It seems not too long ago I was claiming Surprise of the Month for German acoustic dark folk collective Nebelung for their album Palingenesis. I still remember how much I was reveling in the cello/viola centered sound of Mittwinter, Palingenesis opener. This time the same label Temple of Torturous decided to search back into Nebelung history and re-release their long out of print debut Mistelteinn.

Cover art for the album bearing a stark picture of what seems like undergrowth of wild thistle, Mistelteinn does not differ much stylistically from its successor and comes from the same family of German folk tinged dark wave, similar to Dammerfarben and Hekate. Only if Dammerfarben is closer to blackened atmospherics, and Hekate has cold electronics flowing down your back, Mistelteinn is a lot more about pure acoustics. Compared to Palingenesis Mistelteinn appeared to me even more unpretentious, standing in front of us in its naive naked beauty. Naïveté however does not mean simplicity, and Heimsuchung proceeds on weaving polyphonic confluence of acoustic strum and soul injecting cello. The end result is a soothing floating experience. Sung in German, the language I rarely associate with romantic feelings, Heimsuchung vocals feel silky smooth, even Lacrimosa-like ingratiating into your consciousness on Regen in der Dammerung, the compositions here creating collage-like mental pictures. Abel und Kain is more percussive, rhythmic and folky, to the point of being a little corny, and at times Nebelung switches from string picking strums to more chord driven sequences, sometimes in a span of one song (title track). Chorded or not, the main theme on Mistelteinn is vulnerable sensitivity, so well depicted in the vibrating ebbing fragility of Heimatlos.

I heard Palingenesis first in the dead of winter. Maybe not very timely music for a hot summer day but Mistelteinn, just like its successor, is deep and introspective, perfect for quiet pause and internal observations.