Kevin Bronson on October 20th, 2018

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Ioanna Gika is the siren for the long-running industrial/gothic pop duo Io Echo, who, while releasing a new single, announced in the summer of 2017 that they had signed to Sargent House. This week, however, Gika released “Roseate,” the first official single from a solo album that will be released next year by that label, which is home to DIIV, Deafheaven, Chelsea Wolfe, Earth and Emma Ruth Rundle, among others.

Via social media, Gika explained: “This is a new chapter. Io Echo as a creative entity exists, but I wanted to go back and learn, expand and evolve.”

Besides 2017’s IO Echo single, Gika’s vocals appeared on songs from the Drums and the Big Pink. And a lyric from her song “Gone” was quoted in Arundhati Roy’s novel “The Ministry of Utmost Happiness.”

“Roseate” took root in “a political premonition that formed while at my mother’s house in Greece in 2014, following the death of my father,” Gika says. “Landscapes change, monuments fall. Hope / vote that the rest do not.” It’s a riveting four minutes, starting out true to its title before the electronic beats and turbulent synths encroach. It’s like standing on the edge of a cliff enjoying a spectacular view when a ferocious wind comes up. “These city walls our fathers built / they have crumbled now / But I can’t let go,” Gika wails.

Gika will be supporting labelmates DIIV and Deafheaven on a short tour, performing in a trio backed by Patrick Belaga and Aram Giragos.

||| Stream: “Roseate”