Nite Jewel, real name Ramona Gonzalez, will release her first album in four years.

Gonzalez recorded No Sun in the aftermath of the dissolution of her 12-year marriage. In 2018, she found herself drifting from friend’s couch to friend’s couch while studying for her PhD in Musicology at UCLA. The album is shaped by her studies of women’s musical lament which, in ancient Greece, used female voices to express communal and personal grief. Across eight tracks, Gonzalez considers what it means to be a professional mourner.

Sonically, we’re told that through spacious and steady production, Gonzalez evokes a “deep loneliness.” The instrumentation oscillates from sparse synths to dizzying experimental soundscapes and, while the album can be interpreted as electronic dance music for an era of death or mourning, it is also a “fervent celebration of life.”

Alongside the announcement, Gonzalez has shared the vulnerable lead single, “This Time,” which is inspired by Prince’s “Purple Rain.” The electronic guitar acts as a “direct ode” to the legendary artist.

The album lands on Gonzalez’s own Gloriette Records.

Tracklisting

01. Anymore
02. Before I Go
03. Show Me What You’re Made Of
04. To Feel It
05. #14
06. No Escape
07. This Time
08. When There Is No Sun (Sun Ra Cover)

No Sun LP is scheduled for August 27 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “This Time” in full below and preorder here.