Angry Metal Guy
Angry Metal Guy’s Guide to Not Sucking Anymore is a manual for surviving n00bdom and a window into the mind of our founder. In seventy-nine pages of psychologically revealing prose, this actual book whipped my class into form by teaching us to structure our reviews with one or maaybe two paragraphs describing a band’s sound. How could you ever pull that off with Tamás Kátai’s prolific Thy Catafalque? ”Piros Koksi, Fekete Ej,” the opening track of new album XII, kicks off with a rock riff that evokes New Order before segueing into a long section capturing Primordial’s sweep and grandeur. Heavy sections and parts where a woman sings “nah-nah-nah” fight their way in, before it resolves into an acoustic outro. That’s one song! Thy Catafalque has been attempting the musical equivalent of free solo climbs for two decades. They should have plummeted to earth years ago, but Kátai and his rotating band of collaborators reach the summit every time. Can they do it again, or is XII the “splat” that awaits every glory hound?
XII finds Thy Catafalque retreating from the heaviness of last year’s excellent Alföld. The metal sections dominate here and there, but Kátai’s wandering muse often takes up with folk and prog. Classical and acoustic instruments add warmth and a sense of nostalgia. Over twenty musicians contribute to XII, including singers and frequent collaborators Attila Bakos and Martina Veronika Horväth. The album ends with soothing bird tweets. It’s a lot–and for the first time ever, Kátai brings in an outside producer in Gábor Vári to help him wrestle it all to the deck. They mostly pull it off. XII is less cohesive and urgent than Thy Catafalque’s best work, but there are thrilling highs along the way.
XII plays like a journey, one where lots of things go as hoped but there are missed connections and maybe a pickpocketing or two along the way. Those who prize atmosphere will find wispy sections to get lost in. Songs like “Villagnak Vilaga,” the aforementioned “Piros Koksi, Fekete Ej” and the duet “Lydiához” conjure a sense of place and a mood of reflection. “Vakond” opens with a whistled passage before engaging playfully with the folk traditions of Kátai’s native Hungary. That nostalgic vibe is not all about the gauzy and gorgeous, despite that sun-drenched cover. “Vakond” segues into a synths-dominated section that feels like it’s evoking Kátai’s memories of some long-shuttered Budapest nightclub. Banger “Vasgyár” is an ode to the rotting ironworks that once fueled Hungary’s economy and still haunt its landscapes. If you give XII some time and attention, you’ll come away feeling like you just took a vacation in Tamás Kátai’s memory palace.
You will not come away from XII with a melted face. If you want to get Wormed or Replicant-ed, have your passport stamped elsewhere–XII is just not that committed to being a metal album. The heavy songs and passages that do pop up are cathartic and fun. “Mindenevo” drops the first harsh vocals into the mix, and it roars and stomps before it falls completely silent for a while and then does a dungeon synth kind of thing. That track segues into the killer “Vasgyár.” The two songs, taken together, are my favorite section of the album–but I can be a knuckle-dragger like that. “Alahullas” engages with Thy Catafalque’s black metal roots to stirring effect. Still and all, you’re not booking passage on 70000 Tons of Metal here. The metal songs are day trips that enliven a calmer journey than adrenaline junkies might be seeking.
Angry Metal Guy’s Guide to Not Sucking Anymore teaches us to conclude with a summary that finds pathos, if timid and underfed n00bs can scrape some up in our hearts. With XII, Tamás Kátai has followed his muse (he always does) into some very personal places (that’s where it always goes). I appreciate his restless spirit and I was mostly happy to take the trip with him. There are some unfortunate hiccups–closer “A Gyonyuro Almok Ezutan Jonnek,” with its handclaps and cloying attempts to rouse, is a lowlight in Thy Catafalque’s catalog. It’ll take some time for XII to find its place in the band’s incredible discography, But a few dips in quality and focus, combined with the smaller portions of metal doled out, mean that I’ll remember other journeys with the band more fondly than I will XII.
Rating: Good!
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: thycatafalque.bandcamp.com| thy-catafalque.hu
Releases Worldwide: November 15, 2024
The post Thy Catafalque – XII: A gyönyörū álmok ezután jönnek Review appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.
Sun Nov 17 14:21:42 GMT 2024