#atna

Fresh on our radar German duo ÄTNA take my breath away with Remission, a bewitching aria bursting with elegant keys and poignant vocals. The pair released a music video for the song today, and its marbled sculptures, poised dramatically in the cavernous hallways of a gallery, fit the icy chiseled beauty of the song. ÄTNA’s avant-garde pop and artistic indietronica brings together the haunting sounds of Hundred Waters and the spellbinding experimentalism of The Knife. For another taste of this striking duo’s eccentric music, stream dark majestic Blossom below. You can find the video for Remission below, too.

Albums I listened to in 2025

Albums I listened to in 2024

ÄTNA carry their new single 'Trick By Trick' out into the world - a wide-legged, megalomaniac statement track that leans on the Gucci-Prada-Fendi-flow of contemporary artists with its technoid-dry beat and lascivious lyrics - and yet remains unmistakably ÄTNA, eccentric and sublime despite all the bling. The music video released for 'Trick By Trick' also manifests ÄTNA's musical versatility. Their visual world is another mosaic piece of their multiverse of sound, design, fashion, movement and language, virtuality and weirdness.

Electronic pop starlet Laura Lee Lovely unveiled her new anthem late last week and now she has shared the official video for 'Allandale'. Bearing no relation to the similarly titled Billy Joel classic, 'Allandale' is inspired by a weekend visit to the township and beautiful coastal area located in Governor's Bay, across the harbour from Lyttelton, a quiet and contemplative time which helped unlock fantastical new worlds within the artist. Co-directed by Anissa Trinder and Laura Watson, the video emanates a darkly romantic, Lynchian aura suitable to the song's small town origins. Laura Lee Lovely initially appears like a rose-tinted supernatural apparition in the night, switching up settings to belt out her haunting anthem against playfully nostalgic backdrops and bring the boogie to the local laundromat. Co-written by Benjamin Hunt (who also produced the song) and released with stunning cover artwork by lucidluca, experience 'Allandale' above — the first song revealed from Laura Lee Lovely's forthcoming debut album, due to release in 2022. Laura Lee Lovely explained how lines in the song were inspired by a break from social media: “I make a continuous effort to limit my time on social media but find it addictive and enjoyable too, it’s important to me to have a balance. The scenes reflect the indulgence that goes on behind the scenes. The line “I think you’ve got the better of me” came to me when reflecting on this when I was having a break. ’Allandale’ is an expression of my feelings when reflecting on the surroundings I found myself in. It was a world I could get lost in – having the peace and quiet to reflect on the current demanding social climate. This can be heard in the reflection and nostalgia of the song, and also in some of the ominous undertones found in the lyrics and instrumentation." [via Under The Radar]

Glitter alt queen tiLLie revels in chaos in her new single and video 'Flip a Switch'. The video features captivating visuals and innumerable wardrobe changes that match the ecstatic energy of the song. It was directed by Canadian writer and producer Brad Peyton, known for his work on Daybreak, Rampage, and San Andreas. "'Flip a Switch' feels like the beginning of a new era for me,” she explains. “I was finally able to channel elements from some of my biggest influences like Beastie Boys, early Eminem, and Rage Against the Machine in a way that feels singular to me."

Kero Kero Bonito have shared a new single, 'The Sneaker Dance,' which they made for streetwear designer Kerwin Frost’s new line of clothes for Adidas. It’s their first new material since the Civilisation II EP earlier this year, though a couple months ago they also teamed up with Soccer Mommy for a rework of her track 'rom com 2004.' “We’ve known Kerwin for a little while and we were honoured to be asked to create this song,” the band wrote in a statement, continuing: "We traded ideas with him, inspired by both the Fourth World characteristics of KKB’s recent Civilisation mini-album and our earliest MIDI rap tracks, and very quickly came up with the carnivalesque stomp of 'The Sneaker Dance.' 'The Sneaker Dance' explores the world of the Benchmates, the three animal characters featured in Kerwin’s designs, and details the dance routine undertaken by Lakeith – the nervy blue dog with the braced up teeth – when he sees a really special pair of sneakers. Do the sneaker dance. Dance as hard as you can. [via Stereogum]

