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Negură Bunget: Măiestrit
25/05/10 || Khlysty
I know that I’m gonna get a shitload of flack about it, but I’m gonna admit it here and now, so that each and every reader might know from the beginning: I do not cum in my pants whenever I hear something by Negură Bunget. I like ‘em just fine, but I’ve failed to see –at least, up till now- what the fuss is all about.
I mean, yeah, I know that they’re from Romania and that their music is supposed to be influenced by Transylvanian folk tradition and to represent the awe and pagan feelings that the nature of Transylvanian Alps inspire to the band members and whatnot, but, still, from what I’ve heard of them, Negură Bunget to these ears is just a competent symphonic black metal band that peppers its sound with traditional instruments and some folkish elements.
Admittedly, I only have “Inarborat Cosmos” and “Om” as reference points, but let me tell you up front that to me these records display quite a lot of ambition, but less than stellar results. The long-winded compositions lack, for me at least, that little “something” that would uplift them to the sphere of unfuckwithability. To make a long story short, me likes Negură Bunget, but me gleans not them as masterminds behind a pagan revival of black metal. Cool, but not touchdown.
Anyway, “Măiestrit” is a re-recording/re-interpretation of their 2000 “Măiastru Sfetnic” album and it seems to be the last recorded work of the band’s original line-up, seeing as Huppogrammos Disciple’s and Sol’Faur left the train, leaving only Negru to hold the Negură Bunget banner high and continue their legacy. Now, having never listened to the original record, I cannot say what changes have been made in the new recording, so I’ll just review what I have at hand, ‘kay?
And, what I have at hand is six pretty longish tracks –ranging from six to eleven minutes- plus the acoustic versions of two of them. The first thing that I noticed is the production: full-bodied, with great highs and well-defined lows and some interesting mid-range, this is hardly the usual fare for black metal, even for symphonic black. The instruments are clearly defined and Huppogrammos’ howls and screams are discernible, even if a bit buried in the mix. So, on the production front everything’s A-OK.
So, it’s the songs that trouble me. See, I like long songs (hell, I’m a Neurosis fanboy through and through…), but the songs just have to do something to keep my interest high. And, I think that most of the songs here do little to justify their lengths. Oh, don’t get me wrong: the band uses lots of twists and turns within each song; but, and that’s what bothers me the most, the overall sound of each song almost never change along with those kinks. If you want an analogy, every song is a straight line of road, where a car (the band) accelerates and decelerates, but always moving in that straight line, never turning, never changing direction.
As for the two acoustic versions, they’re okay and pretty atmospheric. Do they add to the overall quality of the record? Probably yes, but not so much as to make them indispensable. They are a nice respite from the overkill of sound of the other songs and close the record in a moody and melancholy way, and display the band’s more proggy leanings. As I said, they’re okay and likeable.
The bottom line is that, if one likes Negură Bunget, I think that one’s gonna like “Măiestrit” pretty mucho, especially if one has the original “Măiastru Sfetnic” album and can make the comparison of then and now. To me, this is a pretty enjoyable record, so long as it plays, but it’s not something that I see myself turning to this often, as it doesn’t tickle my pleasure centers enough to ensure lots of listens. It’s competent, professionally played and produced and I think that it’s gonna be in a lot of end-year top-ten lists; but not in mine…
- Information
- Released: 2010
- Label: Prophecy Records
- Website: Negură Bunget MySpace
- Band
- Hupogrammos Disciple’s: guitars, vocals, bass, keyboards, archaic instruments
- Sol’Faur: guitars
- Negru: drums, percussion, archaic instruments
- Tracklist
- 01. Vremea Locului Sortit
- 02. În-Zvîcnirea Apusului
- 03. A-Vînt în Abis
- 04. Al Locului
- 05. Bruiestru
- 06. Plecaciunea Mortii
- 07. A-Vînt în Abis (acoustic version)
- 08. Plecaciunea Mortii (acoustic version)
