Weekly5

In today's edition you will encounter a purely Swiss line-up of exceptional indie music from across the stylistic board. The dangerous indie-folk-inspired song by Mary Middlefield, the smooth warmth by Ziska Staubli and Far Coast, the experimental excellence of Kate Birch, and the glooming darkness flowing from Walter Frosch.

Mary Middlefield – Heart's Desire

Heart's Desire might sound like a love song but is the opposite. In an impressive composition, the latest release by Swiss singer-songwriter Mary Middlefield tells a haunting story of statutory rape and manipulative relationships. The song sounds astoundingly beautiful but never loses its slightly uncomfortable, dangerous ambiance. A stunning work.

• Buy this song on Bandcamp

Far Coast – Never Been The Person

Far Coast evokes a warm and smooth feeling with the new single, Never Been The Person, a song about perfection and failure to reach it. While featuring some 90s nostalgia, pumped through the track's veins by the drum machine, Never Been The Person brings a dreamy atmosphere to the table—somewhere between psychedelia and disco.

• Buy this track on Bandcamp

Kate Birch – Welcome To Paradise

A wonderous indietronica piece by Kate Birch awaits. Welcome To Paradise is an ode to the beauty of nature, the comforting connection it provides. The violin mimics birds chirping, the experimental composition flows and grows to multi-layered density that might overwhelm at first, but shows its beauty after like an opening flower.

Ziska Staubli – time for me

With a funky bassline in her debut single, Swiss producer Ziska Staubli reminds us in the most pleasing way to take time and figure out «who I'm gonna be». The short track sprays out glowing rays of disco beats in slow motion. The song time for me sounds effortlessly cool—and is a tasty appetizer for what we can expect by Staubli.

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Walter Frosch – False Prophets

False Prophets might very well be the darkest, most dangerous sounding track by Swiss synthpop duo Walter Frosch. Slowed down, the song creeps yet still builds their signature wall of sound. After NYE, the new single again hints at an exciting development towards almost hip-hop-styled beats while maintaining a goth atmosphere.

• Buy this track on Bandcamp

Today's Weekly5 coincidentally highlight Switzerland's exceptional indie music landscape—at least for the majority of the selection. Moonpools are back with a breathtaking single, and Evelinn Trouble proves again her sheer talent. Tom Silkman invites us to relax, Chiara Dubey to reflect, and Laura Carbone prompts optimism.

Moonpools – Never Mind

With songs like Damaged Goods or Feel, the Swiss band Moonpools made a splash in the local indie scene. With the announcement of their upcoming EP, Hide and Seek, the quintet also releases a first and exceptional teaser.

Their new single, Never Mind, is an astonishing and densely layered web of guitar work—somehow simultaneously dragging downwards and heavy but also flowing and dreamy. Moonpools perfectly synthesise their dream pop melodies with a shoegaze atmosphere, especially the song's melody floating right in between melancholy and anticipation. What an utterly great track!

Evelinn Trouble – Started A Fire

Switzerland's Evelinn Trouble has evolved over the years to a powerhouse of sophisticated rock songwriting. Her latest single, Started A Fire, is yet another track that underlines this hypothesis.

In Started A Fire, Evelinn Trouble's voice shines as the driving force behind the song. The sombre cellos create a gritty and dark atmosphere that builds from an intimate beginning to an overwhelming finale. Despite the gentler moments, the song packs a punch and showcases Evelinn Trouble's emotive vocal range.

• Buy this track on Bandcamp

Tom Silkman – Falling On Feathers

With Yet No Yokai, Thomas Seidmann creates intriguing psychedelic rock. Now, the Swiss artist has released a new single with his solo project Tom Silkman. Falling On Feathers still has a slight psychedelic note.

Seidmann's hommage to making music wraps its psych vibe into a sonic two-tone dress of indie-folk and indie-rock. The result sounds warm, comfortable, and even relaxed, perfect for a summer road trip. Falling On Feathers also reminds me a bit of Mr. E's Beautiful Blues by the Eels.

• Buy this track on Bandcamp

Chiara Dubey – How to Save Myself

«How to Save Myself is about an atoxic place I have been, where I loved beyond my limits, gave all I had to offer to someone who didn’t see me,» explains Chiara Dubey. The song is an eclectic neo-classical pop epos.