Hiatus Kaiyote share a new video for the song 'And We Go Gentle', directed by frequent collaborator Grey Ghost. The video for ‘And We Go Gentle’ sees Hiatus Kaiyote's iridescent moth character riding around town in their mini-Jeep, stumbling into a light fixture store and the local bar before finding a hidden, candle-lit room with a gorgeous lamp centerpiece. Nai Palm shares about the concept behind the video, "'And We Go Gentle' is a song about why moths are attracted to light. For the video, I wanted to reference the Japanese film style of tokusatsu in celebration of Mothra (an angel moth that can defeat Godzilla). I made the costume myself out of aquarium plants and old tabi boots. The video is a search for love but from a quirky humorous perspective. On the morning of the shoot, there was an earthquake, which added to the mystery and epic-ness of the shoot. It was such a dream to work with director Grey Ghost again. He is such a creative champion." Grey Ghost added, “The concept for 'And We Go Gentle' was very much Nai’s vision, she had the whole story mapped out in her head and as soon as she explained it to me I loved it. The main thing I knew was that we had to shoot it on 16mm film to give it that realness and that nostalgic edge. I wanted to be a fly on the wall in her moth world. The story and footage feels equal parts silly and beautiful, I loved featuring the band members throughout for their cameos from store owners to speed dealers. Nai’s performance as the Moth was golden and legitimately hilarious to watch on set. Joey Knox (DOP) is a 16mm film master and he did a smashing job as we were really running and gunning it.”

With four albums already under her belt and a David Lynch co-sign that extended into a reoccurring role in his recent Twin Peaks: The Return, we should know what to expect from Chrystabell at this point. However the fact that she excels at creating unique worlds makes each new creative project so different from the next that it’s still exciting to hear news of a new record, the latest being Midnight Star, arriving early next year. The album was recently announced with its first single, and now we’re getting a preview of the title track along with a vibrant visual to bring the song to life. The single slowly progresses from a collage of spacey sounds, from ambient synths to an energized string section, before erupting into a a pulsing, dance-friendly beat with Chrystabell’s lyrics about space travel inhabiting the foreground all the while. “The trip from impending doom to cosmic dance party takes under five minutes,” she notes, “so you can do it over and over again, without a shred of space trash.” As for the video, the near-five-minute track lends itself to the bizarre activity that ensues. “‘Midnight Star’ is the first official music video of the album, starring wayward alien lifeforms seeking redemption amongst the crystal planets,” Chrystabell continues. “When I asked Archon to direct, I knew he could take it way out. I was not disappointed. He meticulously manufactured an alternate reality, literally sculpting worlds with his hands to bring the vision to life. This is one of four videos he made for the record, this grand and bizarre voyage is just getting started.”  “I believe—or, in fact, I am sure that—we exist in several dimensions at the same time,” director Archon adds. “’Midnight Star’ is a journey into our soul through various media. We don’t really know which of these worlds really exist. Perhaps it is just a projection, or perhaps it is the mind of some other being. Working with Chrystabell on this project was as thrilling as ever.” [via FLOOD]

Returning with their first new music in over three years, London/Glasgow alt-art-rock trio Dama Scout are back with new track ‘dan dan bub’. Of the song and accompanying video, the band say, “dan dan bub is the raw tingling of a first trip outside after turning inside out. It’s a drift down a river of hands, high fives and punches to the face, flipping you upside down like a woodlouse in a frying pan. It’s an itch that scratches itself. The video is like an interview with a self-portrait. It turns the gaze inwards exposing brittle foundations, and as the ideal-self rots away a bulbous overlord leads us in a mesmeric ritual dance.” [via DIY]

Arriving as Prima Queen’s first single in 18 months and their debut for Nice Swan, 'Chew My Cheeks' sees them conjure a luscious sonic world to soundtrack their return. The track is Prima Queen’s third release, but they once again display a symbiosis between the group's two leaders, Louise Macphail and Kristin McFadden, who combine the diverse sense of cool of their respective hometowns (Bristol, UK and Chicago, USA) to create a rich sound. The viscerally sensory title is the first hint as to the slightly disconcerting nature of the song - suggesting anxiety, apprehension, anticipation - and Prima Queen continue this energy throughout the instrumentals. For the most part, the track is restrained almost to breaking point, merely a breeze of guitar in the background alongside shivers of percussion and vocals that teeter between poignant falsetto and cool murmurs. It’s subtle but there are hints of a powerful force bubbling underneath. The most pop-leaning moment of 'Chew My Cheeks' is unleashed in the final bridge with a crooning guitar melody coming to the forefront under a vocal refrain of “you make it easy”. "'Chew My Cheeks' is a song that centres on an unhealthy obsession with someone who is slightly out of reach,” the group share. “We wrote it in lockdown last year when we were remembering what it was like to idealise people you don’t know and to use them as a form of escapism. We ended up watching The Matrix in isolation together around the same time and were really inspired by the world in which the movie creates.” Produced by The Big Moon, Prima Queen continues “It was incredible being able to work with The Big Moon since they’ve been such a big inspiration to us and we look up to them so much. They really understood our vision for the song and we were so impressed with how they were able to bring it to life." [via Line Of Best Fit]

