Bumbrle - Písně od Bumbrle (2020/2022, n°127, limited 12”)

Stream: https://stoned-to-death.bandcamp.com/album/p-sn-od-bumbrle

Písně od Bumbrle (Songy by Bumbrle) is album recorded in 2020 by Tomáš Pácalt in collaboration with Martin Hůla (also know as Bourek, from bands such as Ememvoodoopöká, Bonus, Sporto) and it was originally released as audio cassette on Polí5 records (run by legendary czech book seller Josef Jindrák). This album is now repressed on vinyl in slightly revised and limited version via Stoned to Death (in total of 147 copies).

Písně od Bumbrle marks Pácalt's step aside from his usual trajectory of musical expressions. His past endeavors typically drawn from 90's emo rock sound in combination with roots rock and heavy blues. If you ask how could this combination work, i will happily send you to check out his self titled debut album released in 2019 on Stoned to Death. On his latest album Pácalt tries to stand up to legacy of american folk rock. Thanks to ingenious production this album sounds like follow up to czech 70's country rock album from likes of Wabi Daněk or Pavel Bobek, especially in the sense of evoking the romanticism of the unknown West through well crafted songs. All that without ending up funny or untrue (to clarify, Pácalt or anyone in his backing band called Slezské Předměstí {named after part of Hradec Králové, town they are all coming from} does not wear cowboy hat during their life shows).

Lyrically, Pácalt is trying to face up unexpected mid life crisis (in the first track Víš sám, když život je v půli se svou poutí / You know it when life is halfway through its journey, which is presented twice on this album, once in acoustic version), the other time his lyrics has rather motivational point. In Den je dlouhej jak rok / Day as long as year he sings his way out of short time separation, in Línej / Lazy he protests the duty of work. In hyper positive Šalalík he's finding courage to beat loneliness. Pes a laň / The Dog and The Hind is a lyrical image set to music.

His previous bands La Prosperité, Bezbolestná or first line up of Bumbrle indicated, that Pácalt is romantic at heart, but because he was hardly ever understood (due to deep and blear scream), listeners could only assume that based on little hints. He did not really suffer from eloquence. In song When I Feel I Love You I Could Die from his self titled debut, he could go by just motorical distribution of this one verse. This current album is much different, Pácalt is much brighter in the role of romantic icon, lyrics are somewhat fuller and in the opening track Víš sám, když život je v půli se svou poutí (and especially in the acoustic version) you end up hanging on his each single word. However, when you read through the booklet all the way to acknowledgment “to my wife Martina, without her nothing would make sense”, you figure Pácalt is the type of guy who can still say quite a bit with one verse and one riff.