AMN TF NKHT

AMN TF NKH is a transcription from hyerogliph and is the name of Amon-Tefinakht, who reigned oved Saqqara (Menphis) about 4500 years ago. His wife Neytikert wa salready subject of another Senmuth's album: Akhet Meri Ra. This is a sort of digital boxset of 4 albums with the first two which can be considered EPs and the others as "short" full length. It's on this site as "album" because all the material is previously unreleased. It's a concept album but I'd need an Egyptologist to trace back the whole story which I have the impression is an amazing one.

Disc 1 is subtitled (forgive my bad Russian) "The Secret Burial Site of Saqqara - Prologue" Going track by track would take the whole home page, so I must be synthetic. This disc is the shortest of the set. It's mainly ethnic dark ambient (as a good percentage of Senmuth's albums is), but this time the music has a bit of melancholy which is an element usually extraneous to this artist. The metal element is totally absent and the ethnic is the prevalent one. I find this first album very pleasant.

Disc 2's subtitle is "The Temple Singer Iusat Neytikert", This is where the story begins. I guess, but I'm not sure, that Tefinakht meets Neytiket in a temple during a journey to Uaset, the City of Hundred Gates. Also this Uaset was mentioned in Akhet Meri Ra. The track 4 is particularily interesting, not only from a musical point of view, but also because is dedicated to Imhotep who was not only used as "bad guy" in the movie "The Mummy" but was also an architect, so a colleague of Senmuth. The mood is still ethnic but the music gives the sensation of the true beginning of the story.

Disc 3 is "Sacred Magic" In this album there's more guitar and the ethnic element is mainly in the percussion. There's a female (or high pitched male) uncredited vocalist on this track. If it's a keyboard please tell me the model. The parossistic drums of track 9: "The tomb in the necropolis Hutkaptah" represents a very good moment. I also like the very short track 11: Mysterious Death of Sahtu (nothing to do with Northwest Territories, I guess).

Finally, Disc 4. Nehemrah, which I think is mentioned in the ancient Testament kills Tefinakht (this is what I guess from the track's titles). There is a second burial because Neytikert claims her husband's ashes and everything ends with ghosts in the tombs. This is the longest of the four albums and has some good moments. Of course we are at about two hours of dark ethnic ambient so if you are not in the right mood it's better not attempting it in one shot.

Also this time I have the temptation of rating this album or boxset with 4 stars, but there's still that bit of originality missing in the compositions. I have to say that the average level of the senmuth's releases in 2013 is above his usual, probably a sign of maturity.

I'm curious to do more researches about the story of the characters, anyway.