VIASONDE 
Hi Anna, thanks so much for taking the time to chat with us for the debut issue of the Viasonde Zine. Let’s start at the beginning. You first emerged with the NONE project in 2017, and then, by late 2018, both NONE’s Havoc and Glaring’s Sleep EP appeared within a month of each other—two releases that sonically feel quite aligned. Can you talk a bit about how Glaring evolved out of NONE? Was it a natural progression, or did it mark a more deliberate shift in vision?
I just wanted to rename the project after recognizing that there are at least 10 other projects with the same name. At that time I wrote a NONE song called Glaring and I thought this would also sound great as a band name. And it wasn’t even taken! Beside that I really started to hate everything I did as NONE cause I had no idea what I was doing when I started. The more I learned the more I felt like it’s time for a new beginning. That’s another reason why I set up the new Bandcamp page as Glaring.
Your latest album, Funeral Party, released via Young and Cold, feels like your most dreamlike and immersive work to date. There’s a distinct “4AD” energy to it—particularly echoes of This Mortal Coil and early Cocteau Twins. Was that hazier, more romantic direction something you set out to explore consciously? And how much did Cristina (Svanur)’s collaboration shape the atmosphere of the record?
Whenever I make music it just happens naturally without any conscious decisions or plans. I usually start to play around with a melody that makes me feel at home or I get completely lost in rhythms or effect chains for hours and hours. Whatever helps to make me forget reality works. In the last year I started to talk a lot with Cristina on Instagram (she sent me her poems, which are really amazing) and at some point I asked her if she could sing. It was the perfect match musically and I loved editing her vocals in a very ghostly dreamlike way, like some parts are edited backwards or slowed down and layered of course (basically the same stuff I do with my own vocals). The timing was great too cause I frequently have phases where I can’t bear my own voice at all and I really have to avoid hearing it for a while. The overall mood of the album might be pretty heavy and rather sad because Cristina and I both went through bad breakups in the last year while we were working on the tracks. I’m sure it helped us to deal with these life changes and to regain some confidence in ourselves. Her vocals had a great influence on the atmosphere of the album in my opinion. I mean her voice is so beautiful and she’s actually singing, which is way better than my own mostly quiet whispering haha. I just can’t listen to myself, it’s horrible. And yes, Cristina and I also both love the Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil a lot!
I noticed some recent gear additions on your Instagram—always an exciting development for any studio-based artist. Care to share what new tools have entered your setup? Have any of them already made their way into your latest recordings?
On the Funeral Party album you can hear mostly my “older” gear like the DR-660, the Deepmind 12, Casio HT-3000, Bass Station 2, Minilogue, Microkorg, guitars, effects. After that I recorded the New Life album with the TR-08, KR-55 and the MS-20 (the original one, so happy I found it here in Hamburg!). For the Inertia album I additionally used the TR-09 and TT-78 and almost all the synths mentioned before. Now I’m having fun with the synthesizer of my dreams, the ESQ-1 and I also bought the Behringer 101 clone so I guess you will hear mainly these two on the next album I’m working on now.
When you’re not making music, what’s your favourite way to disappear from the world for a while?
Well I’m always making music! But yes, sometimes I like to go to the woods with my dogs or just cuddle them while watching a movie or a documentary. I’m into old science fiction and horror movies and I also enjoy watching live shows from the 80s and 90s on YouTube. It’s just always a bit hard for me to concentrate for a longer time on these things as I get distracted very easily, so making music is the best way for me to disappear completely.
Is there any chance we might see Glaring on stage in the near future? Or do you prefer to keep the project more rooted in the studio and recorded output?
So far I only played one show and it was a very stressful experience. I had to carry all my stuff alone, no one helped me with anything and I was even ignored when I asked for a soundcheck. I mean it went well in the end but I don’t really understand why I should go through all this hassle again.. I’m thinking about it more often now so I might try again but it needs to be organized in a better way. It would be nice to have a band and also to have lots of fog and maybe some visuals because I don’t like the feeling of being stared at. I honestly feel much better alone in my bedroom studio without having to talk to people a lot. And sometimes I think it’s such a waste of time when you have to practice your old songs over and over (I also get bored very easily) while you could make so much cool new stuff instead!
As I write these questions, I see you’ve just released a brand new album, Inertia, on Bandcamp—congrats! The final two tracks on that album seem to venture into new sonic territory, with what I’d call a kind of “Ethereal Acid” feel. Was that a spontaneous experiment or a hint at a new direction? Could a more electronic or acid-driven release be on the horizon?
It’s funny you’re saying that because I wanted to call the album Soft Acid at first. It could happen, who knows haha, I for sure don’t know what’s gonna happen next. I was just jamming with my 303 clone a bit and felt like recording some of it, those are not even real songs. The only thing I know is that the future releases will all be very ESQ1-ish. At least until I get the Mono Evolver one day (probably never)! Sometimes I feel like it’s time for a more upbeat album and in the next moment I think I wanna do another ambient album. Maybe both!
Finally, beyond Inertia, are there any upcoming releases or collaborations we should be keeping an eye out for in 2025?
Yes, there will be more collaborations. The more I work with other people the more I enjoy it. Sometimes I lose overview cause I’m getting too many e-mails but I’ve been talking to some new musicians/friends about future collabs already.
Glaring @ Instagram / Bandcamp / Youtube / Facebook