Building on this momentum, Smerz is now set to release their sophomore album Big city life on Escho, one of the most exciting labels of the moment. “Big city life” is a collection of experiences and emotions gathered by Henriette and Catharina over the past four years. The album explores themes of transition, love, loneliness, and freedom. As the duo explains, “Some of the songs are pieces of advice to ourselves. Some are doorways into dreams. Some songs are secret wishes. Some are written for someone who is not here. And some are predictions”. The album will release the previously released single, “A thousand lies.”

The album’s second single, “You got time and I got money,” introduces a new dimension to Smerz‘s distinctive style. The track features a soul-sample-inspired beat and emotive string arrangements, creating a sense of nostalgia within their signature minimalist framework. Catharina shares the personal inspiration behind the song: “I wrote the lyrics when I got my first real grown-up job and was in love at the same time”. The accompanying music video, created in collaboration with Benjamin Barron and Bror August Vestbø, is a vibrant collage of fireworks, waves, and the duo performing in a surreal TV appearance setting. Watch and pre-order the album via Bandcamp below.

Smerz – Big city life

Big city life
But I do
Roll the dice
What
Feisty
A thousand lies
Close
You got time and I got money
Big dreams
Street style
Imagine this
Dreams
Easy

Their latest release, “A thousand lies,” marks their first offering on Copenhagen’s Escho label since Okey, and it’s a mesmerizing return. The track drifts between reverberant piano riffs and looping electronic textures, with Smerz’s signature vocals layering like an intimate conversation. At its core, the song contemplates the intricate dynamics of companionship—where truth and perception blur, and meaning is found in the spaces between. It’s hypnotic, emotive, and unmistakably Smerz.

Accompanying the single is a video that feels just as intimate as the track itself. Filmed during a New Year’s road trip with longtime friends and collaborators Benjamin Barron and Bror August Vestbø, it captures the quiet, transitional magic of entering a new year. The visuals reflect the intangible moments that shape memory, reinforcing the dreamlike quality of “A thousand lies.” With this release, Smerz once again proves their ability to create immersive worlds where music and storytelling intertwine seamlessly.

On Friday, Norwegian duo Smerz will unveil their long-awaited debut album Believer. After the amazing video for the title track, Catharina Stoltenberg and Henriette Motzfeldt have now unveiled a new track, “Flashing,” where old school R&B vocals and future rave synths collide. “‘Flashing’ is about losing the feeling about being a team in a relationship,” they stated.

Watch the accompanying visuals, courtesy of director Benjamin Barron, and pre-order the album via Bandcamp. The pair will also air their performance at Ultima festival in Oslo via Bandcamp live stream on March 20.

Norwegian duo Smerz (Catharina Stoltenberg + Henriette Motzfeldt) have finally announced the release of their debut album, Believer. The 16-track project was already teased by two double singles (“The Favourite / Rap Interlude” and “I don’t talk about that much / Hva hvis“). Coming with this good news, they have also unveiled the title track off the project, of which they said: “The lyrics for this song were written over a period of almost two years so it ended up having a natural development parallel to our lives.” Watch the stunning Benjamin Barron-directed video below.

Following up from their Believer trailer, Norwegian duo Smerz (Henriette Motzfeldt + Catharina Stoltenberg) have unveiled an amazing Benjamin Barron-directed video featuring two new tracks, “I don’t talk about that much” and “Hva hvis”.

Inspired by Lars von Trier’s Dogville, the hypnotic, trance-like video features the two artists and a group of dancers performing a traditional Norwegian folk dance called Hallingdansen. “The stage and the actions have a kind of dreamlike state to them where not everything is completely filled out, but hopefully there’s this glimpse into a world and a bigger narrative,” explained Stoltenberg. We still have no full details about the nature of the project Believer, but it’s a safe bet to say that Smerz‘s debut album is on the way.

Copenhagen-based Norwegian electronic duo Smerz (Catharina Stoltenberg + Henriette Motzfeldt) are back two years after their Have fun EP. Teasing a still enigmatic project titled Believer, they have shared two new tracks, “The favourite” and “Rap interlude”, which seem to switch their icy brand of electronic for a sort of baroque, medieval avant-folk. The two tracks come with a Benjamin Barron-directed visual teaser.