Early next year, the great art-pop weirdo Cate Le Bon will release Pompeii, a new album the she and co-producer Samur Khouja reportedly recorded in an “uninterrupted vacuum” in Cardiff. 'Moderation' is a pop song that sounds like it’s melting itself down, perhaps trying to turn itself into circa-1980 post-punk in the process. Le Bon says that the song is “a nod to the daily dilemma of trying to curb inherited and novel habits, when you want to eat the moon, and an essay written by the architect Lina Bo Bardi in 1958 that continues to kick hard.” In the video, Le Bon poses at the mouth of a cave and becomes the head of a headless statue. [via Stereogum]

Fast becoming one of Australia’s most important and engaging musical talents, Sydney’s heralded singer-songwriter GRAACE announces the release of her heartbreakingly beautiful new song, ‘Half Awake’. “10 years ago, I lost my father to a sudden death at the local pool, around the corner from my old family home, before a surfing trip we had planned that afternoon” begins GRAACE. ‘Half Awake’ depicts GRAACE’s deep struggle with this loss, pouring her inner-most turmoil into this beautiful, yet devastating song. The accompanying video is just as haunting, inspired by the soul-stirring lyrics and the lucid dreams that GRAACE opens up about below. “I've always struggled with sleep since his passing. That night, when I was 14, I experienced lucid dreaming for the first time. It started as a tall white elevator tower and he said goodbye to me that night in it. As I grew older I began to love sleep. I think it's been a side effect of depression but it's wild to me that when I'm asleep it's the one time I'm able to talk to him. I taught myself lucid dreaming very quickly after he died. I was able to build a town surrounding the white elevator in my dreams that I could revisit most of the time when I tried really hard”. “Unfortunately, other things started to happen to me on rare occasions, such as sleep paralysis” continues GRAACE. “Sometimes the town emulates my dad’s passing for me at the lake, and I lose control of the dream. But sleep paralysis is something that I've learnt to deal with in order to sleep for as long as I can throughout the days and nights, so that I can escape reality”.

Ibeyi

continue their exploration of the spiritual and sanctified with insurgent new single 'Made Of Gold', featuring Gambian-British rapper Pa Salieu. Recorded at the beginning of 2021 in London, it features the duo's signature's choral interplay over a pulsing programmed beat. In addition to further interrogating their Yoruba faith, the duo also took inspiration from The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, revitalised by a particular piece of potent scripture. In the accompanying video, conceptualised by Ibeyi and directed by Daniel Sannwald, divine feminine energy meets an earthly parable. Ibeyi are enlightened! Speaking on 'Made Of Gold', Ibeyi says: "Whilst we were creating the layers of the backing vocals, we could feel that we were making contact with out ancestors; that what we were recording was calling on the brujas and our ancestors for their ancient knowledge. 'Made Of Gold' is about connecting to our ancestors' knowledge, to the truths of the the past and the power of the ancient." [via Clash]

Following her sold out debut show, the sensual Tamera has graced fans with her debut project Afrodite. The 5-track project, a culmination of 8 years of grafting, spotlights the singer's African and Greek heritage amongst silky riffs and intimate songwriting. Lead single 'Wickedest' is a warm embrace of feminine energy infused with a West African influence that resonates through rhythmic production, one that leans towards acoustic elements. Alternatively, tracks like 'Strong For Me' wander through sentiments of vulnerability and self-preservation. Produced entirely by P2J, whom has notably collaborated with Wizkid and Snoh Aalegra, the EP holds a streamlined quality, one that aligns itself with the best of contemporary RnB. Tamera had this to say about Afrodite: "Afrodite stems from the word "Aphrodite", who is the Goddess of love, beauty, pleasure and passion in Greek mythology. It's such a fitting title as my project was born from passion, love, goddess energy but it's also a subtle nod to my Greek heritage. I used 'Afrodite' because I'm also an African woman and the predominant sonics of the project are heavily influenced by African culture. The mix of the two create a perfect blend of passion, vulnerability, fearlessness, sass, brutal honesty and vim." Accompanying the EP release, is the visual for recent single 'Good Love' directed by Helena Coen. [via Clash]

