“It’s always a joy to discover music on the BBC Introducing Uploader that doesn’t sound quite like anything else you’ve ever heard. If CDs of this song arrived on producers’ desks at 6 Music with stickers proclaiming it to be the new single from Cat Power, Feist or Regina Spektor, it would be all over the airwaves in no time. We DJs meanwhile would be blethering about a “major new direction” or a “stunning return to form” or some such nonsense. It’s worth downloading this week’s Mixtape for this track alone.”
Tom Robinson, BBC Radio 6
“Planante et profonde, la voix de M. Rider parvient à s’allier à une mélodie grave aux airs de techno qu’on écouterait bien dès le lever du jour. Un monde partagé entre la mélancolie de la trip-hop et le dance-floor en solitaire.”
Les Inrockuptibles magazine
M. Rider is a Croatian singer, songwriter, producer and guitarist based in Berlin. Music has always been a formative force in her life—she started classical music school for guitar at the tender age of seven and played her first concerts as a college student in her hometown Zagreb, Croatia. It wasn’t until she moved to Brighton, UK in her twenties that her burgeoning singer-songwriter career took a major leap. In 2012 with a project called Minor Sounds, she signed a publishing deal with FatCat Records, which was followed by BBC Radio 6 and BBC Sussex airplay. Two years later, she relocated to Berlin, Germany, where she is based since. Berlin’s unique music scene has impacted her sonically: with a new set of synthesisers and drum machines, she shifted gears toward electronic sounds while staying true to her nostalgic alt-pop core.
Indebted to the pop-rock giants of the 1980s, which left an enduring mark on her growing up and developing musically, M. Rider creates emotional landscapes reminiscent of Bryan Ferry’s playful seductiveness and Sade’s mellow sensuality. While these influences run deep, her musical expression is kaleidoscopic and distinct, branching into various genres and styles. Imbued with saudade, her songs are atmospheric and cinematic, reflecting the inner world of a wandering, soul-searching poet.
Over the past years, M. Rider has worked with established musicians and producers in studios across Europe. In 2017 she released “Dark Horse” (with support of Paulo Reachi of Airdrop Records, Tresor Records), her debut EP as M. Rider co-produced by David Kosten (Bat For Lashes). For her first LP she has collaborated with Vincent Taurelle (Air), Earl Harvin (Air, Tindersticks), Neil Fraser (Tindersticks), Lucy Wilkins (Bryan Ferry, Tindersticks), Axel Reinemer (Jazzanova), Leo Abrahams and Franz Kirmann. Her new album will see its release in 2026
Les Inrockuptibles (2017)
Minni, la chanteuse berlinoise qui va vous rappeler l'âge d'or du trip-hop
Après avoir traversé l’Europe, de la Croatie à Brighton, la chanteuse Minni a déposé ses valises à Berlin, pour s’imprégner de l’atmosphère froide et créative propre à la capitale allemande. Avec son premier single Fool, l’artiste dévoile un aperçu de son tout premier EP, prévu avant l’été, en attendant l’album en octobre. Planante et profonde, la […]
Après avoir traversé l’Europe, de la Croatie à Brighton, la chanteuse Minni a déposé ses valises à Berlin, pour s’imprégner de l’atmosphère froide et créative propre à la capitale allemande. Avec son premier single Fool, l’artiste dévoile un aperçu de son tout premier EP, prévu avant l’été, en attendant l’album en octobre.
Planante et profonde, la voix de Minno parvient à s’allier à une mélodie grave aux airs de techno qu’on écouterait bien dès le lever du jour. Un monde partagé entre la mélancolie de la trip-hop et le dance-floor en solitaire.
Découvrez la vidéo du morceau Fool, produit par David Kosten, collaborateur, entre autres, de Bat For Lashes et enregistré avec la participation du batteur de The Cure, Jason Cooper et le saxophoniste de The Group, et Otis Sandsjö.
REVIEW IN MATERIAL MAGAZINE (2017)
SONG PREMIERE: BERLIN SINGER M. RIDER WANTS YOU TO “GIVE A LITTLE LOVE”
Describing the core of her music as “beauty and sensuality” it’s no wonder Berlin based singer M. Rider dove deep into some of the most raw feelings for her new song “Give a Little Love”: Loneliness and feeling lost. Combined with a voice that is anything but miniature and weak, the Croatia-born musician is exploring the roller coaster ride of harsh times, both lyrically and literally. It’s an experience that roots from her moving from Brighton to Berlin in 2014 and experiencing an equally complicated period as a result: “‘Give A Little Love’ is one of the songs I wrote when I arrived in Berlin. I had some tough months in this city and I was really craving for some connection… this song is a reflection of that”, M. Rider explains.
Despite that rough start, Berlin has also had a great positive impact on her, especially musically. She evolved from writing songs on her guitar to getting adventurous with synths and drum machines, both evident in her new single, accompanying her voice through a battlefield of emotions.
