In the Summer of 2021, Swordes made her debut playing at the many warehouse raves and parties of Brooklyn, New York’s underground scene. Fearless, pop leaning, and addicted to melody, her live set is hardware synths, drum machines, and an emotive, operatic vocal. There’s no computer in sight.
Swordes is a multimedia artist and producer beginning to forge a singular path through Brooklyn’s underground with brooding, poetic lyricism and hypnotic, hardware-driven electronic music. Hailing from Honolulu and now based in NYC, she emerged from Parsons’ fine art program only to reject academia and carve her own sonic language. Since her 2021, she has captivated crowds with visceral, computer-free live sets that embrace experimental electronic, alt-pop, glitchy club, hyperpop and forward-thinking femme energy.
Her new single “Boyfriend La La La” is a chaotic power play—equal parts baby talk, club weapon and surrealist performance art. Playing a character of a stereotypical manic pixie dream girl/crazy girlfriend, Swordes chants obsessive mantras over infectious basslines and cartoonish 808 beats with a chorus that feels like a cursed nursery rhyme. It’s part pop fantasy, part manic delusion—and totally addictive.
“I love being a crazy girlfriend. There’s nothing wrong with that,” she says in character. “Here’s a quote from my boyfriend: ‘I’m her muse. Who wouldn’t be crazy about me?’”
Check out the new single here.
It’s the first taste of her upcoming debut album out later this year—an eclectic, cinematic body of work blending pop vocals with the club inspired sounds of late 90s dance music — written, produced, and mixed entirely by Swordes. Known for her raw, hardware synth live sets and bold visual world, she’s already caught the attention of Versace (SS25 runway sync), PAPER, and FLAUNT. Viral on TikTok (25k followers + 575k likes), with a growing cult fanbase, Swordes is building something that lives between fashion, noise, pop, and performance.
Keep your mind open.
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[Thanks to George at Terrorbird Media.]