SUDAN ARCHIVES TAKES HER EXPERIMENTAL SOUND TO VIBRANT NEW HEIGHTS WITH THE BPM

Sudan Archives is a trendsetter; if there was any doubt of it before her new album, THE BPM, released in October 2025, has solidified that.

We writers love to throw the term ‘genre-bending’ around, but I promise it really is a worthy term for her. Sudan Archives has been playing the violin since she was a young child. When she was an adolescent, she was exposed to the rave scene in her hometown. A quick peek at her Instagram is all you need to know what I’m talking about - the performance pads, the silver gown, the violin, she’s singing, atop pulsing disco beats, and other times rapping. So yeah… genre bending.

THE BPM  is the third studio album from the Cincinnati-born, Los Angeles-based singer and multi-instrumentalist. It is a futuristic, clubby, chaotic, but controlled exploration of herself, power, and love in the modern world. The 52-minute runtime packs in 15 songs with an astonishing amount of texture and layers. I think you could listen to the album an infinite number of times, and every time around you will hear something you’ve never noticed before. In an age of regurgitated slop aimed for virality, Sudan Archives cuts through the noise. From the first seconds of the opening track “DEAD,” you’ll be seated for what she has to say.

“DEAD” sets the tone thematically and sonically; she grapples with her sense of self in the wake of a personal reinvention. The beat at times pulled back and was occasionally frenetic, much like the winds of change. Quickly, though, she determines the path forward in the second song “COME AND FIND YOU”   “I’m the finest, Yeah I said it.”

“YEA YEA YEA” is the first change of pace, featuring overly processed vocals and the first violin-heavy section. Sudan Archives ponders rekindling a toxic high intensity flame before ultimately deciding money is her mascot.

“A BUG’S LIFE,”  currently the second highest streaming song off the album, is also one of the most vivid. At only 3 minutes and 7 seconds, it packs in an entire story of a scammer, complete with visuals of her “brand new tits” who takes what she wants and leaves no prisoners. And while she may “want a wedding ring,” she is resigned to her fate and perpetual movement - “she can’t go home, ‘cause she never looks back.”

Sudan Archives leaves it up to you to decide if she’s talking about platonic or romantic love in “MY TYPE” (If you were wondering her type is confident, sexy, and definitely well-traveled.) As the album unfolds, you get deeper into the ever-changing psyche of Sudan Archives. In “SHES GOT PAIN” She discusses her relationship with pain and the need for intimacy in a digital age where “everything’s so connected,” while the drum pounds like a heartbeat in the background, first slow and steady and then racing before pounding out of control.

The latter half of the album is where Sudan Archives begins her exploration of love in a digital age outright. In “DAVID AND GOLIATH,” Sudan Archives opts to sing “the GPS to your dreams” rather than the more obviously romantic ‘map’ while using biblical references to contextualize an overwhelmingly intense love affair. A very literal reflection comes in “A COMPUTER LOVE” with a futuristic beat and lyrics that allude to viewing herself as adaptable as an AI, “I can be anything you need me to, I can be everything you need me, but can you see past machines?”

The title track, “THE BPM” is one of the shorter ones on the album. Sudan Archives has a lot to say; the album is at times dense, but “THE BPM” taps into her ability to write fun music. I have no doubt this one is going to be a highlight on her THE BPM TOUR. Continuing that streak is “MS PAC MAN” a very explicit, but nonetheless delightful take on Pac Man, money, and sexuality

As the album reaches its finale, Sudan Archives pauses for just one brief moment to look back on “LOS CINCI”. In returning to her hometown, she realizes the places that fundamentally formed who she is now are no longer standing. The people who molded her into who she is have changed or gone.

The penultimate track “NOIRE” (my personal fav on the album) clocks in at almost 6 minutes. It’s a sultry exploration of sexual and romantic tension, and the beat drives it home. Opening up with frenzied breathing, a pounding beat, and chants, the layers continue to add up to a full bodied rollercoaster of a ride.

Closing out the album is “HEAVEN KNOWS”, in which Sudan Archives asks, “Is it all really that serious?”—A brutally honest conversation about her loyalty to herself and her loved ones.

THE BPM is chaotic in the absolute best way possible. In 15 tracks, you live a thousand lives in less than an hour. You’ll feel the whiplash from drum-driven club tracks, to the nature sounds “DEAD” and “THE NATURE OF POWER.”  The captivating harmonies and layers upon layers of classical instruments over futuristic electronic sounds of  “HEAVEN KNOWS” Sudan Archives has her style and sound locked in, from both a sonic and visual perspective. She knows how to leverage what makes her unique, and that’s why you need to be listening to THE BPM asap, so that soon you’ll be able to impress your friends by saying you listened to her before she was huge.