Zemlya: Zemlya EP

Just looking at Zemlya’s press photo adds to the bleak picture this band paints.

The Brussels duo, consisting of Maan Methven and Geraldine Vanspauwen formed via a long-time exploration period during residencies in Brussels and Bruges where the pair struck up a kinship for the dark arts. And inspired by those dark frontiers, with a swathe of intricate, brooding dynamics, these influences are the result of Zemlya’s self-titled debut EP.

A morbid range of sparse, gloomy sonics, Zemlya take doom to interesting places, as a host of strings, organs, and guitars see Methven and Vanspauwen create a whirring maelstrom, likened to a militia of tormented ghosts hosting a seance.

Opening composition, Ether, is a misty doomscape with organ drones and wordless vocalisations, forming like a spirit wrapping itself around trees. And following piece, Earth, sees Zemlya surging deeper into the forest, with something that oscillates between eerie, nerve-jangling minimalism and crushing waves of Eastern-inspired drone metal; the quiet/loud dynamics creating an anxiety that pushes you to the edge of your seat.

On Land sees the duo move swiftly to another corner of their blackened sound world. This time, they venture into ceremonial and meditative territories; the deeper into the groove it sinks, On Land echoes the likes Monastral mainstays, Jayve Montgomery and Mike Weis. A calming minimalism that drags your mind to new places.

And overall, that’s what Zemlya does. Methven and Vanspauwen feminise the core of doom, intersecting its most visceral aspects with raw tenderness. The juxtaposition works, so much so that Zemlya feels like a band built for alternative meccas such as the Roadburn and Supersonic festivals. Time will tell, of course, but for now, Zemlya is a worthy addition to these esoteric sound worlds, and for those who likes their sounds brooding and slightly off-kilter, well… this may just be your saucers of rat poison.

Zemlya is out now via Bonambi. Purchase from Bandcamp.