’s the melodic keys that steal the show. It’s amazing how Buried Echoes weaves these elements together. The song is enough to bring a smile on one’s face.

‘Crowned Thorns’ comes up next, with some dark synths zipping about. Then a thick kick comes in. It’s an assured and commanding kick, making the track almost the complete opposite of the previous song. However, the melodic keys come in, in turn making the song a bit heavy and light.

‘Blood Oath’ comes up next. It’s a chilled song at first, although you get some distorted elements and a thumpy progression, with a thick kick playing for a while. Then there are some melodic and thumpy elements, and what sounds like ice blocks falling into a glass. When the kick progression returns, you have the melodic elements playing subtly, with the kick heavy and subtle at the same time. It’s a song that leaves one apprehensive; a song that gives a reluctant feel.

Wistful elements start us off on ‘Never Meant to Be’. Beneath this wistfulness is a pulsating bassline. This ethereal segment soon makes way for a monotonous and piercing note that sounds to me like a piano key, but as with most songs on the album, this track is never static: the key itself starts pulsating.

‘Beyond the Veiled Path’ is an ambitious and sometimes funny song. It has some whirring sounds, and you even get what seems to be simulated sounds of crickets, frogs, or a marimba. That’s how funny the song is, and it does not neglect the plinks populating the album. It’s really a chilled song and should lighten one’s mood.

Lastly, there’s ‘Fading into Dawn’. It seems to have a snare sound that gives it a steely sound. The plinks here are very subtle, and you’d swear they were pins falling into something.

Score/Excellent: A part of me says this is a chilled album, but another part knows it’s got some playful, if not adventurous, elements. There’s something about the album that’s IDM, yet slightly danceable. Perhaps my wish is that Buried Echoes could have done an EDM track or two.

[We rank singles, EPs, and albums on a scale of Poor, Mediocre, Good, Excellent, and Outstanding]

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