TĂU

In part a step down in quality from their earlier work, yet more atmospheric and grim than ever, Negura Bunget have created a fine, folky monster of an album. The sound does feel less powerful and inspired, much as it wonderfully balanced metallic sections and sparse, darkly ethereal sections complete with obligatory chants. The result has already turned off quite a few fans, and that is something to keep in mind when listening, but in all likelihood you will find enjoyment. In spite of splits in the band, this is still good work, and tracks like "Nametenie" make for good listens. Don't expect the next best thing to "OM", but expect some good atmospheric black folk metal.

'Tau' - Negură Bunget (61/100)

Following the fateful schism between Negru and the other core members of Negură Bunget in 2009, there has been question as to the legitimacy and substance of the band in its current incarnation. I don't write this as a critic, so much as a fan that remains disappointed by the way things turned out for them. I am almost certainly not alone in saying their fourth album OM had one of the most original and otherworldly atmospheres ever committed to the black metal artform. Estranged bandmates Hupogrammos and Sol Faur forged a suitably magical successor to OM when they released Dar de Duh as Dordeduh. In a turn of events not wholly incomparable to the more-recent debacle with Queensr'che, Negru hired a cast of fresh initiates and pushed onward. V'rstele păm'ntului was decent enough, but it pales in comparison to what the other side of NB have done since, nevermind the bold monuments that came before it.

With talks of a bold 'Transylvanian Trilogy' (of which Tau is the first installment), it seems as if the present- day Negură Bunget intends on making a statement as (if not more) ambitious as their old work. Completed trilogies tend to become landmarks in the discography of any band that attempts them. It's because of that promise of ambition that I'm so disappointed in Tau. I am disappointed because the other expectations I had for a post-schism Negură Bunget album have been met. Tau wanders. It dawdles. It is challenging without being rewarding in an enduring sense. It is enjoyable in spite of those things, but ultimately comes off as a contrived echo of the mastery genre-veterans should have come to associate the band's name with.

It is worthy to note that the lineup on Tau is nigh-indistinguishable from that of V'rstele păm'ntului. In other words, Mr. Negru is the sole proprietor of the direction the band takes; the rest of the musicians are largely there to fulfill the execution. Tau mirrors the band's trademark style well. The avant-garde laden mixture of folk and black metal is here in full. More importantly, the weird, indescribably mystical atmosphere-- the likes of which that made Negură Bunget such a challenging listen in the first place-- is still here. Even if the membership has given rise to the question whether this project warrants its name or not, the distinctive sound remains. If there is any issue to be taken with the album on a purely stylistic basis, it's that Mr. Negru hasn't seen fit to push the sound forward. Tau feels like an understated shadow of their past, rather than the bold new chapter that the Trilogy concept might have promised.

Yes, the sound is weird, though not in a way that demands proper understanding. Negură Bunget automatically sounds at least a little alien by their everpresent folk instrument. Slavic folk has informed the way melodies are shaped. Far less consonant than the folk of Northwestern Europe we most often see incorporated with black metal, Negură Bunget still earn points from the sense that they're making metal that is indelibly coloured by its folk influence. So many 'folk' metal bands could be heard just as well without the slathering of accordions and violins. Even without the swirling pan flutes and atmospheric touches, you would be able to hear significant traces of Negură Bunget's Romanian homeland. The style is comfortably described as avant- garde, but Tau still feels like the largely natural amalgamation of cultural influences. A few outlandish exceptions exist; the buzzing sound of theremin at the end of "Nametenie" cannot be explained by any traditional standard of folk music.

You can certainly hear the black metal at work on Tau, but it is made to seem like something else by the layers of clean vocals, folk orchestrations and alien experimentation. Regardless whether this is the 'true' Negură Bunget or not, Tau has a firm grasp of the adventurous and jarring style I've (slowly) grown to love about their music. Where Tau suffers most is the songwriting. There are great ideas, but only a couple of great songs. "Schiminiceste", for instance, is a suitably melancholic closing piece, armed with a perfectly mournful chorus and reprise. "La Hotaru Cu Cinci Culmi" is a beautiful showcase of their folk side, replete with enchanting pagan vocals and varied instrumentation. More often than not however, most of the great concepts on Tau feel the need of some better context. The songs do not make full use of their best ideas; they stray and wander, and only rarely sound like they're building up to something. Most times a promising momentum is kindled, it is stopped in its tracks by some misguided detour. "Taram Valhovnicesc" is a particularly jarring example of this; while the last two minutes is one of my favourite parts on the album, most of it sounds like cheap synthphonic black metal. There's a time and place for that sort of thing, but in the context of Tau, it serves to hurt the album's folk-infused atmosphere.

There isn't anything that really surprises me about the way this album turned out. Hupogrammos and Sol Faur were responsible for most of the writing before Negură Bunget went their separate ways. Mr. Negru has proven he can capably lead a band with all of the bells and whistles associated with this project, but songwriting is not among his stronger talents. With "Schiminiceste", Tau is very good. With "Taram Valhovnicesc", not so much. Most of the time, the album falls into that nondescript mid-range where the music is enjoyable without being immersive.

I do like this album, and hope the best for the next chapters in this 'Transylvanian Trilogy' they are working on. But, barring the non-possibility of some miraculous reconciliation, I think the best days of Negură Bunget are over, and have been now for quite a while.