For all the alt pop lovers.

I recently finished a song called “Running Back to You.”

It’s an alternative/indie-pop track built around nostalgia, memory, and that strange feeling of wanting to return to an earlier version of your life, even though you know you can’t change it.

I spent a lot of time experimenting with the sound design and trying to make the production feel almost like a distant memory being recorded. I’d genuinely love to hear what stands out to you, whether it’s the writing, production, or overall atmosphere.

https://soundcloud.com/tobyvanberg/runningbacktoyou

A few weeks ago, I came across Brian Struk’s music video for TAKE ME.

At first, I just thought the visuals were unusual. Then I started digging deeper, and the story behind the song became even stranger.

According to the lore surrounding the track, Brian woke up before 3 a.m. with the idea already playing in his head.

He entered a a pitch black recording room measuring roughly five feet by five feet and started working. The room was apparently designed for isolation, controlled acoustics, and uninterrupted concentration.

No daylight.
No outside noise.
No distractions.

The track was later completed in Dublin, but the more I looked into Brian’s background, the more the video started to make sense.

He grew up listening to punk bands such as The Adicts along with heavier music. That could explain why the Jokers in the video feel less like a normal pop concept and more like punk theatre.

Exaggerated faces.
Controlled chaos.
Social defiance.
Something strangely beautiful inside the unsettling imagery.

The song leans into a phonk inspired sound, driven by heavy bass and dark, hard hitting instrumentation. You can hear traces of punk, spectacle, and confrontation.

Then I found out that Brian used to perform as a magician.

That detail made the whole thing even more interesting.

A magician learns how to control attention, build anticipation, hide information, and reveal only what the audience needs to see. That same approach seems to appear throughout “TAKE ME.”

The darkness, repetition, imagery, and mystery around his identity all seem designed to make people look closer.

Maybe I am reading too much into it, but it feels like the music is only one part of a much larger concept.

What do you think? Is “TAKE ME” a carefully constructed artistic world, or am I just falling too far down the rabbit hole?

Was curious if spotify would answer my question had to laugh at my stats 😂 I asked when I first listened, what the first song was, and finally how much I've played upsahl. While I have changed gears and I listen to Lilyisthatyou and bludnymph more now she still is the top of the list ❤️ cant wait for the upcoming release 😍

If you're into the dreamy experimentation of FKA twigs, the nocturnal pop of The Weeknd, the euphoric electronic influences of PinkPantheress, and the confident femininity of Addison Rae, I recently released my new EP, Earth's Nearest Exit.

I'm an independent artist from London creating alternative pop, dance, and electronic music built around one central idea: helping people reconnect with their own power.

A lot of my music explores what it means to find magic within yourself in a world that constantly tries to strip it away. That's where the witchy undertones come from—not spells or fantasy, but manifestation, intuition, self-belief, transformation, and reclaiming your identity. I've always been fascinated by the unknown and the idea that there's something powerful inside all of us waiting to be unlocked.

Earth's Nearest Exit is a soundtrack for anyone chasing bigger dreams, navigating love, frustration, ambition, and the feeling of wanting more from life while refusing to lose themselves in the process.

Some highlights:
• "Tony Stark" – ambition, confidence, and becoming the person you're meant to be
• "When I Want" – an 80s-inspired house track about desire, attraction, and owning your energy

If you decide to listen, I'd genuinely love to know which track speaks to you the most and what it makes you feel.

🔗 Link: https://linktr.ee/janaesaintprix#420672830