EERA

'EERA hits Hollywood highs on psychedelic dream-pop album "I'll stop when I'm done".' Loud
Women
'Indie- pop artist EERA returns with an eclectic thoughtful new album on "I'll stop when I'm done".
'Mix it all up
'From start to finish "I'll stop when I'm done" fits together perfectly, a rich, lush record that hazily
pulls doleful folk, warm strings, shimmying, stripped-down indie- rock, electronic-tinged
orchestral pop and harmonised hymnals into its orbit over ten tracks that never outstay their
welcome. 'The New Cue
'Everything about this album is gentle perfection.' Joyzine
'Starkly beautiful... bewitching stuff 8/10. 'Uncut

I'll stop when I'm done is the third album, and first research-led body of work, from EERA, the
Berlin-based Norwegian artist Anna Lena Kristen, produced by Chris Taylor (Grizzly Bear). The
album is inspired by the famous Marilyn Monroe quote: "I don't stop when I'm tired, I only stop
when I'm done" and interweaves intimate reflections on what it means to be a modern woman
with researched insights into the lives of the starlets from Hollywood's Golden Age. What emerges
is a studied celebration of the female experience, in all its complexity, strength and vulnerability.
The Monroe quote sparked EERA's interest and led her to view old back-and-white films, then
undertake a deeper dive into the lives the starlets she encountered there and the women of that
era they portrayed on screen. From Shirley Maclaine in 'The Apartment' to Marilyn Monroe in
'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes', the artist felt drawn to these icons and began researching their work
and lives. "It felt as though I was having this conversation with these women - in a dialogue that
made me realise a lot about myself" she explains.
On the album's first single 'Forget her' (May 2025) as premiered by Lauren Laverne (6 Music) we
see personal introspection from EERA. It is a candid look at the artist's internal battle with anxiety
"I used to have quite a lot of anxiety before, and back then I always wanted to remove myself
from 'her'" she explains. "It wasn't until I accepted 'her' that I was able to move past it and
therefore become a lot happier. She will always be a part of me, and that is fine. I am
just not going to allow her to take over completely." In a similar vein of looking inwards, the
album's opening track 'Celebrate' relates to "that feeling of having to do all the things -
something I feel carries a very female pressure", and 'Talking' digs deeper "into looking at what
love means, what relationships mean and how we experience it all differently." Looking through a
glass darkly, EERA twists the lens outwards to our collective experience of love and connection.
On 'Honey, do you see me?' we get an insight into the research EERA undertook on this record,
it is heavily inspired by the dialogue from the 60's film 'The Apartment'. "I was fascinated by the
fact that the main character (intelligent and beautiful woman) is madly in love with a man who has
a wife and also the boss of a big company. It affected her self- confidence with this man playing
with her feelings, promising her the world etc." explains EERA "I wanted to write a song from her
side of the story, but also exaggerate these type of feelings in the song; where you almost feel a
bit 'mad'. The desperation of trying to be loved by someone who doesn't want to be with you, and
how that takes over your self-worth."
The album's title track, 'I'll stop when I'm done', is a magnetic electronic tinged 'pop' track with
a glistening haze and the seductive breathy refrain "I'm just trying to find someone to love". It's
indicative of the forthcoming album as whole which sees EERA blur the lines between her
formative PJ Harvey influences and more recent ones in the bewitching psychedelic dream-pop of
Broadcast. On this EERA deep dives into the psyche of Monroe. "I wanted to write a song from
her perspective" explains EERA. "That she wants to be in the spotlight, but that she has to prove
herself over and over to everyone around her. I wanted to focus on her vulnerability as well by
adding the sentence "I just want to find someone to love" (which is also one of her quotes). I feel
that this is all she wanted deep down (beyond success). She wanted someone to love her no
matter what. Someone that will always be by her side."
"She never got that. Not even from her mum who struggled with a mental illness. So, in this song
I'm showing two sides, the spotlight mixed with the vulnerability."
'I'll stop when I'm down' begins with illusions of grandeur and, by the end breaks down into the
lyric: 'I just want to find someone to love'. "It's telling yourself that you want one thing, then asking
yourself: is it, really?" says EERA. Here, the concept of a female muse is neither passive nor
impenetrable. EERA frames her desires and vulnerability, which feel both achingly human and part
of the rich, messy tapestry of womanhood.
"Overall, I wanted to address the pressure I feel as a woman, but also an artist" expands EERA. "I
linked some of my emotions with old movie stars from the 50s and 60s, like Marilyn Monroe, and
Audrey Hepburn. I enjoyed doing research about them, and with doing that I saw just how much
criticism they endured even though they were highly successful."
"A lot of them though still had one focus: to find true love and to find true happiness within
themselves. I find this contrast very interesting; that even with major success people are still
searching for what truly matters to them."

I'll stop when I'm done carries a decidedly softer and more subdued sound, punctuated by
warm percussion and upbeat intervals. Production is from Chris Taylor (Grizzly Bear) with the
album recorded between Berlin and Barcelona, with the album's lyrics captured as EERA sang
each song softly from a sofa "which made everything feel more relaxed and personal. As women,
we have to be brave and loud and do a million things just to be heard. I feel that makes quite a
contrast on the album."