Earth @ Ruby Lounge, Manchester, 9 Nov

Few bands find as much comfort occupying the space between mesmeric and frustrating as Earth seem to. As Dylan Carlson leads his drone-revelling collective through a scathing set of slow-burning, visceral post-2008 cuts, it can be difficult to distinguish whereabouts on that spectrum they sit in 2016.

Undeniably, Earth still matter. Tonight’s show isn’t sold out, but by the time London duo Markers wrap up their cinematic exploration of repetition and respite, you’d have a hard time believing that. Whilst there’s little space to be found within the venue, there’s plenty of it coming from the PA system as the Washington icons lock into their perpetual, deep-rooted groove; where most drone bands overbear and struggle to maintain interest, Earth’s live show places equal importance on their crushing riffs and the space between them.

Two songs in, the dystopian freedom of There Is A Serpent Coming proves a highlight – seeming almost too fitting less than 24 hours after Donald Trump was elected. An untitled new cut is also among tonight’s more attention-demanding moments, finding the band at the height of their repetitive discipline.

Tonight’s biggest hindrance, however, is not fortuitous. The total disregard of the band’s seminal debut record – commonly agreed upon as their most essential LP – grates. Whilst they stand as one of few early-90s bands that continue to make non-derivative records, it’s hard not to crave at least a nod to their admittedly hefty starting point. There are also times where tracks struggle to translate to the live setting quite as well as you’d hope.

To truly enjoy an Earth show, you have to be totally lost in it: disorientated, immersed, and helplessly arrested. Regrettably, that’s not always the case this time around.