 |
WAER013
Full length CD, 11 Tracks
Act 3 in the instrumental Legends series.
This album is inspired by the Cults in the world of Za Frûmi. An outstanding album released the same day as Legends act 4 - Orders with murderous, primitive, dark, mystical and breathtaking fantasy music.
This album redifines and reinvent the genre of dark ambient and fantasy music. An obvious candidate for album of the year.
Tracklist
1. The Cult of the Great Eye
2. The Cult of the Dragon Maw
3. The Cult of the Ysa´ih
4. The Cult of the Queen of Heaven
5. The Cult of Nudero
6. The Cult of Mortalis
7. The Cult of Helzichor
8. The Cult of Azoot
9. The Cult of Genosha
10. The Cult of Maelzeth
11. The Blood Cult of the Nosferatu
Reviews of Legends Act 3 - Cults (click highlighted text for full review)
"Apocalyptic moods, murderous sects of blood are what this album is all about!... This is a must for all of you into dark ambient and all you who like world music bands such as Dead Can Dance... 5/5"
- Ivan Racheck - Chain D.L.K.
"Hypnotic, enchanting and downright entertaining - Za Frûmi is constantly setting the standard for others to follow. 9/10"
- Sci-fi Online/Graveyard - Ray Thompson
"The mixing of the solo elements is outstanding, with individual vocals, a great number of very good sound effects and a lot of interesting soundscapes. I have a hard time picking the best songs as I think all tracks bring each a piece to the puzzle that is this album. 978/1000."
- David Purdie - Musical Zone Japan
"Fantasy Dark Epic Music at its most! Simon Kolle and Simon Heath have outrun themselves with the last two fresh materials, two albums released in 2 different CDs, wrapped in a digipack format and released at once, just fitted for collections. 0,93/1"
- Kogaionon Underground Music Magazine
" 'The Cult of the Ysa´Ih' has a powerful war drum and really mysterious, hissing vocals, among other qualities that really attracts me. But not only the vocals are mysterious, the entire mood on the whole album is very mystical and that’s probably what I like the most about it... `The Cult of Helizichor´ is my favorite, both musically and ”literary”, it’s somewhat similar to `The Cult of the Ysa´Ih ´ I told you about, a little more laid back maybe, and the sampled war recordings fit perfectly in the sound picture. And once again, the singing, or chanting, is terrific."
- Markus Eriksson - The Shadows Commence
"The album is done in a professional way and has a nice dark and oppressing atmosphere from the start to end. Full of passion and grandeur, its one of the most enjoyable albums in years. 20/20"
- Irma - Spirit of Metal
"The vocal capabilities of Simon Kölle are greatly showcased, a stunning voice soaring above any accompanying strings and ritualistic drums. Za Frûmi´s direction and arrangements are more than impressive, they are enigmatic. I have a strong feeling that both Cults and Orders will feature highly in my personal best-of-2008 lists at the end of the year. 95%"
- Alexander Garrett - Row Magazine
"An undisputed musical highlight of this year" CD SPECIAL for the month August 2008 @ www.gothtronic.com
- TekNoir - Gothtronic
"...they keep giving us moments of refined dark art. Which nurture the spirit as a lot of their colleagues wish they could do. An artistic project which continues to deserve all attention from the lovers of this genre. Without a doubt."
- Roberto Alessandro Filippozzi - Dark Room Magazine
"Za Frûmi do not disappoint. Indeed, the musical structure when coupled with various field-recordings give 'Cults' a sense of 'the openness but, a landscape wounded with an architecture of madness and wanton blood-letting. The tracks gel to convey a desolate and merciless world."
