New Music: Au/Ra – E-MOTION

UK-based German-Antiguan artist Au/Ra hits a perfect gothic pop beat on the high-energy beats and smooth vocals of E-MOTION.

A track from her heartcore album E-MOTION places a hyperpop-style countdown with vocals that confects pop hooks, rock guitars, and D&B dancefloor drops into perfect harmony. That might sound like a lot musically and in terms of genres, but it’s not – everything is focused through Au/Ra and her ability to draw those diverse streams of sound into a cohesive flow.

As much as it has a singular approach and a distinctive lyrical vision and overarching concepts – mental health, identity, healing, and recovery – its popcentric power doesn’t sound much like Aurora, Charli XCX, or SOPHIE; however, if you like pop music to have a lot of bite and to exude emotional intelligence, this is for you.

“heartcore is a concept album, where I open the dungeon of my mind for listeners to climb inside’” Au/Ra explains. “I built a world where through my character Au/Ra, I explore the ups and downs of mental health, my childhood, recovering from rock bottom and how I healed from putting all my self-worth into being an artist.

“When I had my involuntary break from releasing music, I had a complete identity crisis because I didn’t know who I was without it. I turned to my inner world to cope, and this album was eventually born. So, there’s also themes of digital escapism, and a sprinkle of whimsy. And hope. For anyone going on a healing journey of their own, I hope these songs can help them through their own hero’s journey.”

E-MOTION and heartcore are out now via Polydor Records and can be streamed on Spotify, Tidal, and SoundCloud. You can find out more about the artist and album by heading to Instagram or Facebook.