Hungarian avant-garde metal band
Thy Catafalque is an avant-garde metal band formed in Makó, Hungary, later based in Edinburgh, Scotland, after the relocation of its founder.
History
The band was formed by Hungarian musician Tamás Kátai, along with a bandmate from a previous group, Gort. In their early years, the band started off as an "Avantgarde post-black metal project". As time progressed, the band left most of their traditional black metal influences behind for an "extreme variety of songs" in their 2004 album, Tűnő Idő Tárlat.[1] In February 2009, the band was signed to the avant-garde independent record label Epidemie Records. They have had a number of guest musicians over the years, including vocals by Ágnes Tóth of neo-folk duo The Moon and the Nightspirit.
In 2009, they released their concept album Róka Hasa Rádió, about "the relationship between the ever evolving, solid and massive physical matter and the fragileness of humans and all living spirits, throughout distant childhood memories and scientific explanations of nature. Revolving, rotating movements of past and future, colours, sounds, long lost scents by a strange transmission from a timeless radio."[2] It features a mix of atmospheric instrumental music, Hungarian folk elements and traditional black metal, making it very experimental.[3] The album narrowly missed the winner's place in the 2009 HangSúly Hungarian Metal Awards, which was won by Dalriada.[4]
In 2011 the band signed to Season of Mist.[5] Their fifth album entitled Rengeteg released in 2011, was the first Thy Catafalque album written and recorded by Tamás Kátai alone without János Juhász, who did not contribute to the recording this time.[6] Sgùrr was next released in 2015.[7]
In 2020, the band released the Zápor EP via GS Productions on CD and via Casus Belli Musica and Beverina Productions in vinyl.[8] Kátai originally intended the band as a studio-only project, but a number of musicians who were eager to hear Thy Catafalque songs played live reached out to him in 2021 to suggest a live performance with a revolving door of musicians; this eventually took place at the Fekete Zaj festival in Sástó, Hungary; Kátai himself played took part on bass on a few songs. The performance was released as a live album called Mezolit - Live at Fekete Zaj.[9]
