There can often be hope in melancholic music. Songs produced from defeat and resignment speak to disaffected millions everywhere. Sorrow and loss provide the subject matter for some of the greatest pop songs ever written. But this EP by the duo Tenonsaw is dark, properly dark. Dark as in it will affect your mood, it has a dispiriting effect on the listener. Their brand of stark, ethereal medieval-like electro-folk will leave you feeling glum and contemplative.

 Vocalist Salt Odelund experienced a serious illness in 2012, undergoing surgery to correct Chiari Malformation and this, one would presume, qualifies the despairing tone of the music.

However Odelund’s partner, Thomas Luke, is the chief songwriter and lyricist and the title track Avenging Angels begins with the chilling line “When you’re alone, darkness stalks the halls” along with descending minor notes and minimalist beat. The Chapel opens with another foreboding lyrical statement that suits the music perfectly, “I am living a lifelong defeat”. The sinister dance beat that kicks in halfway through does at least lift the tempo and light relief ensues momentarily. Skin is much more accessible for the casual listener and features an uplifting chorus that hints briefly at something more before returning to the hegemonic mood source.

This EP is the musical equivalent of the character Johnny Nice Painter from the Fast Show, who seemed quite content painting water colour portraits until depression hit him. “Black!” he would exclaim, “the procession of night that leads us into the valley of despair,” and that is how the listener is left feeling at the back end of the record. Yes, life can bring despair, but music needs to offer some redemption and you won’t find it here.

There are good points to this recording. The musicianship is of a very high standard and the vocals of Odelund are quite unusual in timbre and diction. There is bags of potential evident within this EP and an occasional shift from gloom would do them the world of good and catapult them from mood music merchants to an exciting new band. They’ve made a Christmas single apparently, so that’s a start!

However, as a whole, everything here is just too one paced and it will only appeal to a very distinct type of listener. It never seems get into gear musically and the lyrical content is as morose as the music. The occasional flecks of synth beats do little to lift the clouds and after repeated listening to this EP, you’ll need a disco, flashing lights and the entire back catalogue of Wham! to bring you back to normality.