First things first: If you came to this EP looking for a continuation of the cleaned-up goth-pop sound showcased on Zola Jesus' excellent Stridulum EP, look elsewhere. Possessing a dingy, lower-than-lo-fi sound and very little of what one would call traditional songwriting, this collaboration between Zola Jesus leader Nika Rosa Danilova and Pocahaunted member Amanda Brown is the polar opposite of polished. The EP pushes the line of accessibility even more than Zola Jesus' harsh, static-fillled 2009 full-length, The Spoils, although those who have been with ZJ since that record might not see this record as less of a departure for Danilova and more of a necessary exercise in experimentalism.
Most likely, those familiar with Pocahaunted's bombed out, faux-spooky aesthetic won't be surprised here either-- both by the EP's doom-laden, weed-haze sound and by its relative inconsistency. While Brown ably lends a haunted-house vibe to the EP's seven tracks, any thematic coherency intended beyond mere mood-setting gets lost in the fog. Along with some experiments with eviscerating dub sounds, there's basement-recorded takes on minor-key drone and Maxinquaye-era trip-hop as well. Never mind that this particular sonic document runs just under 25 minutes in length; Brown takes the lead of her main act, refusing to stay put and bring at least one idea to full realization.
That's a minor complaint, though, since the soundscapes here are worth sinking your fangs into. The frayed boom-bap of opener "Bone Is Bloodstone" and "Eulogy"'s dread-dripping smoke trails are easy to get lost in; somewhat unsurprisingly, the reggae-tinged experiments featured in "Searching" and the cover of Dawn Penn's "No No No" are the most successful cuts, the former featuring one-drop keyboard stabs that conjure reggae's less-explored paranoia bent.
Despite its home-recorded quality, this is enveloping music-- maybe too much so, in fact, since Danilova's vocal contributions are swallowed by the sound on more than one occasion here. It's been said by many that Danilova's voice is striking and unique in the best possible way, and it bears repeating here since the cuts that underutilize her feel like missed opportunities. "Bone Is Bloodstone" buries her cries under pinging tones and empty-shell clattering, while she's barely to be found amidst the abandoned tones of "In the Desert".
The one time when Danilova steps out from behind the gray-colored curtain, the result is immensely satisfying. "Looking In" wouldn't sound out of place alongside anything in Zola Jesus' catalog, as she howls, "I'm on the outside/ Looking in," while sinisterly oscillating bass sounds and clattering percussive elements snake around her pipes. It's a genuinely chilling moment on an EP that, for better and for worse, is made up of mostly cheap scares. It would be great if there were more cuts like "Looking In" here; my guess is whenever Zola Jesus decides to release something new, we'll be rewarded.
