The ceremony resumes for Nytt Land.
Still collaborating with their new label Prophecy Records, Siberian couple Natasha “Baba Yaga” and Anatoly Pakhalenko are ready to unveil their sixth album, Aba Khan.
They are accompanied live by drummer Aleksandr Rosliakov.
We enter the spirit world guided by Aba Khan, the eponymous track where mists and whispers blend naturally, leading us to a more distinct voice, which eventually gives way to Taiga, revealing other equally intoxicating vocal nuances, but also a haunting instrumental richness. The few percussions set the pace for our journey as Baba Yaga easily hypnotizes us, aided by Anatoly‘s instruments floating all around her, but the composition is long and very soothing, unlike Totem, which quickly offers darker tones. The atmosphere still delivers those heady tones, but they seem much more disturbing, almost oppressive, as the vocalist tends to soften her voice before moving on to Uitag, which takes a much more natural and refined approach. The track remains relatively calm, almost like an interlude next to Mansi, where the vocals are much more present, inviting us to join them in a dance whose codes we don’t understand but which we follow with enthusiasm before being confronted with a new shadow on The Oath. It is easy to sense that the track is much more solemn, offering both mystical instrumentation and more diverse and sometimes more accessible vocals, but it is after a final moment of euphoria that Prayer brings us back and offers us a new dose of coldness in which the vocalist revels, sometimes even splitting herself in two. The last track, Tygir Tayii (Heavenly Sacrifice), is also the longest and most diverse, taking the time to develop slowly and even intensify, making us believe we are listening to a real choir or a chaotic orchestra before finally letting us return to our own world.
Nytt Land continues on its path according to its own codes, offering an ever-appreciable change of scenery from album to album. It’s no surprise that Aba Khan captivates and confuses us from start to finish, much to our delight.
80/100
