There is a depth and darkness to Marissa Nadler’s work that sets her apart from many of the singer-songwriters who emerged from the fertile ground of the early noughties. Her purview has always been more gothic and more cinematic than that of her peers: as well as ten solo albums of haunted folk and dreamy Americana, she also contributed vocals to black metal act Xasthur and has a side hustle as a visual artist, creating atmospheric drawings and paintings of abstracted landscapes. Other collaborations include John Cale, Mercury Rev, Kronos Quartet, Okkervil River and Philly rapper Lushlife. It has been a winding trail from alt-folk ingénue to grande dame of delicate but sweeping indie, but one constant throughout that journey has been Nadler’s voice.
And that voice dominates It Hits Harder, the spellbinding opening track on New Radiations. It is an instrument defined by its controlled power. A thick layer of reverb gives the illusion of gentleness, but the closer you listen, the more precise and operatic you realise Nadler is. This contrast of precision and dream-pop lightness will become a recurring theme of the album; here it is cast into even sharper relief by nagging guitars and lyrics that create an extended metaphor out of the freedom and the fear of flight and aviation. The title track explores similar emotional territory, as Nadler searches for personal closure in the grip of an anxiety-inducing world. Her words go beyond confessional poetry, creating complex scenarios and varied characters. Bad Dreams Summertime is an apocalypse ballad dressed in fifties vocal group finery, bright harmonies submerged in an engulfing, dark miasma.
It all works in service to her very specific aesthetic, which is visual as well as musical: the light and shade of the album cover, the black-on-white typeface, Nadler’s billowing black clothes against a white, partly decaying wall. You Called Her Camellia, with its gentle fingerpicked guitar, offers up the image of woman as delicate flower, then proceeds to twist it subtly into something harsh and unforgiving, as scenes of desert highways and themes of decay begin to creep in. Nadler is not one to deal in glib stereotypes.
She is an expert in the art of treading a line between nauseous, head-spinning soundscapes and melodic sweetness. Smoke Screen Selene offers up distortion and apparent innocence in equal measure, like Mazzy Star played at slightly the wrong speed. The effect is both gorgeous and disconcerting. If It’s An Illusion is a simple nostalgic ditty that seems to be haunted by nameless anxieties, while Light Years hides bitterness and regret in the plain sight of a loping, lilting tune. Space becomes both a literal and figurative concern: Nadler frequently finds herself floating above the earth, above water, somewhere in an unforgiving cosmos. If gothic neo-folk sci-fi wasn’t a thing, it is now.
To Be a Moon King paints a vivid picture of a romantic rocket scientist, his heart set on Saturn’s rings. It hints at a link between human love and a wider universe of loss and disappointment, an idea that reaches fruition in album closer Sad Satellite, with its airy melody and its lyrical uncertainty. Centred around shimmering synths and motion-sick slide guitar, it’s just off-centre in that Lynchian way that makes you question yourself as much as what you’re experiencing. The strangely gripping murder ballad Hatchet Man gives off similar vibes: imagine Lynch directing Psycho and getting the Roches in to soundtrack it.
While descriptors like ‘gauzy’ and ‘soft-focus’ come easily when talking about the content of Nadler’s music, the thought processes behind it are admirably clear-cut and well-defined. She is perhaps the most distinctive and gifted songwriter working in the nebulous realm of dark folk, and New Radiations feels like a perfect distillation of her unsettlingly graceful music: essential for long-time fans and ideal for newcomers. It could easily become a career-defining album.
New Radiations (August 15th, 2025) Bella Union
Marissa Nadler UK & EU Tour:
30/10/25 : The Tin Music and Arts – Coventry (UK)
31/10/25 : St. Matthias Church – London (UK)
01/11/25 : Dust – Brighton (UK)
02/11/25 : Clwb Ifor Bach – Cardiff (UK)
03/11/25 : Papillon – Southampton (UK)
05/11/25 : Cactus club – Brugge (BE)
07/11/25 : Muziekgieterij – Maastricht (NL)
08/11/25 : Sonic City – Kortrijk (BE)
09/11/25 : Luxor Live – Arnhem (NL)
11/11/25 : TivoliVredenburg @ Ronda – Utrecht (NL)
12/11/25 : De Oosterpoort – Groningen (NL)
13/11/25 : Doornroosje – Nijmegen (NL)
15/11/25 : Mix Festival @ Zorlu PAC – Istanbul (TR)
17/11/25 : Studie 3 @ DR Koncerthuset – Copenhagen (DK)
18/11/25 : Hus 7 – Stockholm (SE)
19/11/25 : SALT – Oslo (NO)
20/11/25 : Pustervik – Gothenburg (SE)
21/11/25 : Plan B – Malmö (SE)