- Michael Cunningham - Rúna, Compulsion, Judas Kiss and the Tolkien Society (Amon Hen)
"Though-out Cult’s mangers to create these richly detailed and strange fantasy worlds in such a convincing, compelling, weird and other worldly manner. It really is like stepping into another sonic reality and if you close your eyes you could almost be in the strange and muil- limbed clutches of one of the eleven cults sonically painted with-in. 5/5 Kudos"
- Roger Batty - Musique Machine
"Simon Kölle and Simon Heath return to demonstrate to us that they are the absolute mastsers of experimental fantasy... Simon Kölle and Simon Heath are the guardians who preserve the burnished wood doors that during most of the time have been closed to mortals. They decide in what moment they open up and what is the route that we must follow. Welcome to the universe of the cults, the world of Za Frûmi. 9,5/10"
- Fernando O. Paíno - Mentenebre
"This is an absolute must have for anyone familiar with their other albums. For everyone unknown with Za Frûmi, this is a good album to start with, preferably together with the Orders album. You will experience the atmosphere and see the infinite possibilities of future albums. I hope Za Frûmi will be among us for many many years, telling stories from their lands."
- ChAwech - Heathen Harvest
"It's an innovative concept and with Legends Act 3: Cults, Za Frûmi has created what is sure to be an instant classic of the dark ambient scene."
- Nadia Carmon - ReGen Magazine
Full Reviews:
Chain D.L.K - by Ivan Racheck:
Grade: 5/5 stars
The first thing that strikes one when hearing this album is how at home Za Frûmi is with the music. There is a palpable affinity with the rhythmic complexities, an ease with the difficult shifts of mood and tempo. The Vocals are very intimidating and sometimes (such as on "The Cult of Helzichor") beautiful. The music is harsh but not all the tracks. Some are complex and filled with extraordinary sound effects and intriguing music techniques.
The mood is constant and the always present dark fantasy feel is as good as it gets at times. I really enjoy the tracks that break off from the obvious apocalyptic sound like for an example with "The Cult of Mortalis". That´s when you hear the depth of Za Frûmi!
"Legends act 2 - Vampires" was all about the vampire and all what those stand for. The music this time out is much more aggressive...and more engaging. In comparison to the former albums in the series the music on "Cults" features a darker, more intense, and more fully developed "personality"... as well a greater number of action/suspense pieces. Apocalyptic moods, murderous sects of blood are what this album is all about!
"Legends act 3 - Cults" descends sometimes from the duo's usual nether atmospheres into a realm of tribal percussion and chant, casting a comprehensive net over various world music traditions. The tribal drums and the various interesting world music instruments used (as it seems it´s most of all not electronic instruments) are great.
One of the best surprises of the albums is the previous mentioned song "The cult of Helzichor" as it completely changes the style but yet feels true and not at all wrong. Very good.
Low male choir, deep percussion erupting with rambunctious brass and horns are present in many tracks. The album is more than action and tension as some of the tracks are creating "worlds" with the help of sounds, moods, chanting and invocations which Za Frûmi is so incredibly good at doing.
This is a must for all of you into dark ambient and all you who like world music bands such as Dead Can Dance.
Sci-fi Online / Graveyard - by Ray Thompson:
Grade: 9/10
The Cults of the world are seen as primitive and very harsh. They differ from the Orders as many of them live in the wild and in old abandoned temples of doom. The cults all share the common ground in that they worship a deity. Not all of them are sects of murder and blood but some of them most certainly are...
Legend Acts 3: Cults is the latest album from ritualistic fantasy music producers Simon Kölle and Simon Heath, otherwise known as Za Frûmi. This album is inspired by the Cults in the world of Za Frûmi. The album blends music and sound effects to create an atmospheric representation of a collection of very different fantasy cults. The music is designed to reflect each cults environment and beliefs.
Highlights, for me, on this CD include:
The Cult of the Queen of Heaven. This takes a while to get going, but once it does, it's a very melodic and catchy piece - it's probably my favourite track on the album. Based on the island of Al Manreloza, the Cult of The Queen of Heaven worship dark divine beings in pyramid shaped temples.
The Blood Cult of the Nosferatu is the best track for ambient background music for war gaming or if you want to create a creepy atmosphere for a murder mystery. The Blood cult of the Nosferatu are sworn to work together and to break the eternal curse of the vampire. They live underground in abandoned catacombs, sewers and are guarded by ghouls. They cut the throats of innocent children...
This CD comes with a short, eight-page booklet which details each of the cults so that you've got a rough background to each track. This is not only interesting, but also helps to put you in the right mind set for each track.
