ULTRA SUNN - US

ULTRA SUNN: Belgian "New Beat" heirs release new single "Some Ghost Could Follow" from upcoming Artoffact Records album "US"

Belgian duo ULTRA SUNN have released new single "Some Ghost Could Follow" from their debut full-length album, US, out April 19th on Artoffact Records.

Stream the track and pre-order the album, here: https://ultrasunn.bandcamp.com/album/us

Stream the "Some Ghost Could Follow" music video, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NQHtIoqpNM

From, Brussels, Belgium ULTRA SUNN consists of Gaelle Souflet and Sam Huge. The duo brings a modern edge to the classic sound of their home country's New Beat boom of the late 1980s, commonly referred to as "The Sound of Belgium."

A genre allegedly birthed from a 45-rpm record (A Split Second's "Flesh") being played at the wrong speed, New Beat is explained with these words in a 2018 article from Red Bull Music Academy: "Across a tight-knit network of clubs in cities such as Ghent, Brussels and Antwerp, the small and unassuming nation of Belgium moved to a rhythm all of its own. Known as New Beat, this genre fused electro-pop, industrial music, EBM and the nascent gurgles of acid in surprising ways, drastically slowing down records and seamlessly blending styles into detached and crepuscular dancefloor magic. What’s more, New Beat’s legacy is still clearly audible in contemporary European house and techno." Two of the most famous artists to come out of the scene include Technotronic and Lords of Acid.

The band comments: "The famous Sound of Belgium is indeed one of our major inspirations, we grew up with this music and sounds and we have the pleasure of having met most of the acts in this scene. Some are true mentors and we cherish the advice they gave us. We are proud to be considered the heirs of this musical tradition while having the desire to add our current and modern touch to the sounds and themes."

With backgrounds in art history and fashion design, Souflet and Huge became a couple ten years ago and launched ULTRA SUNN together in 2019. Their 2020 single "Keep Your Eyes Peeled" was a worldwide hit, amassing tens of millions of streams so far – over half a billion views on TikTok alone – as well as radio play and DJ spins around the globe.

Across three EPs – Night Is Mine, Body Electric, Kill Your Idols – ULTRA SUNN has evolved, inspired not only by predecessors in the Belgian electronic music scene, but by art, fashion, and a broad array of sounds. "Our inspirations can range from 17th-century Baroque music, to RuPaul," they state. The duo has collaborated with the likes of Kontravoid, Kris Baha, and Curses.

A thread of equality and self-empowerment runs through all the band's work, according to Souflet and Huge: "Our message is positive and combative. We like to have a powerful energy which invites you to fight against darkness, whether it comes from outside or from within yourself. It regularly happens that people come to us and tell us about the positive impact that our tracks have in their lives and it's the best reward. ULTRA SUNN is about light. Our goal is to bring a little light through our music, our lyrics and our attitude. The shows are always very powerful moments where we connect intensely with the audience and where we all build a strong moment together."

About the new single, "Some Ghost Could Follow," they state: "With this track, we invite you to think about these ghosts who could follow you in the night as you wander in a city that you know too well. The streets are paved with regrets, but some ghosts seem so much weaker in the end. In the verses we mention insomnia, resilience and the memories that come back to haunt you like a hallucinatory apparition, directly and deliberately interrupted by the mantra of the chorus, like a magic spell, a prayer, a call to order."

ULTRA SUNN has performed live across Europe, North America, and South America, including shows with with legends Nitzer Ebb, Front 242, A Split Second, and more. In 2023, their live lineup was rounded out by keyboardist and percussionist Alexis Andrigo.

Embarking on multiple legs of touring throughout this year with select festival dates (Sick New World, Catch One, Resistanz, Dark Malta, Verboden, Amphi), the band will embark on an EU/UK run before switching continents. A US tour will take the band from Denver through Seattle, then they return to Europe for another EU leg, including a special album release party at the Orangerie au Botanique in their home town of Brussels on June 1st.

Tour:
Feb 8 - Hamburg, DE @ Hafenklang
Feb 9 - Dortmund, DE @ Junkyard
Feb 10 - Strasbourg, FR @ La Laiterie
Feb 11 - Den Haag, NL @ Grauzone
Mar 9 - Bethune, FR @ La Poche
Feb 8 - Hamburg, DE @ Hafenklang
Feb 9 - Dortmund, DE @ Junkyard
Feb 10 - Strasbourg, FR @ La Laiterie
Feb 11 - Den Haag, NL @ Grauzone
Mar 9 - Bethune, FR @ La Poche
Mar 29 - London, UK @ Moth Club
Mar 30 - Brighton, UK @ Alphabet
Mar 31 - Sheffield, UK @ Resistanz Festival
Apr 6 - Bologna, IT @ Tank
Apr 21 - Malta, MT @ Dark Malta Festival
Apr 25 - Denver, CO @ The Oriental Theater
Apr 26 - Los Angeles, CA @ Catch One
Apr 27 - Las Vegas, NV @ Sick New World Festival
May 2 - Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge
May 3 - San Diego, CA @ The Kensington Club
May 4 - Riverside, CA @ The Hideaway Cafe
May 7 - San Francisco, CA @ DNA Lounge
May 8 - Sacramento, CA @ Harlows
May 10 - Portland, OR @ Coffin Club
May 11 - Seattle, WA @ Substation
May 12 - Vancouver, WA @ Verboden Festival
May 30 - Paris, FR @ Le Petit Bain
Jun 1 - Brussels, BE @ Botanique Orangerie
Jun 6 - Berlin, DE @ Gretchen
Jun 7 - Krakow, PL @ Klub Re
Jun 8 - Warsaw, PL @ Hydrozagadka
Jun 9 - Wroclaw, PL @ Liverpool
Jun 28 - Köln, DE @ Amphi Festival
Aug 8 - Lokeren, BE @ Fonnefeesten
Aug 17 - Matra, HU @ Fekete Zaj
Sep 19 - Bordeaux, FR @ Iboat
Sep 21 - Lausanne, CH @ Les Docks
Oct 3 - Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda's
Oct 4 - Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus
Oct 5 - Newark, NJ @ QXT's
Oct 7 - Richmond, VA @ Fallout
Oct 8 - Raleigh, NC @ The Pour House
Oct 9 - Atlanta, GA @ 529
Oct 10 - Tampa, FL @ Absolution Fest
Oct 12 - Nashville, TN @ The Cobra
Oct 15 - New Orleans, LA @ Santos
Oct 16 - Austin, TX @ Elysium
Oct 17 - Houston, TX @ Etro Nightclub
Oct 18 - San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
Oct 19 - Dallas, TX @ Sundown
Oct 21 - Wichita, KS @ Liminal Evasion
Oct 23 - Kansas City, MO @ VIVO Life
Oct 24 - Saint Louis, MO @ The Crack Fox
Oct 25 - Carbondale, IL @ Hangar 9
Oct 26 - Indianapolis, IN @ White Rabbit
Oct 27 - Madison, WI @ Crucible
Oct 30 - Detroit, MI @ Small's
Oct 31 - Chicago, IL @ Sanctum Fest
Nov 16 - Dresden, DE @ Coldhearted Festival

Tracklist:
1) Broken Monsters
2) This Is Not About You
3) Some Ghost Could Follow
4) You and Me
5) Lost and Found
6) Shake Your Demons
7) The Truth
8) Fall from Grace
9) The House

Lineup:
Sam Huge - vocals

Gaelle Souflet - synth

Photos by Kris Parenti