Bristol-based artist Rosina Buck is redefining her sound. Her latest single Vampire, released on 27 March, marks a bold sonic shift ahead of her upcoming six-track EP Before It Snows. Known previously for stripped-back folk songwriting, Rosina is now leaning into bigger production, playful experimentation and what she laughingly describes as “Transylvanian folk funk.”
“When I used to release music, I always felt very charged about it and full of expectation,” she explains. “But for this release, I felt really relaxed and excited to get it out into the world because the production of it is nothing like anything I’ve done before.”
That freedom is audible throughout Vampire, a track that balances danceable rhythms and theatrical energy with darker lyrical themes beneath the surface. “We’ve been calling it Transylvanian folk funk,” she says. “It’s a bit cheeky and you can dance to it.”
The single represents a significant departure from the music Rosina has released in the past. “Normally I release more singer-songwriter folky stuff, but this track has been a bit different. I’ve felt curious to see what people would think,” she says. “It’s a bit more upbeat than anything else I’ve done. This is the first time I’ve released something with bigger production and drum samples.”
The upcoming EP is due to be released on 29 May and was recorded in Wivenhoe, Essex, in a process Rosina describes as deeply instinctive and collaborative. “Every single track including Vampire has unfolded in a very organic, unexpected unfurling of ‘oh maybe this’ and then responding to that,” she says. “Things just built and built.”
Rather than chasing perfection, the sessions embraced spontaneity. “The whole recording of the record was really playful and raw,” she says. “We just listened very deeply to what was there. It was very random at times.”
That openness has resulted in a project full of surprises. Alongside Vampire, the EP includes tracks titled Telescope Love, Before It Snows, I Can’t Take The Blame, Pumpkin Pie and Tropical Thumber. Rosina hints at the variety listeners can expect: “I Can’t Take The Blame has turned into an epic stadium rock song, and Pumpkin Pie has all these different voices, and even a cat meowing.”
While the record sounds playful on the surface, much of its emotional core comes from Rosina’s own experiences over the past several years. In 2020, she entered rehab and began a major period of personal transformation.
“I had quite a long period off,” she says. “I ended up going to rehab for three months and got clean and sober. I went on this inward journey as my identity and who I was as a musician had changed.”
During lockdown, songwriting became both an outlet and a form of rediscovery.
The themes explored across Before It Snows are deeply personal. Relationships, love addiction, limerence, betrayal and trauma bonding all appear throughout the project. “This first EP is talking a lot about relationships, love addiction, limerence, being cheated on and dysfunctional dynamics,” she says. “It’s about moving through that like a blind mole trying to find her way out of this dark space.”
Yet despite those heavy themes, the music rarely feels weighed down by them. That balance between darkness and playfulness defines the project. Rosina speaks openly about her fascination with liminal spaces and mysticism, saying, “I’ve always been talking to fairies and spirits.”
Before It Snows arrives as the first half of a wider project, with a second instalment titled Biscuit Tin set to follow later. If Vampire is anything to go by, Rosina’s newest era is one defined by creative and emotional freedom.
//Words: Rosie Burgess//