As with previous Za Frûmi releases, there's a good mix of styles. The result being there's something on this album for everyone's musical tastes and for all gaming scenarios.
Hypnotic, enchanting and downright entertaining - Za Frûmi is constantly setting the standard for others to follow.
Musical Zone Japan - by David Purdie:
Grade: 978/1000
The third installment in the Legends series is titled "Cults". This is by far the most harsh, dark and primitive of all the acts so far (including Legends act 4). The tracks, and the primitive but yet varied songs, are utterly spectacular, and had this album been made up solely of harsh and world music songs it would have easily been a 900-950 effort.
But this album also has some tracks that are more intricate and soft. Those tracks make the whole album more varied and truly great. The album does have a significant number of vocal tracks, often featuring different vocal techniques and string instruments. The music throughout is saturated with the appropriate atmosphere for the subject, largely due to Za Frûmi´s expertise. The percussive rhythms are very good and the atmosphere never touches the melodramatic.
The mixing of the solo elements is outstanding, with individual vocals, a great number of very good sound effects and a lot of interesting soundscapes.
I have a hard time picking the best songs as I think all tracks bring each a piece to the puzzle that is this album.
Here´s my brief description of all the tracks in the order they appear:
The opening song "The Cult of the Great Eye" starts kind of slow and get you excited. When the song evolves with drums the songs works as a good build up. Not the best song on the album but a very good intro. "The Cult of the Dragon Maw" is very primitive with drums, mass shouts and screams of the cult itself. The song is maybe a bit one-sided but it does not matter. The song is a first proof that Za Frûmi has evolved. "The Cult of the Ysa Ih" is standing easily as one of the albums best. Solo vocals play a big part in another way than the choirs in the previous song. This track has a base in strange and interesting ethnic drumming. "The Cult of the Queen of Heaven" starts with a cult leader chanting in a strange tongue and evolves into a beautiful piece with guitars and flutes. "The Cult of Nudero" is a short but very strong track with a clear melody. I can listen to this song over and over again and I still like it. It´s actually catchy in a good way. The song builds up from silence to a climax. In the booklet one can read that the Cult of Nudero is working on their temples and building it all up. The song and text work together very good.
"The Cult of Mortalis" is a very good track and comes like a breath of fresh air. The text in the booklet about this Cult is very interesting and it gives you just the right feel. The song is highly atmospheric and like a long soundscape but never ever is it boring. The sound effects and chanting vocals blend in perfect.
After that slow and atmospheric track about the Cult of Mortalis comes another of my favorite tracks.
"The Cult of Helzichor" has outstanding solo vocals and very good ethnic drumming. The Cult of Helzichor is a warrior cult and that is pretty obvious listening to this masterpiece.
Za Frûmi even manages to vary the sound within the song to include a few distinctly uncharacteristic representations of menace, highlighted by frantic, percussively complexed sections. A brilliant track!
"The Cult of Azoot" is a strange and sort of crazy but yet spiritual track. Both two tracks previous to this are over five minutes each and that make this song feel a bit short even though it’s almost three minutes long.
The percussions once again stand out in this song and I can only imagine what Za Frûmi had as drums. It sounds like glass and bells of all sorts. "The Cult of Genohsa" is a wonderful track which at the beginning creates an atmosphere of a small village (which the text in the booklet also say) and then the murderous cult come as assassins and all hell breaks loose with brilliant vocals and a great melody. This song is centered on top notch sound effects. "The Cult of Maelzeth" has demonic vocals and great ethnic drumming. A short but very suitable track.
To finish the album Za Frûmi performs a long and very atmospheric song with the title "The Blood Cult of the Nosferatu". The song is all about atmosphere and dark ambient and works really fine. Being over eight minutes long it creates a world in itself. A very good song to have in the background. Another good album of Za Frûmi.
