Aunce: Evergreen
AUNCE challenges expectations and embraces sonic experimentation with new single “Evergreen”
by Jack Rush Photo Credit: Zoe Savitz
AUNCE (pronounced Aunts/Arnts) creates bold, genre-defying music that challenges expectations and embraces sonic experimentation. Confrontational rhythms and visceral synths blend with intimate vocals, creating ethereal soundscapes that are both urban and otherworldly. Her work blurs the boundaries of pop, electronica, and sonic art, while exploring themes of nature, social issues, and human behavior. AUNCE’s music invites listeners into a world where genres fade, and sound becomes a journey and an experience.
Driven by an insatiable love of sound and its power to connect us, AUNCE seeks to express the inexpressible and explore the textures and feelings of both known and unknown worlds. As one of the most exciting emerging voices in genre-defying music, she continues to captivate listeners and collaborators alike.
Her debut track released in late 2024 Beep Beep has garnered critical acclaim, celebrated for its creativity and described as “sonically innovative” and “philosophically provocative.” Hailed as “boundary-pushing”, “genius”, and “enchanting”, the track exemplified AUNCE’s signature duality—grounded yet ethereal, visceral yet introspective—showcasing the bold artistry that defines her sound.
Evergreen delves into the mental process that precedes a leap of faith—intentionally dismantling the familiar and stepping into the unknown. It captures the oscillation between trusting the process, fearing it will all fall apart, and holding a deep self-knowing that everything will be okay. AUNCE often visualises standing on the edge of a precipice when entering a new phase or going against the grain to do things differently, a theme that inspired many of the song's visuals (lyrics provided below).
Originally inspired by a personal decision to uproot and move across the world, Evergreen evolved into an anthem of empowerment. At a time when fashions, trends, fake news spread lightning fast across online platforms shaping behaviour and beliefs, the song celebrates the courage to go against the grain, carve your own path, think critically and resist the pull of unaligned trends, ulterior motives and systems designed to exploit and profit from unquestioning conformity.
Evergreen feels particularly relevant to the current state of music, as more of us recognise the subtle yet significant influence of streaming platforms on how music is created, released, and experienced. AUNCE reflects on whether these systems, driven by algorithms, naturally steer artists (including herself) toward accessibility and familiarity, shaping both the creative process and how audiences engage with music. Listening habits, too, have shifted, with many relying on algorithms to introduce them to new sounds rather than actively seeking them out. And if artists resist this dynamic, what is the cost? Where does this trajectory lead? Is it a continuation of Mark Fisher’s concern about our diminishing ability to imagine a radically different future? Or could AI take on the role of producing commodified music for passive listening, freeing artists to explore without limitation?
Evergreen was written in collaboration with London based Jordan Rakei, Melbourne based Boy Soda and Auckland based Harry Charles, as part of APRA Songhubs residency in Auckland, NZ. With additional production by London based Chris Hyson.
Have a listen and connect with Aunce:
