That tortuous syndrome that paralyses musicians as they try to retrieve the holy grail of soaring melodies and needle-sharp lyrics which flowed so easily into the grooves of their first album. It’s a real thing and it’s a huge credit to Sanna that they appear to have avoided the crash and burn which afflicts so many bands with that second album syndrome.

Following on from their debut album “Compound Carbon Combinations”, Sanna have produced another album of real quality. While there are instantly recognisable similarities between the two records in terms of style and substance, the band have managed to hew another nine sublime tracks which veer from dark, spiritual pop to electro-gothic with a smattering of bluegrass thrown in to keep you on your toes. Just as their first album presaged a slow, dark journey into the unknown, the Last Band on Earth follows a similar trajectory with new twists and turns to navigate.

Sanna’s line-up is almost unchanged from the first album with Graham Clark on vocals, Sylvia Bell on clarinet, cello and vocals, Richard Kelley on guitar, and Cammy Newell on violin. The new album contains nine tracks and while managing to be as tight a unit as ever, the band manage to create a constant flowing sound which feels as though the music will eventually free its moorings and take off into the distance. Happily, they keep a light hold of it while it washes over you. Which brings us to the opening track.

A serious word of warning. Don’t listen to this track if you’re driving or operating heavy machinery. ‘”Turn yerself down” is the musical equivalent of combining a tramadol with a large glass of wine. It’s bliss. You will slowly find yourself drifting off as Clark’s deep velvet sonorous vocal swims underneath a hypnotic metronome percussion, plaintive string arrangements and Kelley keeping things on track with a softly muted lick on repeat in the middle of it all.

As if to remonstrate with you for losing your grip with the first track, “Chewing the time” jolts you awake with what can only be described as a bluegrass-infused pop hoedown. Clark and Bell take on the vocals here, showing off the sublime harmonies which permeate the entire album. The strings are straight outta Appalachia and there are banjo licks and some mighty fine whistling which whirl the whole shebang to its abrupt conclusion. Listening to this made me think of Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris giving it laldy on a carousel. Maybe I should lay off the tramadol.

As ever with word-limited articles, it’s not possible here to review every track on the album, but there are others which deserve special mention.

“Detroit” features a chugging train-ride rhythm track and lyrics which could be interpreted as a lament for an America that is slowly tearing itself apart. The track is overlaid with a series of longing clarinet fills which Bell executes perfectly and which perhaps foreshadow the one-way journey out of darkness.

A particular standout for me on the lbum is “Troubles” which begins with Kelley’s guitar echoing in the night sky like something from the opening scene in a David Lynch movie. It then provides Clark and Bell with the perfect backdrop for their sublime harmonies to swoop across the canvas and Bell’s satin clarinet to wipe delicate brushstrokes over the whole thing. It’s just gorgeous.

The final track is the album’s title. “The Last Band on Earth” opens up with Clark’s ominous warning that you may in fact be listening to the last band on earth. No more sounds to be had after this. Kelley provides a persistent, percussive and funereal riff underneath Bell and Newell’s increasingly haunting and desperate string lament, the whole track building to the dreaded unavoidable silence. The whole band in full flow here makes it feel as if the music is running away from you and you are losing your grip. Is it possible to feel silence? You will after listening to this.

“The Last Band on Earth” is another step on Sanna’s journey in which they have again avoided all pigeon holes. There is a uniquely haunting, ethereal quality to many of the tracks on here and don’t be surprised if you find yourself turning inwards as you listen; it has that effect.

But when that inevitably happens, just remember to turn yerself down, and definitely turn this up