Kogaionon - Underground Music Magazine:
Rating: 0.93/1
Fantasy Dark Epic Music at its most! Simon Kolle and Simon Heath have outrun themselves with the last two fresh materials, two albums released in 2 different CDs, wrapped in a digipack format and released at once, just fitted for collections. More Epic than the previous two ones, more bombastic and symphonic than every other album in this dimension, ZA FRUMI presents 22 new tracks, focused on a dominating soundtrack dimension, and also on a sum of abstract elements, hard to comprehend without an adjacent visualisation.
I cannot spot great differences between the two albums, and so I’ve decided to make one review for both of them.
I guess it’s important to mention that the two guys activate within this scene for long years, and the bands in which they perform are familiar to the fans of the genre: ABNOCTO, Atrium Carceri, Musterion, Morteneck, Dorf Unit, Knaprika, Sojobo, Alvskugga, Volstoj or Krusseldorf. That’s a journey within distinct realms, a change in musical orientation, another form to perceive the music.
Excellent!
The Shadows Commence - by Markus Eriksson:
ZA FRUMI returned this summer with two new albums in their Legends series. This one is about the cults of the world. I have come to understand that the cults are certainly no pleasant collectives, on the contrary they seem to be the kind of cults you really should keep distance from. BUT, after listening to this album, and reading the booklet, I still don’t understand what the cults DO beside that they live in abandoned castles and fight a lot. I don’t know their true purpose. Maybe it takes a little more insight in this world of ZA FRUMI, or maybe I didn’t read enough, because one things is for sure and that is that Simon's and Simon’s texts are far from incomplete.
Anyway, it’s the music that matters most to me, and once again, ZA FRUMI has composed some very interesting and diverse songs, consisting of dark ambient layers, samples, field recordings, vocals, flutes, forceful drums and this time also some tranquil acoustic guitar moments.
Three tracks into ”Cults”, I got hooked for the first time. ”The Cult of the Ysa´Ih” has a powerful war drum and really mysterious, hissing vocals, among other qualities that really attracts me. But no only the vocals are mysterious, the entire mood on the whole album is very mystical and that’s probably what I like the most about it. Listen to ”The Cult of Mortals”, a tranquil track with great field recordings, listen to the spoken word part in it, I don’t have a clue what he’s talking about but I’m really enchanted by his words.
”The Cult of Helizichor” is my favorite, both musically and ”literary”, it’s somewhat similar to ”The Cult of the Ysa´Ih” I told you about, a little more laid back maybe, and the sampled war recordings fit perfectly in the sound picture. And once again, the singing, or chanting, is terrific.
Must also mention the final track, ”The Blood Cult of the Nosferatu”, this cult seems to be the biggest threat to everything in the world, and in the corresponding text, it says ”They cut the throats of innocent children.” while the music is filled with crying infants and haunting grunts, it creates unpleasant images in your mind really, a cinematic and touching outro for sure.
So, yet another interesting release from the masters of fantasy music. But I mentioned that ZA FRUMI released two albums this summer, and I must say that the sister album to this one, ”Orders” is a few steps stronger. That doesn’t mean that ”Cults” are no good, not at all, because it is and it proves that ZA FRUMI is probably one on the most professional dark ambient projects around.
Spirit of Metal - by Irma S. Mandel:
Grade: 20/20
"Legends act 3 - Cults", the new album of the band, is something magical. This kind of albums that will disturb you a lot due to its really great production first, but above all in reason of the originality of the music.
"Legends act 3 - Cults" is really dark but also really epic, and the numerous arrangements and really good percussions are really impressive. If you add the great voices of the singer, you can understand that this album is something really original.
The standout tracks here are "The Cult of Mortalis", a darkly unsettling piece, and "The Cult of the Ysa Ih", yet another ominous beauty, sounding like the apocalypse. Another track that should be mentioned is "The Cult of Genohsa" which is great.
Za Frûmi shows us again that one can play music in the Metal family which doesn't sound Metal. This is no big deal if you are open-minded, because in that case I'm sure that you'll love this album. A pure jewel of real Gothic music.
The album is done in a professional way and has a nice dark and oppressing atmosphere from the start to end.
Full of passion and grandeur, its one of the most enjoyable albums in years.
