In commenting on this album, one cannot ignore a reference point such as Om, precisely because that 2006 release elevated Negură Bunget to a dimension very close to perfection. The split that followed shortly after, leading to the separation of Hupogrammos and Sol Faur on one side and Negru on the other, seemed to mark the end of a band that gave the impression of drawing lifeblood from the perfect amalgam of the three personalities. The release of Vîrstele Pamîntului in 2010, with the original moniker and only Negru as a survivor, surrounded by a series of new musicians, was a pleasant surprise because it showed a band capable of rebirth from its own ashes while still managing to maintain a high level of quality. Was it right to consider this work as the legitimate successor of Om? The doubt remained until a few days ago, when Hupogrammos and Sol Faur, after the taste given to us with the ep Valea Omului, revealed to everyone with extreme clarity in which hands had been kept, in recent years, the authentic spirit that animated the pre-split Negură Bunget. Their new creature called Dordeduh, with this almost self-titled album, stands out at heights unattainable, ever, for most contemporary musicians who often spend an entire career in the vain search for the right note, the memorable riff, the spark that will allow them to achieve the coveted artistic immortality. Before you start listening to Dar De Duh, head over to the band’s Facebook page and enjoy the video for Dojană, a true work of art that combines sublime musical content with images that leave you entranced. Herein lies the quintessence of Dordeduh‘s music: spirituality, transcendence and communion between man and nature; after this due act, entering the world of the magnificent Romanian artists will be easier but no less satisfying. These almost eighty minutes of music, to which it seems even sacrilegious to attach a label (black, folk, ambient, it really matters little) are not within the reach of anyone, as it is not any initiatory journey without those who undertake it do not have the right preparation, here is not allowed a distracted listening or fragmentary, Dar De Duh is a book that must be read from cover to cover, assimilating it slowly and being guided by the flow of sounds, considering it as a shamanic ritual. Black passages alternate with moments in which traditional instruments and vocal parts end up blending perfectly, for a story that you wish would never end; a sound that winds in a fluid and always unpredictable way, giving us the certainty that the next note will never be banal or obvious. Each listening (and there will be many and repeated, this record is addictive when it enters your bloodstream) reveals aspects that have remained hidden until that moment and this slow opening, similar to that of a gem at the moment of blooming, I think is an image that can represent Dar De Duh in an exhaustive manner. An absolute masterpiece, which at its end leaves us with the feeling, perhaps only transitory but equally satisfying, of feeling truly in tune with the universe, having left behind the material worries that poison our daily lives: all this only thanks to a record, sorry if it’s not enough.

2012 – Lupus Lounge / Prophecy Productions