Dance music was undoubtedly in a much different place the last time AN21 found himself delivering a sliver of new music. There’d been some rumblings about AN21’s long-awaited comeback after his older brother—who most know to be Steve Angello—previously hinted in the Swedish House Mafia Discord that he’d been back in the studio. And the time has finally come to learn exactly what AN21 had been up to. In a video shared to his Instagram earlier this July, AN21 broke the news that he’d be erasing his seven-year release hiatus in the near future, a hiatus that had ultimately taken effect due to insurmountable creative struggles. And it couldn’t be more fitting for AN21’s comeback appearance to be hosted through SIZE Records, with “Alright” officially landing alongside HIISAK and Able Faces.

In between a constant touring schedule, AN21 made the decision to take a step back simply due to the fact that he didn’t feel it wasn’t fair to fans to see him live without being greeted with new music. And after beginning a family in the years that followed 2015, AN21 was finally primed to make his return although COVID-19 tossed a wrench directly into that blueprint. But the silver lining to that was he was given even more time to fine tune the direction he wanted to take his project when he would eventually bring AN21 back to life. AN21’s first release since “Louder” with Matt Nash seamlessly fast forwards his electro- and progressive-filled sound from the mid-2010s up until present day. Partnering with both HIISAK—who makes his SIZE Records introduction—as well as Scottish singer-songwriter duo Able Faces, AN21 gracefully dives straight into the electronic pool of melodic techno with “Alright,” which is paired with a masterful SIZE Records artwork to boot. And “Alright” is only the auspicious tipping point to AN21’s complete resurgence, with a date atop Tomorrowland’s 2010-2012 stage slated for July 24, where he’ll decisively showcase more of what’s to come. AN21 provided some insight into the reasoning behind his hiatus and decision to make his return, explaining,

“I always had a chip on my shoulder of being Steves brother, Had an instant success from the get go and got to tour non stop. Had a sort of Imposter syndrome for many years. But touring was incredibly fun and I kept releasing music but at some point making music took longer and longer, Mainly because I felt that the quality of the music had to be as good as my brothers. I spent a lot of time in LA and I clearly remember coming back for a second show after some time at Create in LA and realizing that for the second time there, I had no new music to play. Felt super disingenuous to my fans to ask them to buy tickets. So I decided to stop touring. I then moved back to Sweden to reinvent myself. Started a family and got a daughter Melody. Then when I was ready to come back, COVID happened and then I had my son, Phoenix but now when the world is hopefully restored, it’s time to show the fans what I have been working on for all these years.”

“Alright” is out everywhere via SIZE Records on July 22, but can be streamed in full one day early, exclusively on Dancing Astronaut.

Featured image: AN21

Tags: able faces, an21, hiisak, Size Records

Categories: Music