Ásgeir - Against the Current EP (2026) Hi-Res

On his fifth studio album, ‘Julia’, out February 13th via One Little Independent Records, Icelandic singer-songwriter Ásgeir enters intriguing and uncharted territory. After years of engaging translators such as John Grant and working with the poetry of his father, Einar Georg Einarsson, Ásgeir has penned his lyrics by himself for the first time in his long and celebrated career. The result is a deeply contemplative body of work, steeped in nostalgia, that sees Ásgeir meditating on his past regrets as well as his hopes for the future, guided by the spectre of the album’s title character.

On new single ‘Against the Current’, Ásgeir captures the quiet defiance of self-reclamation. With a brass arrangement from Samuel Jón Samúelsson, the track builds into a triumphant swell. Lyrically, it is about finally seeing oneself clearly, shaking expectations and embracing the possibility of change. “The lyrics paint a picture of me seeing myself really for the first time. Seeing that I’ve been stuck in my ways, letting other people’s opinions of me change who I am and wanting to break from that pattern. To not let anyone, including myself, put me in a box and not limit my potential through what ideas someone might have of me. Realising that there’s many versions of me that need to shine as well. I could start a black metal band tomorrow if I wanted to.”

Of its atmospheric accompanying video, directed by Einar Egils, Ásgeir says “this was shot in an abandoned house that my cousin owns during my December tour around Iceland. It was super cold and very dirty. It’s about saying goodbye to a version of yourself that you used to be. Revisiting old memories and then moving on.”