No One (Single 2023)

Alexandra Hesse

Coloratura Grunge – Melancholy Folk Rock

Progressive, Hard’n’Heavy, Alternative Punkrock, those are few genres a singer from Salzburg grazes with her band projects Vintage Paradise, Blood & Champagne and Rockcircus. Solo, she even comes up with her own genre: mixing Classical with melancholic Folk, she gives it the title Coloratura Grunge. 

Her previously released singles like „Good God“, „Longing“, „Shivers“ and „Shotgun“ partially made it on the Xtra Ordinary samplers volume 22 and 24, alongside names like Christóh ft. Purge Mob, Julian Nantes, Yakata, Glue Crew, Dame, Amelie Tobien and Good Wilson, that is released since 1997. To gain further attention, Alexandra Hesse went on Open Stage Tour, taking her to places like Die Bäckerei, Café Carina and Badeschiff, MARK and Rockhouse. 

The fifth composition „No One“ starts with her voice, that will stay in the foreground for the whole duration. All instruments are restrained, to give the vocals plenty of room to unfold. So discreet keys can be heard, recorded by her father, as well as some strings and little drums, just enough and suddenly making an association to Enslaved.

Two dramatic breaks like from Liberation Orchestra are visualized with fades to black in the video for the song, before the silent ending. AI nowadays helps creating texts, images and videos, and so such a tool was used to animate the original artwork by sister Isabella Hesse. 

It shows an octopus in a kind of heart-shaped shell, that changes colour throughout the clip and at the peak almost seems to escape his hiding place. Stars and galaxies surround him, making think of „The Abyss“. Lyrically, the song ‚dives into the feeling of futility. No matter whether your actions are good or bad’. 

Recorded at Mixbär Studio, Alexandra Hesse shows a good sense for quite catchy melodies. Also she knows to place her voice, which comes out more than compared to the band structures.