How Do You Feel About Split Releases?

Looking back over my 2020 list, there has been a number of very good split releases this year: Mourning Beloveth/The Ruins of Beverast, Atavisma/Void Rot, Spectral Lore/Mare Cognitum and Nechochwen/Panopticon are all in my top 50. So how do you view split releases and which are your faves? I think they are a great way for lesser known bands to get exposure, although in this internet age it's not as effective as it used to be. As far as my favourites go, I think the classic BM splits 1993's Emperor/Enslaved split, Emperor / Hordanes Land and the 1995 Satyricon/Enslaved split, The Forest Is My Throne / Yggdrasill take some beating.

Splits are relatively new for me to be honest, with 2020 being the first year they've really shown up on my radar. 

With my limited experience I'd say there's a stark difference between something like the Spectral Lore/Mare Cognitum split and the Almyrkvi/The Ruins of Beverast split and they should be treated as such. I'm a much bigger fan of Astrology since Spectral Lore and Mare Cognitum are able to exchange the spotlight with almost no disturbance in album flow. The two acts are so close to one another in sound that they're able to bounce off each other in a really cool fashion. Some of the other splits are exactly what they're called: splits. There's an obvious gap between one band and the other and it's incredibly easy to tell, since most of the splits from 2020 have one band carrying a ton of weight. (See the Nechochwen/Pantopicon split with "Rune's Heart"). 

Splits are another form of album I've yet to really dive into, and I'll definitely start to look out for more of them, but as of right now I prefer splits that have a true collaboration between two artists rather than two acts mashing a few of their songs together. 

You are right Xephyr that there is a big difference between a split and a collaboration, look no further than the superb Bell Witch / Aerial Ruin collaboration, The Stygian Bough which is one of my favourite albums of the year. A collaboration does tend to be more coherent because the bands involved are working on a common piece. Splits however, are often used to showcase different bands separately and one band that is less familiar can get exposure on the back of another. The Nechochwen / Panopticon split is just such a beast due to the critical acclaim Austin Lunn has garnered over recent years. Because the two bands usually work independently on a split it can have mixed results, which is why I ask how people think of them. Sometimes the bands complement each other really well and others are not necessarily a good fit. Maybe the split is a format that has had it's time, but I don't think so because, as I say, there have been some belters this year in my opinion.

I'd be interested to see what the analytics of split releases are in terms of streaming services and how Spotify handles split releases. 

There's no doubt that there have been some amazing splits this year, as my ratings have shown as well, but I wonder if the question to ask is if the band was better off just releasing a short EP rather than sticking themselves on top of another artist. My gut instinct is to say that splits still have a purpose through what you said, giving a smaller band exposure by being released alongside a more popular artist, but do these songs and splits even show up on people's Spotify recommended lists and such? If the algorithm throws these albums into some weird middle ground where they're stuck in limbo, then the whole point of discovery with the split is pretty much lost to modernization. As long as sites categorize them correctly I agree with you in that they're a fantastic way to shed some light on upcoming artists. 

Well split releases are certainly an issue with the Metal Academy database as we don't have a way of handling them the way we'd really like to & I feel that this is to the detriment of the bands & labels in question. Personally, I like the concept of split releases but would definitely prefer to see a proper collaboration (like the Motorhead/Girlschool E.P.) rather than two distinct releases that have been stuffed together (see the Converge/Agoraphobic Nosebleed release for example). I think they work best when it's multiple unknown bands from similar subgenres who feed off each other's fan bases. They serve a real purpose there. Otherwise, I'd prefer to see separate releases, particularly as they tend to annoy me with my ratings being skewed one way or the other by one of the releases (see the Sepultura/Overdose split).

I must admit I only use Spotify to listen to the MA playlists, so I have no idea how they handle splits. I do listen to a lot of stuff via Bandcamp and bands quite often only post their own tracks from split releases and not the other band's. Usually to get the whole release together you would need to go to the label's page rather than the individual artist's.

I am one of those Luddites who still loves collecting physical releases and so split releases are probably more relevant to old gits like me, still living in the past, rather than all you young tech-heads and your new-fangled streaming thingummies!!

I'm afraid I generally ignore splits. There's the odd occasion where one of my favourite bands is involved in a split (such as Ruins of Beverast), but so often I find that the material ends up being released separately anyway. One of the things I love about metal is that bands create "albums" rather than just "songs". Split releases generally ruin that album length theme and consistency, just as cover tracks so often do.

I'm probably missing out on some great tracks by not really partaking, so maybe it's time I got over my bias.