upcoming album invitation to my tears / RD: OCT 02 2026 / release concert: SEP 30 2026 Radiokulturhaus, Vienna
w/ friede merz (vocals), johannes wakolbinger (composition, production, drums), beate wiesinger (electric bass), mona matbou riahi (clarinet), thomas grimm (alto saxophone), alexander kranabetter (trumpet, alto horn), florian sighartner (violin, flute), constanze friedel (violin), emily stewart (viola), lukas lauermann (cello), carles munoz camarero (cello)
iris electrum is the bold and ever-evolving musical ensemble around the Vienna-based composer Johannes Wakolbinger. In 2017, the eleven-piece collective released a widely acclaimed debut album iris electrum (col legno) – the result of two years of close, intensive collaboration with producer Sixtus Preiss. In the process, the young musicians developed a singular creative language, reflected in the stories their music unfolds.
Articulated through a vast variety of sound and form, their songs are both hymns and gentle calls for patience and openness, mindful choice, consistency and vision, trust and experiment, as well as nuance and complexity – echoes of a multi-layered reality, of life itself, in all its countless expressions between quiet intimacy and radiant grandeur. Adventurous and heartening, they transcend stylistic boundaries, move lightly across genres, and celebrate curiosity and multiplicity.
With subtle restraint and emotional pull, the ensemble brings to mind the avant-pop of Julia Holter: a carefully crafted space that draws listeners in without ever favouring theatrics over substance. As their second studio album invitation to my tears (working title) takes shape, set for release in the fall of 2026, iris electrum explores new dimensions within its distinctive sonic cosmos.
