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Apr 22, 2025 Web Exclusive By Marc Abbott

The impressive debut album from Berlin-based three-piece Anchoress (not to be confused with British singer/songwriter The Anchoress) blends drone, post-rock, dark folk, and an arresting female tenor vocal to create a transformative work of almost oppressive liturgical atmosphere.

Themes of faith, identity, and 21st century dread loom large over this 30-minute release, evoked even more keenly by virtue of frontwoman Anna Lucia Nissen’s tenor tone. Parallels with the vocal delivery of ANOHNI and Nico are obvious; Nissen’s voice accentuates the darkness of the storytelling here, at once both brooding and brittle. Joined by guitarist Alexander Rathbone, and drummer/keyboardist Tobias Textor, one of the glories of Cockdust is that its layered performances and production give the impression of far more than a trio of musicians at work.

The first single from the album, “Brave Men,” is symbolic of the collection’s explorations of non-conformity, polarity, and womanly fury. Musically, it feels almost like Deftones side-project Team Sleep at its calmest, most post-rock-influenced, building to a crescendo shot through with keys as it twists and turns upwards, its chorus of “You are the one / You are the way” sounding for all the world like a devotional hymn. Arpeggio-driven “Anxious Clown” searches for transcendence in a broken world, and the track which follows—“Song of the City of Women”—is a masterstroke of literary inspiration. Based upon the 15th century book Le Livre de la Cité des Dames, which denunciated patriarchal control, it’s laden with almost operatic drama, and spiked with a memorable falsetto turn which not only showcases Nissen’s range, but also lends tonal duality. Musically, it feels almost like a very low tempo Depeche Mode track being played by Midwife. Truly excellent.

“Hairy Mary” finds inspiration in ecclesiastical sources, being named for the fourth century Saint Mary of Egypt—a former sex worker whose transformative journey to sainthood speaks of eccentricity and dissent. It has echoes of Nick Cave’s “Christina the Astonishing,” yet delivered by a woman’s voice. A woman’s voice, voicing the story of the lion who is purported to have dug Saint Mary’s grave (no joke; this is late-Medieval legend at its very best!). Album closer “Toys of Grace” is, in the words of an accompanying press release, “A critique of male-centric love songs.” It’s yet another slice of atmospheric drama, and one that slowly builds in intensity, ascending to a heavenly climax.
It’s not too often a band from the Berlin underground comes on to our radar, but Anchoress is too profound to ignore. Even its name is taken from the 14th/15th century anchoress Julian of Norwich—a recluse who wrote The Revelation of Divine Love, said to be the earliest surviving English-language book by a woman. Passion, introspection, and raw feminine energy are in abundant supply on this record, backed by musicianship that elevates its poetry to another level. Cockdust is borderline-rapturous… and very much in the Biblical sense. (www.anchoress.online)

Author rating: 7.5/10