Canadian electronic band Austra have just announced a date at Union Transfer on September 20th in support of their upcoming album Olympia, set for release through Domino Records on July 18th. “Home,” the lead single from the album, features singer Katie Stelmanis’ theatrical, drawn-out and yearning vocals on top of a bed of up-tempo electronic and traditional instrumentation. The effect is something operatic and expansive while still personal. From Austra:
A simple and intimate concept, we hoped to capture the sadness and longing of the track in one take through a two-way mirror. The video is directed by THAT GO, a brilliant director-duo from Seattle….
Tickets for the September show go on sale this Friday, May 3rd. More information will be available here. Watch the video for “Home” below.
At first glance, Katie Stelmanis appears to be the delicate, girl-next-door type. But her music suggests quite the opposite. As the front-woman of Austra, she creates mysterious dance music that would make for a great soundtrack of an experimental film. (No surprise, then, that Austra’s music videos delve into nude dancers, reptilian deformities, and sporadic images of missiles—a bizarre realm of visual representation that only its music could support.) Through obsessive electronic beats and extended vocal lines, the songs simultaneously evoke excitement and instill a sense of reverence. Stemanis’ commanding voice sings gruesome, passionate lyrics about love and anger that transform her from some sweet-natured girl to a woman cloaked in darkness and rhythm. Austra performs with Grimes at 8 p.m. at The First Unitarian Church; tickets to the all-ages show are $10–$12. —Caitlyn Grabenstein
