Frau Knotz – Other Futures: 13th Floor New Song Of The Day

Aotearoa electronica artist Frau Knotz (Lauren Nottingham) has returned today with the beat-centric and uplifting new single, Other Futures. This is the second single to be released off her forthcoming debut EP Nextraterrestrial, out August 2024.

Here is the blurb with more:

Originally an instrumental lo-fi hip-hop beat off the album ‘Other Futures‘ by Daniel Hayles (Hollie Smith, Lord Echo, Clear Path Ensemble), Frau Knotz has penned lyrics and adapted his nostalgic track with her distinct sonic angle.

Featuring scat singing, lush chord voicings and an eighth-note piano line, the jazz that lies at the heart of both musicians shines forth. Frau Knotz has melded these elements seamlessly with synth instruments and auto-tuned vocals for artistic effect, underpinned by a heavy-hitting electronic beat. Her undeniable skill for straddling genres to present a unique sound has been put on full display. Lyrically, Lauren says, “the song title gave me so much to work with, along with the repeated melody line, it was a no-brainer to follow this thread and pen a hopeful story of the future.”

Long time friends and collaborators, Daniel and Lauren both gained Jazz degrees at the New Zealand School of Music, where Daniel is now in his ninth year as a Lecturer in Teaching. Last year Frau Knotz was invited by Daniel to perform as a guest artist with his Other Futures Big Band for the Wellington Jazz Festival, performing ‘Other Futures‘ to a packed audience at Meow, amongst other Frau Knotz originals and bespoke arrangements of iconic songs from Kate Bush, Chicago and George Gershwin.

Arriving on Wednesday, June 12th, is the ‘Other Futures‘ music video, a captivating piece of 3D animation work set on the moon, highlighting the stunning visual craftsmanship of Christchurch-born, LA-based Blue Hamel a.k.a Halfofnothing (Kanye West, Childish Gambino). The video will premiere on Frau Knotz’ YouTube channel at 7pm that evening.

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Mastered by Joshua Llewellyn at Downbeat Mastering and co-produced and mixed by Sam Johnson at Rhythm Ace Studio, today’s release is the second single to come from her upcoming debut EP, following the enigmatic vignette ‘Odyssey I‘ which was met with eager support from local and international media, featuring on The Most FM, Radio Control FM, The Hits, 13th Floor, Zone Nights (Argentina), Expansión Radial (Mexico) and reviewed by Flash-Trax.

‘Other Futures‘ is at its core ‘cerebral’ with its richly layered textures, Frau Knotz’s voice donning a vocaloid sensitivity that still exhibits warmth and emotion. The track offers a vision of a time in which our digital accessories might become places for self-expression and improvement, in the next phase of the technological age.

About Frau Knotz:

“If you like cool Electronica you’ll like this. If you UNDERSTAND cool Electronica you’ll LOVE this… Frau Knotz is worth the investment, and I hope to hear more.”

– Jack Grabham, muzic.net.nz

The original songs of singer, pianist, producer and composer Lauren Nottingham have touched down on Earth under the moniker Frau Knotz. Channeling rave nostalgia and Eurodisco, Frau Knotz toggles between whimsical fantasies and dark truths, switches propulsive rhythms and expansive balladry and tunes glamour with gameplay to concoct elixirs of experimental electronica.

2022 was a breakout year for Frau Knotz. After just 3 months of developing her project, she was picked up as the opening act for Trip Change on their North Island tour to celebrate NZ Music Month. The momentum rose in September with the release of her debut single Supernova, the music video of which was featured on MTV Upload and Juice TV. Supernova was premiered exclusively by The Most FM’s Making Tracks series, reviewed by muzic.net.nz and added to playlists of many independent radio stations nationwide. Festival highlights for 2022 include performing Supernova with a live band curated by the Black Seeds’ frontman Barnaby Weir at TAFT’s Spiegelfest closing night, as well as ending the year with a New Year’s Eve feature performance at Taranaki’s TSB Festival of Lights.

2023 saw two single releases, with her successful sophomore single Runway of Reality hitting over 1.2k views on YouTube, charting on Radio Control’s Top 10 and a well-attended release show at the King’s Theatre in Stratford. Her third single Cellular dropped November 10th, imploring her listeners to think twice about their devices. Her collaboration with 15 year-old dancer Mizaan Turner as a choreographer resulted in a music video and live performance of a curated dance routine to a sold-out crowd at Dancing For Hope Taranaki, an event raising funds for Taranaki Retreat and Mike King’s I Am Hope charity. Festival highlights include her DJ debut at TSB Festival of Lights Winter Pop-Up in July, as well as being a featured guest at the Wellington Jazz Festival in October backed by the Other Futures Big Band.

With all of this under her belt, Frau Knotz is ready to take her live act to crowds further afield. 2024 has begun with an Auckland debut at Whammy Bar, followed by the release of Odyssey I, the first single off her 7-track debut EP Nextraterrestrial, due for release in August 2024. With more music to roll out in the coming months, get ready; Frau Knotz vows to take you on a deep sonic odyssey through her 3-dimensional world.