ÄTNA return with new single ‘Grinding’

After the release of their highly acclaimed debut album Made By Desire earlier this year, ÄTNA releases their new single 'Grinding', immersing themselves in a dark world: multi-layered, intelligent and reflective. ‘Grinding' breathes zeitgeist.

A few weeks before the presidential election in the USA, nothing is the same as it was four years ago: On the streets the fight against an increasingly authoritarian system and the obviously racist state power is raging. By taking action alone and changing facts, the president has created a divided society that is now being pushed to the edge of its resilience. The symbolism used by ÄTNA: Trump ignites his own house. From this picture ÄTNA creates a dark world, into which they dive with 'Grinding'.

The single fits seamlessly into the tonal and musical quality of songs like 'Try', 'Come to Me' and 'Ruining My Brain' - oppressive synth patterns set the tone. "Fuck the System" - Inéz sings while a dragging half-time beat and the striking bass line of Demian form the foundation of her voice. The protagonist wakes up and sets out to fight - for the things worth fighting for.

With 'Grinding,' ÄTNA shows once again that they and their creative environment form one of the most interesting artist collectives in Germany these days. They are not afraid of the big themes. And they don't have to be. 'Grinding' is multi-layered, intelligent and reflective and at the same time musically very aesthetic.

Getting to Know...

ÄTNA.

Today, German newcomers ÄTNA have released their first full-length, Made By Desire. They have also unveiled the video for ‘Won’t Stop’ to coincide with the release. Watch it below.

ÄTNA – who sound not unlike Fever Ray pairing up with Grimes in London's grandiose Royal Opera House – have already played high profile festivals at home and abroad, as well as touring Russia, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Estonia. Their innovative live shows are focussed around the piano – with analogue effects mixed indirectly, loops, effects and delays played live, and nothing automated whatsoever – and while some might use Autotune to straighten a singer’s pitch, any vocal treatments here only add depth to Inéz's striking vocals.

Employing elements of dramatically different movements and genres, Inéz and Demian - a creative partnership of equals – create an avant-garde ‘work of art’ in the very best sense of the phrase, integrating fashion and design into their music, with monochrome stage costumes and stunning videos featuring vast rooms full of white dice, functional colours and shapes, and a logo which looks as if it was designed by Wassily Kandinsky.

We had a chat with Inéz all about the duo's beginnings, Made By Desire, their live show and more. Read the Q&A below.

Who are ÄTNA? What bought the two of you together and make you want to start this project?

“Demian and I met studying music at the Musikhochschule in Dresden a beautiful midsize city in eastern Germany. That was about eight years ago and since then we have been playing together- first in a jazz quintet and then since 2016 as the duo ÄTNA.”

You've just released your debut album Made By Desire. Where did you pull inspiration from for the record? What does it mean to you?

“I wrote many of the lyrics based on personal experience of mine. Many of them have to do with finding a voice within, gaining self-confidence, and questioning role models of society. A few have more of a political background. Musically the ingredients are hard to name but hints of deep 90’s electro, 80′s Pop, Motown and worldwide folklore sounds may be spotted.”

What was your favourite part making the album? Did you learn anything new during the process of making your first full length?

“An album has a longer dramaturgy which bears some very exciting options of telling a longer story. In times of streaming your traditional album listeners seem to disappear but if one takes the time to dive in it can be very rewarding. In our case the album length added some more lighter vibes to our rather melancholic sound!”

You have a run of tour dates coming up soon in support of the album. What do you love most about being on stage and performing live? Which of the new songs are you looking forward to playing?

“Every night is different. We don’t use a computer or semi playback arrangements which let’s use explore the intensity and the tempos as a cowork with our audience. This leads to many unforeseen unique concert experiences-also for us! The new songs are very danceable so very much look forward to the crowd getting its moves down, haha!”

Finally, what else is next for ÄTNA ?

“We have some surprising collaborations coming up, some reworks and remixes as well as music for a cinema production. Stay tuned!”