Dubey's soft voice is complemented with a vibrant, textured composition, mixing electronic layers and strings. The atmospheric and ambient-like sound also juxtaposes the lyrics' vulnerability. The song displays Dubey's stunning range—a highly intimate but also strange journey to the deepest corners of the self.

Laura Carbone – The Good

With The Good, the German-Italian artist Laura Carbone released a hymn to hope and optimism. And again, Carbone pulls off the perfect blend of down-to-earth indie-folk and opulent composition.

But within Carbone's songs, there always shimmers this sparkle of timelessness. You can feel the passion in every little sound; a sliver of melancholia is present, evoked by her chamber-pop tendencies. The Good is again right down in this sweet spot—a beautifully crafted, flowing song to revel.

• Buy this track on Bandcamp

Whispers, screams, pleads, summons. Today's selection stylistically stretches wide from apocalyptic post-punk to innovative indie-folk. But also blends proven artists and promising newcomers.

Holy Esque – Ask Me Twice

Sometime around 2016, Holy Esque appeared on my radar with the otherworldly debut album At Hope's Ravine. Then, the Glasgow-based band kind of faded away. The sophomore album, Television / Sweet, could not gain the same traction.

After the 2020 EP CPH and a Covid-related release with acoustic versions, they emerged back into my attention with a new single: Ask Me Twice. Holy Esque seamlessly continue creating their signature sound, which is then lifted by Pat Hynes' raspy, vibrato-heavy vocal performance to new heights.

Ask Me Twice juxtaposes an escalating, loud sound with Hynes, who first almost whispers but then screams in frustration. Even now, with a steady stream of post-punk revival bands, Holy Esque still sound unique.

Nola Kin – The Table

Nola Kin made her first entry to Weekly5 with the astonishing song Not What You Think in 2022, where the Swiss artist and former Klain Karoo singer demonstrated impressively that she has not lost an ounce of emotional impact.

After touring through Germany with Black Sea Dahu, Nola Kin will release her second EP, Mayhem, in May. The Table is not only the second teaser to the EP but also a song that digs deep into intimate conversations, advocating honesty, open-mindedness, and vulnerability.

However, the brilliance of The Table is its composition. In the beginning, it almost fools the listener with its straight-forward indie-folk, almost country-like sound, only to then turn the knob of experimentalism with a weirdly distorted guitar solo, creating a fresh take on a rather traditionalist genre.

vega vi – Afloat

Darkness creeps through a meandering, electronic ambient landscape. A deep, dangerous, yet seductive voice reverbs in your head. Afloat is likewise a profoundly physical and ethereal experience.

The artist vega vi, based in the Techno capital Berlin, also operates with synthesizers. But instead of stomping beats, Afloat is dominated by pulsating and floating waves, evoking an almost disorienting, enchanting composition.

Her vocals first spotlighted, slowly sink into the soundscape like stones in water. The song, a teaser for vega vi's upcoming namesake EP, is a promising release, provoking anticipation for the next journey into this sombre sonic underwater world of hers.

Tanlines – Vanishing Point

Brooklyn's duo Tanlines are a product of another time. In 2008, Jesse Cohen and Eric Emm founded the band, providing their debut album, Mixed Emotions, 2012, which was applauded for an intriguing mix of indie-rock and electronica.

Last year, Tanlines released The Big Mess, their third album, after an eight-year break. With their new single, Vanishing Point, they state their intention not to go silent again, and simultaneously provide a track that is both refreshing and nostalgia-filled.

Vanishing Point blends indie-rock elements and synth-pop vibes, and somehow sounds sometimes like a sonic twin to The Police's Every Breath You Take. And despite the rather melancholic sound, Vanishing Point creates also euphoria with its anticipating piano play.

• Buy this song on Bandcamp

Millie Turner – Venus

U.K. singer Millie Turner was only 17 when she appeared with the song Underwater in the spotlight in 2017. Today, she already has two albums under her belt—and makes no sign of stopping.

While her biggest hits, like January or Night Running, present contemporary, electro-heavy pop compositions, it seems that Turner has grown again significantly since the sophomore album, Eye of the Storm.

Venus plays it less save in the pop realm. Turner experiments with her exceptional voice, and through the composition, a freezing Nordic wind blows over atmospheric strings.