Row Magazine - by Alexander Garrett:
Grade: 95%
Swedish composers Simon Heath and Simon Kölle create fantasy music under the strange name of Za Frûmi. They have sort of flown under the radar a bit and I admit that I had not heard of them before listening to their last two albums which were released the very same day.
Released on the label known as Waerloga Records which sometimes team up with the internet radio station Radio Rivendell.
Even though the two albums (Legends act 3: Cults and Legends act 4: orders) are different from each other I review them as one.
I really cannot recommend these two albums enough. Not only do they have a multitude of beautiful melodies, each performed superbly, and some shockingly violent dissonance, its importance within the growing scene itself is immeasurable.
To have a film score which works magnificently in the context of the film is what every film composer strives for, but to have it work as standalone album as well is simply icing on the cake. That could be said about both albums. They are not film scores but certainly sound like it.
These albums are far too good to remain locked away in a darkened vault somewhere in the so called underground, gathering dust and losing quality, when they could be enjoyed and appreciated by thousands of people into dark soundtrack music for the work of genius that they are.
Maybe I have gone a little too overboard with the superlatives here, but I find myself unable to contain myself and refrain from shouting from the rooftops about the incredible quality of Za Frûmi.
The albums have lots of acoustic chamber music and folk instruments orchestrations, interesting to Dead Can Dance lovers as well as film music enthusiasts and those into pure dark ambient. They also have ancient or medieval feel to them.
The vocal capabilities of Simon Kölle are greatly showcased, a stunning voice soaring above any accompanying strings and ritualistic drums. Za Frûmi´s direction and arrangements are more than impressive, they are enigmatic.
I have a strong feeling that both Cults and Orders will feature highly in my personal best-of-2008 lists at the end of the year.
Gothtronic - by TekNoir:
Grade: 9/10
The third part in the Legends series of the Swedish fantasy dark ambient masters Simon Heath and Simon Kolle of Za Frumi presents the listener again a peek into the far and hidden corners of non-existant worlds. On Legends Act 3 Za Frumi takes the listener on a trip through a wonderful musical spectacle where they meet various occult collectives that worship one or another deity. The members of these cults can often be found in temple complexes far away in the jungle and mostly are disfigured types or self-declared half gods. Many devote themselves to occult activities, blood rituals, sacrifices, ritual dances and murder. Also, these cults share their medicinal and hallucinogenic knowledge with humans. Za Frumi brings to life a fantasy medieval world which harbours all sorts of creatures such as orcs, demons and high priests. They do this with dark and epic sounding soundscapes with singing and non-human sounding voices that represent the various creatures. The musical spheres are medieval, folkloristic and oriental in character. The instrumentation consists of flutes, percussion and various different sound effects. On this part the music sounds more like a soundtrack than on previous parts. Za Frumi has managed to expand on the Legends series with again a new chapter in their extended fantasy story, where yet new domains of the world of myths get revealed, such as the cult of the Dragon Maw, Mortalis, Nosferatu or Helzichor. Za Frumi has made an impressive piece of atmospheric classical music that could easily be applied as soundtrack to epic historical fantasy games such as Morrowind or Oblivion. An undisputed musical highlight of this year.
CD SPECIAL for the month August 2008 @ www.gothtronic.com
Dark Room Magazine - by Roberto Alessandro Filippozzi:
Grade 8/10
Translated to English by Marco Vergari. Read the original article in Italian here.
As foretold in the review of the “Barrow Wights” special edition, the Swedish duo composed by Simon Kölle and Simon Heath (which we remind you are part-owners of the Waerloga and the ones behind the Abnocto project) returns to the market together with the sixth and seventh chapter of a discography initiated in the year 2000 and known for the acts three and four of the “Legends” saga. This third act of the series, inaugurated in the 2002 by “Legends Act 1” and followed by “Legends Act 2 – Vampires” in 2004, is based on the Cults. Particularly on the dark, evil and bloody cults who dwell in the shadow, amongst the worshippers of the dark forces who dominate the arcane, terrifying worlds.
