Copenhagen’s post-punk torchbearers return
Danish band Iceage have never stayed in one lane for long. Formed in Copenhagen in the late 2000s while the members were still teenagers (check out their Nardwuar interview), the group first broke out with their raw 2011 debut New Brigade, a record that helped spark a new wave of international post-punk. Over the years, the band—built around vocalist Elias Bender Rønnenfelt, guitarist Johan Surrballe Wieth, bassist Jakob Tvilling Pless, and drummer Dan Kjær Nielsen—have steadily expanded their sound, moving from straight-ahead hardcore on early records like You’re Nothing into the more exploratory writing heard on albums like Plowing Into the Field of Love, Beyondless, and 2021’s Seek Shelter.
Now Iceage return with “Star,” their first new music since Seek Shelter. The single arrives via Mexican Summer, the Brooklyn independent label known for releases from artists like Weyes Blood and Jessica Pratt. “Star” continues the band’s evolution, pairing bright, ringing guitars with the dramatic tension and poetic grit that have long defined Rønnenfelt’s songwriting. The release also comes with a new video directed by Thinh T. Petrus Nguyen, whose visual style adds a cinematic layer to the song.
In recent years, Rønnenfelt has also been active outside the band, releasing solo work that leans into a more literary and experimental direction while continuing to build on the dark romanticism that runs through Iceage’s catalog. With “Star,” Iceage step back into focus as a band, offering a first glimpse at what could be the beginning of their next chapter.
