

As the lead singer of European trio Daughter, Elena Tonra became an early-2010s sensation by projecting her vulnerable voice against richly atmospheric indie-folk arrangements. But under her solo guise Ex:Re, she’s cultivated an edgier musical identity that blurs the line between confessional singer-songwriter and post-trip-hop sound designer. On Ex:Re’s third album, Save As, her voice serves as the low-beam light guiding us through a nocturnal netherworld built from raw drum tracks, ominous orchestrations, and Tonra’s ghostly multi-tracked harmonies. It’s an aptly mercurial sonic manifestation of the mental fog that overcomes her on the self-disempowerment anthem “Am I Even Real?” and during the lost-in-the-supermarket existential crisis chronicled on “Frozen Aisle.” Our Favorite Moment: “Wasp,” an acoustic meditation on the fine line between grief and rage that showcases the transfixing power of Tonra’s voice in a more stripped-down setting.