It’s been just over a year since Ashnikko released the original of “You Make Me Sick!” and then took to the BRITs red carpet in a gruesome custom latex outfit that turned heads (and stomachs)! Now, following the release of their debut album WEEDKILLER last year, they have returned with this special remix featuring Dora Jar. The original saw Ashnikko release their frustrations at exes with guttural vocals over a nu-metal-inspired distortion and menacing beat, whilst the new remix sees producer apob (EKKSTACY, Deb Never, Rachel Chinouriri) work alongside Dora Jar to turn the production on its head. With acoustic guitar, dreamy vocals and soothing synths the new version sees the pair bring a new dimension to this powerful song.
Speaking about the collaboration, Ashnikko explains: “Dora is such a singular artist. She has this insane ability to conjure lyrics and melodies directly from the dream world. She is the number one cool guy so it made sense to have her remix this song. I’m in awe at what she came up with.”
Dora Jar continues: “You Make Me Sick! is one of my favorite and most played songs of the past year. I listened to it in the car so much over the summer. It unlocked my feminine rage in such a liberating way that it drove me to tears multiple times. When Ash asked me to do a remix, I didn’t think it would be possible because of how much I already loved the original. I tried it anyway, with my friend apob, and we unearthed the sadness from the anger and made a collage of emotion.”
Hailing from New York and California, Dora Jar refuses to be confined by genre and categorization. She grew up immersed in music, thanks to her mother’s acting career and the charity concerts at the Bridge School—where her sister attended—that exposed her to a plethora of different artists, like the Foo Fighters and Regina Spektor that inspired her. In 2011, when her sister passed, Dora decided that she needed to get away, heading to a boarding school on the east coast and eventually to London. In London she honed in on her craft, catching the eye of various producers, with tracks like ‘Did I Get It Wrong’ and ‘Multiply’. She quickly grew an audience with her eclectic, playful, but mature songwriting skills, releasing her debut EP, Digital Meadow in 2021, followed by 2022’s comfortably in pain. Having toured with the likes of Billie Eilish and sold out her own headline run of dates, Dora dropped recent single ‘Puppet’ surrounding an arena tour with The 1975 late last year. Watch out for much more from Dora Jar to follow this year.
The new remix follows from Ashnikko’s debut album WEEDKILLER. The 13-track album saw fears and anxieties whether personal or tyrannical, blown up and then broken down. The WEEDKILLER universe that Ashnikko created for the album came to life in various forms throughout last year including a comic book “Husk: A Tale From The Weedkiller Wastewoods” and an installation pop-up on release day in London. After a run of festivals last summer, including Coachella and a surprise set at Reading & Leeds, Ashnikko took The WEEDKILLER tour across the US, Europe and UK including headline shows at London’s Alexandra Palace, Brooklyn Mirage in NYC and Élysée Montmartre in Paris.
Stream “WEEDKILLER” here https://ashnikko.lnk.to/WEEDKILLE
Photo credit -Ian Mc Donnell