Gloomy, doom-y stand-alone single “Bloodmoon” from the ever-evolving German duo brings subdued groove and hymn-like melodies.

I didn’t think Me and My Drummer could surprise me any more after their 2012 debut “The Hawk, the Beak, the Prey“. On the follow-up “Love Is a Fridge“, they put less emphasis on the dynamic of organ and drums, giving up their singular sound in favour of a more diverse cast of instruments.

I felt like the band had lost what had made them unique, a kind of one album wonder. Hearing “Bloodmoon”, their new stand-alone single, I realise I was wrong.

Charlotte Brandi’s distinctive voice and singing style clad themselves in a new, slightly medieval clothing. At first, Matze Pröllochs, the “my drummer” part of the band, takes a step back and lets his band mate take centre stage. The song builds from a lurking, pottery-clanging scenery to the chorus’ doom folk explosion of drums, guitars and strings. They repeat this trick for a third verse and a chorus-cum-finale that is as simple as it is effective.

“Bloodmoon” comes in between albums, with Brandi preparing her first solo release after an extensive tour for “Love Is a Fridge”. The next Me and My Drummer record may also be in the works, despite the duo’s self-imposed hiatus that seems to be working wonders already.

You still recognise Me and My Drummer for their gravitas, but it is given unprecedented leeway over the other ingredients of their songs, namely subdued groove and melodies like mellow arena hymns.

When it was balanced like on their first album, this mix put them in an interesting position between the pop of Boy and the impression of ancientness conveyed by a church organ. Now it’s as if they have finally set free their inner Anna von Hausswolff.

Also, the song’s gloomy, doom-y atmosphere and use of drum fills strangely mirror another unlikely widening of stylistic scope: that of hardcore band Converge’s epic ballad “Wretched World” from their 2009 album ‘Axe to Fall”.

Surprising as well as sonically overwhelming, “Bloodmoon” sends goose bumps down your arms, just like Converge did eight years ago. And like Me and My Drummer with their debut.

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