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John Van de Mergel

Sounds | Thy Catalfaque, Piros-sárga


Schrik niet bij de eerste seconden, ik versta er ook geen bal van. Ook niet van wat Hongaar Tamás Kátai verder zingt. Het nummer gaat over oude zomers, verloren tuinen en de kleuren van de zon. Het is dus een nostalgische liedje vol etnische klanken van o.a. Armeense duduk, tabla, dumbek, riq and koperblazers. De basis is dan weer simpelweg sterke psychedelische folk rock. Waar beide werelden samenkomen, resulteert Piros-sárga in een uiterst dynamische en boeiende song. Vadak verschijnt op 25 juni via Season of Mist


Luister ook naar: Napút

lees


Thy Catalfaque’s humble genius Tamás Kátai abandons any and all prenotions of tradition. Intertwining elements from a vast swath of unrelated genres, from jazz to pop to folk, and everything in between, Thy Catalfaque masterfully crafts an eclectic sound that breaks down any generic barriers or borders. Following the massive success of 2020’s critically-acclaimed ‘Naiv,’ the entity returns with ‘Vadak,’ another esoteric monument in its already storied catalog.


Meaning “Wildlings” in Hungarian, the album title is a deliberate clue to the exotic and feral essence of ‘Vadak.’ Like seedlings scattered throughout the forest by the mere forces of nature, Thy Catalfaque’s imaginative sound grows with an organic sense of whimsy, cultivated within the vast influences of our megacosm. Thematically, ‘Vadak’ is a foreboding lesson in mortality. Emphasizing the fragility that is shared by man and beast alike, the record explores our Freudian life instincts, in which we inherently fear and run from the ultimate goal of existence: death.


Originally, Thy Catalfaque emerged as a black metal band founded by singer/keyboard player Tamás Kátai with the aid of guitarist/bassist János Juhász. Following their joined debut 'Sublunary Tragedies' (1999), the Hungarians evolved into quite different directions, but steadily gaining more followers in the process through the following albums, 'Microcosmos' (2001) and the self-released 'Tűnő idő tárlat' (2004).


On their fourth full-length, 'Róka hasa Rádió' (2009), Thy Catalfaque invited Ágnes Tóth from neo-folk outfit THE MOON AND THE NIGHTSPIRIT and Attila Bakos to add their haunting vocals. With fifth album 'Rengeteg' (2011), Tamás Kátai finally went solo with the help of guest musicians that again included Ágnes Tóth an Attila Bakos. Dubbing his eclectic musical amalgamation avant-garde metal, the Hungarian explored new sonic possibilities with 'Sgùrr' (2015). The sixth full-length turned out to be slightly more complex than its successor, 'Meta' (2016), which returned to a more direct approach without losing the steadily growing sonic diversity. In 2018, Thy Catalfaque continued this path with the release of ‘Geometria’. THY CATAFALQUE delivered another spectacular musical mosaic with their ninth full-length entitled ‘Naiv’, inspired by the “Naïve Art” movement.




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