“If it was the theme song to a movie it would be one that is based on relationships between people or a couple,” M. Rider explains, “It would probably be played in a scene when one person realises that a relationship is over and that he or she needs to move on. That moment of realisation, then leaving, running, getting lost, not knowing where to go, who to call”
Between debuting her first single “Fool” in mid March and releasing her debut EP later this year, M. Rider is splitting her time between playing gigs, one of them happening in Berlin on the 20th of June, and sharing her best advice on what to focus on when going through that rough periods in life: “Patience and compassion. Keep up with a soft regularity in whatever it is you do. Write music, poetry, paint, walk, cook for yourself, drink good wine, and treat yourself well. Don’t be too hard on yourself.” With it’s vulnerable message and M. Rider’s equally deep voice “Give A Little Love” might just be that perfect rainy-day song to listen to on repeat until spring finally decides it’s here to stay.
INTERVIEW FOR DIGITAL IN BERLIN (2017)
Rooting her emotions in a deep and long romance with Bryan Ferry and Sade, M. Rider’s voice floats somewhere between the latter’s irresistible sensuality and Annie Lennox’s fierce dynamics.
M. Rider showed interest in music from a very early age. At the age of seven, she started studying classical guitar in Zagreb, Croatia, and continued until the end of her teenage years. She then went on to write her own songs and in order to pursue music further and place herself in a more conducive environment, she moved to Brighton, UK, where she started a new project and released an album that earned her a publishing deal with Fat Cat Records in 2012 and got plays on BBC Radio 6 and BBC Radio Sussex. Based in Berlin since 2014, M. Rider acquired synthesizers, drum-machines and started producing a new series of songs which will see release in 2017 under the form of an EP. The first three singles “Fool”, “Give A Little Love” and “Dark Horse” are a strong introduction to this new sensual and intimate dimension in her work, and were co-produced by David Kosten
(Bat For Lashes, Marina and the Diamonds…) with percussions by Jason Cooper (The Cure) and saxophone by Otis Sand sjö (Lucia Cadotsch, The Group).
FACTS:
1: “Assume no disguise as beauty is always so full of confidence.” Ovid
2: “One never bathes in the same river twice.” Heraclitus
3: All you need is love – don’t freeze it and don’t melt in it.
QUESTIONS:
1. What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
Lyrically it’s what I read, conversations I have, things that catch my attention. Musically, primarily I draw inspiration from the sounds of the instruments I use to compose. If I write using a guitar, it will be different than when I use a drum machine and a synthesiser. But generally most music I make will have something of that classic 80s sound I first discovered when I was a kid. That’s somehow embedded in me.
2. How and when did you get into making music?
I started playing classical guitar when I was 7. Then in high-school I had a few band s and we would play covers mostly, just for fun. When I was 19 I started a band with a drummer who was a poet too. So I decided to try and make songs using his poetry. Pretty soon I started writing my own poetry and songs. I’ve been doing that for more than 10 years now.
3. What are 5 of your favourite albums of all time?
Ah it’s hard to boil it down to 5 but these are one of my favourites: It’s gonna have to be 6!
Dire Straits – Brothers In Arms
Eurythmics – Revenge
Bryan Ferry – Boys and Girls
Talk Talk – Spirit Of Eden
Daniel Lanois – Shine
4. What do you associate with Berlin?
When I think of Berlin I usually have this light vs darkness perspective on it. It’s kind of extreme in many ways…it’s beautiful and it’s ugly, it’s laid back and it’s intense – it’s like a love/hate relationship. What I do love about Berlin is the fact that there is no center really. Every neighbourhood has it’s own vibe so it feels like one can explore the city for a long time and still be discovering nice little areas and new things. Another thing that makes Berlin very special are the lakes. Those are true gems.
5. What’s your favourite place in your town?
I like to sunbathe on top of Victoria Park by the statue. On a sunny day the concrete on top gets quite warm so it’s nice to lay there on a chilly day.
That’s my Mediterranean spot in the city. I also like the rose garden in Hasenheide and the sense of space you get in Tempelhof.
6. If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
That’s pretty terrible to imagine… I would try to find another world where there is music.
7. What was the last record/music you bought?
Suzanne Kraft – What You Get For Being Young
8. Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Daniel Lanois and David Byrne.
9. What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
I think one of the nest shows I saw was Depeche Mode back in 2004 I think. I was quiet young but I still remember the excitement I felt during the show.
10. How important is technology to your creative process?
Well the creative process is somehow intertwined with technology in modern age. For example, even though I read books in a paper format, I also use Kindle. I mostly discover music through browsing on the web. So I think it’s hard to separate it from the process simply because it became a tool we use daily. But the process doesn’t start and stop anywhere. It’s continuous because it involves daily impressions. But when it comes to the execution of an idea or a feeling itself, I use synthesisers, drum machines, I record in Logic so for that reason, technology is crucial.
11. Do you have siblings and how do they feel about your career/art?
I have an older brother and he follows what I do. Sometimes he’ll post a comment on Youtube or something saying “Well done Sis!”