The Scandinavian team, which always has been concerned with the creation and realization of music with a clear magic, dark, fantasy and ancestral inspiration (both as an artistic project and as a trademark). Focus more in this edition on the more sinister part of its sound, as they immediately prove with the obscure “The Cult Of The Great Eye” which move like a snake from bells ringing, percussions and the choir provided by the mysterious “The Medusa Choir”. “The Cult of the Dragon Maw” reveals itself more close to a collective ritual of some rural village while “The Cult of the Ysa Ih” shows more tension and unrest, immediately washed off by the cozy melodies of the “The Cult of the Queen of Heaven”.
“The Cult of Nudero” brings to us instead a “Middle Earth”-style atmosphere which the Swedish duo is very fond of, followed by the scaring and ambiental “The Cult of Mortalis”. “The Cult of Helzichor” reveals itself as one of the best moments of the whole discography of the duo. Its structure follows the one of the song, thanks to the splendid teamwork of intense vocals and echoes from string instruments, before it
definitively animates with the entrance of percussions and flutes. The creepy tunes of “The Cult of Genosha” also deserve to be mentioned and the more realistic “The Cult of Maelzeth” but in particular the long conclusive masterpiece “The Blood Cult of the Nosferatu”, splendidly obscure and solemnly intense. Yet another work released in a luxuos digipack, to give form to a dark world which ever more wish to be held as unhealthy thoughts, but instead is an undeniable part of the human nature. Simon Kölle and Simon Heath know this well. And with they’re artistic works they keep giving us moments of refined dark art. Which nurture the spirit as a lot of their colleagues wish they could do.
An artistic project which continues to deserve all attention from the lovers of this genre. Without a doubt.
Rúna, Compulsion, Judas Kiss and the Tolkien Society (Amon Hen) - by Michael Cunningham:
Note:This review are in some of the magazines togheter with the review of Orders. The text have been published in all 4 magazines and might be published further.
Simon Heath and Simon Kölle, who collectively evoke cinematic-like vistas through their musical organ: Za Frûmi, return to their dark, imaginary world in the form of two new releases: Legends Act 3 and Legends Act 4;addressing, respectively, both the 'Cults' and 'Orders' of that world. Asever, with Waerloga Records the presentation of the overall package isparamount and these releases are presented in digipack form exhibiting asubtle artwork and including a comprehensive booklet outlying the role ofeach 'Cult' or 'Order' within the world in which they exist and, at times,plunder. Za Frûmi Legends Act 3 - Cults is comprised of eleven tracks with eachrepresenting a particular 'Cult'.
Most tracks begin with narrative sounds(comprised from field-recordings and representing real sounds, such as thatof nature) which serve to create an aural environment wherein the listenermay establish an image, or images, from the sounds and noises whichconstruct many of the tracks.
A hoof-fall, running water, the wind or theuneasy creak of a timber all coalesce to form a canvas upon which Za Frûmicompositions can find context and evolve. At times the music is deeplypercussive and strident, almost processional as it drives forward, onoccasion, in a cine-narrative structure. To maintain such the writing andexecution of the pieces must be well conceived and performed and,thankfully,
Za Frûmi do not disappoint. Indeed, the musical structure whencoupled with various field-recordings give 'Cults' a sense of 'the opennessbut, a landscape wounded with an architecture of madness and wantonblood-letting. The tracks gel to convey a desolate and merciless world.
'TheCult of Mortalis' manages to flesh this world through myriad sounds throughwhich a fog of ritual chants and vocal effects drift; the effect continueswith 'The Cult of Helzichor' which is filled with an adept layering ofhaunting sounds and melody which serve to sustain the narrative and musicalstreams that flow through 'Cults'. The result of which is a very singularand, at times, personal listening experience as Za Frûmi's compositionsprovide a sense of place and hints as to the ongoing within such as theclash of steel or a galloping horse. Thereby the listener is able tocontribute to the scene, as it were, by colouring the scene with theirimagination following the sound clues laid by Za Frûmi - it becomes, almostan interactive experience.
Musique Machine - by Roger Batty:
Grade: 5/5 Kudos
Legends Act 3-Cults is an cinematic, strange and often rhythmically rich but always atmospheric journey into the sounds of eleven invented cults by Swedish based fantasy music project Za Frûmi.
