Ptolemea
Maze
(855199 Records DK)

Featuring Martin Schommer on drums, Yves oek on E-bass, electric violin player Christophe Reitz, Remo Cavallini’s on guitar, and Priscila Da Costa’s distinctive pipes, the female-fronted Ptolemea presents a melancholic, dreamy brew. Their latest EP is called Maze.

“I wish I could,” starts us off, opening with a single guitar note, slipping in violin, and Da Costa’s warble until about the 2-minute mark when the band kicks in with their dramatic high vocals and a more expressiveness from Reitz. It might overstay its welcome a bit, but it’s a good kick-off to what comes next.

We get that starkness of Schommer’s snapping snare and Reitz’s scratching under Da Costa in the main verses of second and title tune, “Maze,” with Cavallini here making his presence known in high wailing spirit. I could really tap my foot to this one and liked the high drama of how things got heavy, then the band laid off in the verses to let Da Costa get all sexy with it.

“Isolated,” sets us in scary, dare I say, well, isolation. Here Da Costa’s affected vocal works to full advantage as you sit on the edge of your seat with her, Yves oek’s bass, and what you fear might break any moment but never does. I applaud the band for their restraint on this little gem. “Run,” is the most straight forward offering on Maze, featuring simple strumming and a laid backed snare under Da Costa’s roil and growl before big commercial choruses open up to a full torch song. Ptolemea certainly swirls the listener round to the dark corners and melodic byways of their Maze.