Since their formation in 1998 Hungary’s Thy Catafalque have been releasing category-defying experimental metal records to an ever-growing fanbase. In 2011 the band effectively became the solo project of songwriter Tamás Kátai, who provides guitar, bass, keyboards, programming, and vocals and now makes use of various guest musicians on each release.
Alföld (meaning “lowlands”) (Season of Mist) is Thy Catafalque’s thirteenth album, and the press release promises “elegance… excitement, drama, and unbridled craftsmanship”. The record also features thirteen guest musicians alongside Kátai, providing vocals, guitar, bass, and various classical and traditional instruments including French horn, violin, and at least two kinds of flute.
As one might expect given the instrumentation, Alföld is dense and complex. The sound is led by a core “rock” setup of distorted guitars, bass and drums. There is an abundance of furious and sombre riffs that borrow from post-rock, doom and black metal but don’t quite fit into any of those stylistic boxes. During these “full-on” segments the vocals generally consist of fearsome guttural growls. These sections burgeon with a wild and frantic energy as riffs mutate, emotive melodic lines come and go, and drums blast between tempos and time signatures.
Layers of acoustic instruments and various keyboard sounds also feature prominently throughout. Occasionally, the music turns towards sorrowful acoustic folk — for example during the haunting quasi-classical guitar-led coda of the title track, which also showcases the lilting vocals of Martina Veronika Horváth. And at some points, the record enters full prog rock territory, with flute and keyboard melodies intertwining with the metal riffs, as in the latter part of “Csillagot görgető”. A particularly exquisite balance between these elements is struck on “Folyondár”, where atmospheric layers of flutes and horns are set again grinding post-rock to create something that sounds as much like an epic film soundtrack as a metal song.
Other highlights of the record include the almost djent-esque post-Rock lunacy of opener “A csend hegyei”, the blackened doom onslaught of “Testen túl”, and the whirlwind synth chaos and frantic riffery of “Néma vermek”.
Indeed, Alföld lives up to the bold claims of the press release; it is nothing if not dramatic, its tightness and textural subtlety are exemplary, and its crisp and clear production allows its intricacy to be experienced without its visceral power being compromised.
Alföld is a potent and demanding work of oceanic complexity that is undoubtedly progressive but which avoids descending into “prog” incoherence by maintaining a solemn emotional consistency across its myriad stylistic influences and musical divergences.
Buy the album here:
https://thycatafalqueuk.bandcamp.com/album/alf-ld
8 / 10
DUNCAN EVANS