Dutch singer-songwriter Janne Schra presents her new single Crystal Tears: a light yet luminous indie pop song – soaked in sunshine and sorrow. Crystal Tears sounds exactly like the moment it was born: a warm breeze on a rooftop terrace with an infinity pool. It’s Janne’s first collaboration with French multi-instrumentalist Albin de la Simone (known for his work with Feist and Vanessa Paradis). The subtle, layered production clearly carries his signature. In his Paris studio, he plays bass and keys himself; Raphaël Chassin (Nouvelle Vague, Tété, Salif Keita) provides drums and percussion, while the glistening guitar parts come from co-writer Laurens Radstake.
Together with Schra’s clear, melancholic vocals, this results in a richly arranged track with a refined balance of vintage acoustic and electronic textures. The atmosphere evokes the dreamy worlds of Air or early Charlotte Gainsbourg.
“You’re not your emotions – you have them,” says Janne. “That realisation hit me while I was crying on a sunny rooftop, a child splashing in the pool nearby. Despite the sadness, I could still see the beauty around me. Sunlight breaking into a thousand pieces through your tears – it’s so beautiful.”
Janne Schra first rose to fame as the frontwoman of Room Eleven, then went on to build a successful solo career, touring internationally, earning multiple accolades and Dutch music awards (Edison, Zilveren Harp) plus several gold and platinum records. Crystal Tears is her first release on the independent label AT EASE and marks the beginning of a new musical chapter – as radiant as it is introspective.
Work Out – theatre tour
This autumn, Janne Schra takes to the stage with guitarist Laurens Radstake for Work Out: an intimate theatrical show and musical journey through the themes of her upcoming album.
“Pain, be my work out. Lifting heavy thoughts in the night.”
An album about searching for the dragons within, the language of the body, waves of sorrow, hitting bottom – and pushing off from there. In Work Out, Janne weaves new songs with openhearted stories and musical gems from her catalogue. She shares the insights that emerged when songwriting alone no longer sufficed to carry life’s heavier moments. From vulnerability, she seeks strength.
Tour dates:
Sep 30, Theater de Richel, Amsterdam
Oct 3, Theater de Fransche School, Culemborg
Oct 10, Theater Ludens, Voorburg
Oct 11, Theater de Stoomfabriek, Dalfsen
Oct 17, de Meerpaal, Dronten
Oct 18, Mimik, Deventer
Oct 19, Kantine Walhalla, Rotterdam
Oct 26, Theater van Beresteyn, Veendam
Oct 30, Lux, Nijmegen
Nov 6, De Winsinghhof, Roden
Nov 7, Flint - Sint Aegtenkapel, Amersfoort
Nov 12, TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht
Nov 14, Phil., Haarlem
Nov 15, SPOT/Lutherse Kerk, Groningen
Nov 20, Het Klooster, Woerden
Nov 21, ECI Cultuurfabriek, Roermond
Nov 27, De Goudse Schouwburg, Gouda
Nov 28, Toonzaal, Den Bosch
Nov 29, Het Postkantoor, Bovenkarspel
Nov 30, Beauforthuis, Austerlitz
Dec 6, De Lawei, Drachten
Dec 7, Vegafabriek, Nijeveen
Dec 11, Posttheater, Arnhem
Dec 12, ZINiN/De Smidse, Nijverdal
Dec 13, De Duif, Amsterdam
Apr 3, Theaterkerk Bemmel, Bemmel