Though Za Frûmi are only a two piece they manager to create an epic, muilt-layered and often strangely organic sound that sits between: odd ritual/ world music, sound track music and atmospheric experiential music. I don’t think I can recall in a long time an album that mangers to capture invented ethnic music in such an creative, off kilter, epic and often very bizarre manner.
The last thing I can recall that managed to create authentic strange world music would be someone like The Residents on either Eskimo or some of the tracks on the Mole trilogy album.
The tracks key element is the often strange choir, chanting and vocalising elements that are spoken in bizarre invented tongues, then cleverly layered and weaved through the tracks tribal rhythmic, cinematic and at times very weird backdrops. The pair seems to be utilizing a mix of rich synth elements, bizarre and fantasy like field recordings, guitar elements and textures, string elements that are either synthetic or
real(it’s often difficult to tell),ethic percussion and weird rhythmic elements and of course the choir elements which go from tribal male, to haunting guttural and alien, to epic and harmonic and various places in-between.
Though-out Cult’s mangers to create these richly detailed and strange fantasy worlds in such a convincing, compelling, weird and other worldly manner. It really is like stepping into another sonic reality and if you close your eyes you could almost be in the strange and muil- limbed clutches of one of the eleven cults sonically painted with-in.
Mentenebre - by Fernando O. Paíno:
Grade: 9,5/10
Read the original article in Spanish here.
Simon Kölle and Simon Heath return to demonstrate to us that they are the absolute mastsers of experimental fantasy. This time the pair continue with the Za Frûmi Legends, which is a continuation of the two earlier acts published before this launch.
The Legends series, differs from the "chapters" of the Za Frûmi Saga, and are characterized by the absence of narrated voices, that is to say, dialog and spoken Word. In the Za Frûmi Saga its very common to listen to all types of narrations made by fantasy beings, from Orcs to Elves.
The creatures speech complement the environment and are part of an impressive context which demonstrates which masters (without any comparison) the duo are when it comes to mastering and the sound production as a whole.
Like the first Legends albums, CULTS, which now appears like the third act of this series, also is made up of eleven hallucinating tracks. Its essence is dark rites, and sometimes it is romantic. This act are created of rythmical melodies with Ingenious percussions that surround the listener, dragging us towards the world beyond what we call reality. The use of bells and metals is fundamental in Cults, also string instruments and wind, the choirs and vocals in not known languages made by fantastic beings who I would not know to describe with exactitude. It continues to surprise me with skillful equalization and the balance of the sound is pleasant; one of best treats that I have analyzed/reviewed so far, and I must applaud this band for that reason.
They create textures, atmospheres of all types and they generate magic; characteristics that very few bands cultivate and know to demonstrate to the listener. In only eight years, this duo has developed what could be the ideal soundtrack for the fantasy literature of Tolkien, offering nothing less than seven albums which methodical analyzes and complete worlds of epic fantasy.
The album is remarkable as all subjects are Cults dedicated to some creature or
God forgotten by the mortals of the 21st century. 'The Cult of Helzichor' have a beautiful composition, filled with harmony and sung in a skillful way which is very esoteric and intoxicating.
Such is also the case of the song titled ' The cult of Azoot' which surrounds around woods and species never seen, guided by disfigured creatures with hospitable faces, that show their cults to us, its magic, its unknown ways, haunting forests, the entering into caves filled with secrets preserved during millenia, we observe figures in front of us outlined in dense nebula that makes it difficult for us to see, but convinced that the trip will be prosperous, although our life is a game as well.
The razzle of Chains, swords tearing the hard stone, creatures who do not understand our moral, and a sun that does not shine of the same form that ours does, makes us see that another world is possible; that, beside ours, there exist another type of dimension to which we hardly can accede, unless a vortex unties and we have a map. The vortex, once again, returns to be the CD, that open the strange door to us.
Simon Kölle and Simon Heath are the guardians who preserve the burnished wood doors that during most of the time have been closed to mortals. They decide in what moment they open up and what is the route that we must follow.
Welcome to the universe of the cults, the world of Za Frûmi.