We are kicking off a new year of Weekly5 today with some truly excellent works—from the otherworldly songwriting by Sweden's Linn Koch-Emmery to the stunning artistic development by THYMIAN.

You might find joy in the almost scary beauty of Brother Bird's latest single or indulge in the slow-burning composition by Swiss newcomer Junes. And if you're just here for some sad boy beats, you might embrace the underground—a new post-punk revival project.

Linn Koch-Emmery – Ebay Armour

Swedish artist Linn Koch-Emmery is back after what felt like an empty eternity since her last release, a cover of Lil Peep's Falling Down, in 2022. Since her Grammy-nominated debut album, Being the girl, Koch-Emmery is on a path to infuse more and more vulnerability into her work.

Similar to the utterly brilliant Linn RIP, the new song Ebay Armour sits right in this amalgamated sweet spot of alternative, indie-rock, and pop-like melodies; the composition is dense, even overwhelming, a totality of sound. But the musician's comforting voice guides us through the sonic thicket with a warm glowing melody.

The songwriting, no the whole song, again, is beyond words. It is the result of more than a year of dedicated effort on Linn Koch-Emmery's part and the close collaboration with The Vaccines' Pete Robertson as producer.

THYMIAN – Sentimental feat. Ferran Gorrea

Since his self-titled EP in 2019, THYMIAN has steadily grown his profile with a minimal, 80s-synthpop and post-punk-inspired sound, coined with his memorable singing. Compared to previous songs like Composure or It Is Just Natural, his latest work—Sentimental—shows a significant progression in creativity, quality, and innovation.

In Sentimental, THYMIAN's sound has matured and expanded into more dynamicism—especially with the contribution of Spanish saxophonist Ferran Gorrea. We have heard the combination of post-punk and sax already excel with True Faith's In Vain.

But most of all, the Swiss musician has aligned his voice to the sound: Still full of character, recognizable, yet more natural and closer to his live performances, THYMIAN's delivery approaches Dave Gahan.

• Buy this track on Bandcamp

Brother Bird – state of mind

In 2013, Caroline Glaser was a participant in the fourth season of The Voice. That is long ago, and in 2021, the Nashville-based singer and songwriter released her debut album, gardens, with her solo project Brother Bird—again proving that those who don't win talent shows are far more interesting artists.

With state of mind, Brother Bird delivers a new display of ethereal excellence. Between the earthy indie-folk waves, you can feel the nostalgia, maybe even a pinch of sadness, penetrating the soul.

Ultimately, it is Brother Bird's reverbing, angelic voice juxtaposed with the planet-bound sphere of us mortals that wraps state of mind in something scary-beautiful. Even the line «We got nothing to lose if we're all gonna die» sounds comforting when it's sung with her voice.

Junes – Happy

Switzerland's newcomer Junes made his initial appearance last year with Easier For You. And it wasn't simply a short splash, as the Zurich-based artist, who used to fall asleep and wake up to Adele's music, follows up with Happy, a song that is far from what the title might suggest.

«It's a song about situations that you don't want to be in anymore but that someone else wants for you,» says Junes about Happy. Composed in the most minimalistic way, with soft touches on the piano and perfectly placed effects, Happy somehow evokes infinity nonetheless.

Happy meanders slowly and shifts shape while Junes gently vocalises his thoughts—almost improvised but too deliberate to classify as a stream of consciousness. Happy is not easy yet a song that unveils its bittersweetness after a while.

the einsamkeit – Sad

You could write a thesis about the reasons why post-punk and dark wave celebrates a resurgence amongst some young people. What is certain is that German acts like Temmis or Edwin Rosen, coining weird genre names like «Neue Deutsche Einsamkeit» or «Neue Neue Deutsche Welle», seem to satisfy a desire for melancholy.

Two artists, an indie-popper and an electronica producer, who would rather remain in the background for now have joined forces in a project called the einsamkeit. Their first single leans hard into this newly carved out niche of electronically dominated sad boy sound.

Sad ticks all the necessary boxes, follows a known recipe, and it should be boring by now. But who cares when the bassline pumps all the blood into the legs, making them ready for dancing, and too little is left in the brain to really think about it? Adrenaline, even with a sombre coating, is still addictive.