Alot of provisions and far from your friends and relatives, its very possible that this new world catches on to you and that you do not want to return again to the world you came from.
Heathen Harvest - by ChAwech:
In the beginning of this century, Za Frûmi started with their Saga. \"Za Shum Ushatar Uglakh\" was their first release in a row of albums to come.
Relatively soon, in 2002, there appeared a different 'branch' of the music of Za Frûmi. The Saga tells stories from an Orcish perspective, and not less important, in Orcish. The new branch, called Legends, goes beyond and outside the Saga, and is music for stories happening in the world of Za Frûmi, but can not be told in the Saga. The first Legends album were, indeed, legends from the world of the Orcs. The second Legends album, Vampires, was completely focused on two vampirelords; Jakesh and Rianji. Now, with the third Legends album we are invited to rituals and ceremonies of several cults in the world of Za Frûmi.
The different cults in the world all have something in common, they worship their deity. The first cult we are hearing of is the cult of The Great Eye. It's a slow moving track with lots of whispered vocals. After around two minutes a tribal drum kicks in, elevating the ritual to a higher and more intense level. A true tribal feeling however is felt with the cult of The Dragon Maw. This dragon, known to the orcs as Za Gothbork (see the album Tach, track 6) is the centerpiece of it's cult, and the followers regularly use drugs and dance in ecstasy in front of the dragon's cave. It is this ritual you hear. The fearful cult of The Ysa'Ih are a bunch of mad followers, including blunt murderers and more delicate assasins. This piece of music is highly ritual, with the vocals continuously chanting the name of their deity. It's aggresive, hypnotic and impressive, and easily one of my favorite tracks on here.
The album ends with by far the longest track, which is on the worst cult in the land; The Blood Cult Of The Nosferatu. This is a truly dark cult, living underground, having pacts with the undead. 'They cut the throats of innocent children', the booklet says. The atmosphere of this track is simply frightening; a town is burning, children are crying, people are fighting. And the members of this cult are laughing, laughing at the pain of others. This is a cult of massacres, of pain, of liters and liters of blood.
Each and every cult featured on this album has its own rituals, its own ceremonies. They all have their own sound and atmosphere, but every single track on this album sounds excellent. Being a long follower of Za Frûmi, my opinion could be seen as biased, but Cults is another step forward in the blossoming story of Za Frûmi. This is an absolute must have for anyone familiar with their other albums. For everyone unknown with Za Frûmi, this is a good album to start with, preferably together with the Orders album. You will experience the atmosphere and see the infinite possibilities of future albums. I hope Za Frûmi will be among us for many many years, telling stories from their lands.
Regen magazine - by Nadia Carmon:
Grade: 4/5
Music from the mouths of demons.
Za Frûmi's Legends Act 3: Cults is a collection of dark ambient music based on the language and culture of the Uruk Hai, popularly known as the Orcs; a fictional civilization created by J. R. R. Tolken, and popularized in his most well known series, The Lord of the Rings. Although Za Frûmi's music is based on a non-existent civilization, their sound is a mix of the primitive and the occult, as if it came from
the traditions of some historical society who worshipped the occult mysteries of the world before the dawn of Christianity.
Cults comes replete with shouting, barking, African-esque choirs, loud and ambient tribal drums, unsettling acoustic guitars, ambient noise such as rushing water and blowing wind, deep baritone male dialogue, sounds of hooves, flutes, etc, etc.
The standouts here are "The Cult of the Queen of Heaven" with its dual interplay of acoustic guitars and flutes making it one of the more lighthearted songs on Cults, and "The Cult of the Great Eye," by contrast one of the more sinister tracks on the record with its overlapping of bells, undecipherable phonetic vocals, and loud drums. Another standout is "The Cult of Genosha," which has a combination of clean male vocals and intermittent pig-like snorting.
It is interesting that Za Frûmi chose to bring to life the musical heritage of the Uruk Hai, even if it's just their interpretation.
It's an innovative concept and with Legends Act 3: Cults, Za Frûmi has created what is sure to be an instant classic of the dark ambient scene. |
