A Chat with NMDA and Isabelle Rose (27.05.26)
NMDA has never been afraid to blur the boundaries of electronic music, and his latest single ‘Stoned’ may be his most emotionally ambitious work yet. Teaming up with the formidable Isabelle Rose, he crafts a cinematic electrosoul journey that confronts trauma, accountability, and healing with striking honesty. We caught up with NMDA to discuss the creative process behind the track, the power of collaboration, and pushing electronic music into deeper emotional territory.
OSR: ‘Stoned’ feels more interested in emotional pacing than traditional song structure. At what point did you realise the track needed to unfold cinematically rather than follow a more conventional arrangement?
NMDA: We definitely feel that cinematic vibe with this track as well. I think we both realized it as the song structure developed, remarking to each other that it sounds “like it belongs in a movie.” We were on a mission to create a piece with serious depth, and as with all our music, it generally starts with a simple chord progression and expands from there. Once we developed the vocals for the verse and chorus, we delicately structured this song to unfold as a story, adding elements in as the song progresses towards the chaotic nature of the bridge and patiently building up to the final chorus.
Isabelle Rose: I felt this way from the very beginning of the song’s development. We knew we wanted a song that conveyed power and passion. We wanted it to be a stand-alone musical experience that surprised listeners.
OSR: The production balances electrosoul warmth with atmospheric electronic textures and gospel influence. What were the key sonic references or emotional ideas guiding the palette of the track?
NMDA: I had been driving cross-country, trading songs back and forth with my brother, and we were on a blues and soul kick. I was awe-struck by the power in the vocals of some of the blues tunes, and I called Isabelle and said, “I’m feeling really inspired to write something powerful, deep, and meaningful. Start thinking about subjects that make you angry!” We spent months tossing ideas back and forth and sharing songs we felt had true human experience and expression in them. So I’d say blues and soul music played a huge part in sonic references and emotional ideas guiding this track.
Isabelle Rose: The sample at the beginning of the track was a strong guide. It has that ethereal sound juxtaposed by the deep and sultry vocals. We liked that dynamic shift at the start, and at the end, it’s hauntingly beautiful.
OSR: NMDA, the layering throughout the song feels incredibly deliberate, with tension building through accumulation rather than dramatic drops. How do you approach creating momentum in a more subtle, narrative-driven way?
NMDA: Thank you so much for that! This song was written incredibly deliberately, especially in regard to tension building. It’s always easy to keep adding more and more ideas when you’re in a flow with the creation stage of songwriting, but the key to tension is being subtle and patient. A quote I kept in the back of my head as sort of a mantra during this process was, “There is a lot of sound in silence.” The guitar and piano were deliberately played staccato and sparsely through the verses, allowing space for Isabelle not only to be heard but to deliver power. Drums held restraint until they are finally let free on the end chorus, horns come in as the song progresses rather than replaying them over and over from the beginning, and the bass plays steady and perpetually until it almost goes double time in the final chorus. All of these decisions create a subtle build designed to hold your attention to the end.
OSR: Isabelle, your vocal performance moves between restraint and emotional intensity without ever tipping into melodrama. How did you find that balance while recording lyrics dealing with trauma and accountability?
Isabelle Rose: When lyrics are honest, it’s easy to avoid melodrama. It becomes a story you’re telling, rather than something memorized or recited. That’s the biggest difference between performing cover songs or original work. You aren’t replicating; you’re telling the listener the story for the first time.
OSR: There’s a recurring sense of psychological looping in the song, both lyrically and musically. Was the cyclical nature of the arrangement intentional from the beginning, or did it emerge naturally during the writing process?
Isabelle Rose: It emerged during the writing process, although repetition is a technique we employ in our writing often. In the case of ‘Stoned’, the repetition relates to prayer: “Oh Lord, I’m tellin’ you…” “Oh Lord, he said he’s fightin’ demons…” Prayer is something I do consistently, and that’s what I imagine in this song – the call to a higher power during deep pain and shame.
NMDA: Very intentional. We storyboarded the lyrics of this song before we even started writing them. Isabelle and I literally looked at each other and said, “Let’s do this from both perspectives; we will start with the female in verse 1, male in verse 2, and then bring it together in the bridge.” And we went from there.
OSR: Gospel music often carries a sense of catharsis and communal release. How did those influences shape the emotional architecture of ‘Stoned’, even within its darker themes?
Isabelle Rose: There’s an uplifting quality to gospel music, a resounding positive sound. ‘Stoned’ does embody a hopeful quality, specifically in the chorus. “Please help me break this chain…” The victims of the story want more for themselves; they’ve just fallen in deep. Gospel can also be played repetitively, and I wanted that for ‘Stoned’. It feels important to me to write music people want to play repeatedly. That’s how I like to listen!
NMDA: As with many of our tunes we’ve collaborated on together, we wanted to give this song a paradoxical feel. The nature of these lyrics could be considered sad and heartbreaking, so I wanted to give it a beautiful sonic background to balance the subject.
OSR: The track feels immersive and highly textural, almost like a soundtrack to an internal dialogue. Were you thinking visually while making it, or imagining specific scenes or environments as it developed?
Isabelle Rose: The song has a strong internal vibration when I sing it. I imagined the inside of a person, their walls building rapidly as they experience these traumatic events and then the aftermath of relieving those moments. I saw them as stone walls growing to the sky. The album art depicts the stone wall between two silhouettes of a man and woman.
OSR: One of the most striking things about ‘Stoned’ is its patience. In a streaming landscape that often rewards immediacy, did you ever feel pressure to make the song more direct or accessible?
Isabelle: No. We had a vision and we went for it. Never did we worry about digestibility. Every time we would play back the song, we knew that build-up was essential to provoking emotion in our audience and giving breath to such important subject matter.
NMDA: When I started NMDA, I vowed to myself to just write what I felt, not be restricted by traditional music/genre standards. I want to create and release whatever I am feeling at the time without getting stuck in any boxes, and I think myself and Isabelle have stayed pretty true to that goal. It is crazy to think that there is even a pressure to structure your artistic view to this notion that it won’t be heard unless it fits certain requirements. I will be honest, it is in the back of my mind when writing, sometimes I think “very few people are going to listen to this because its 4:40 minutes long,” or “this doesn’t fit a specific genre,” but they are fleeting thoughts and its not about the streaming, its about creating a body of work that you’ve put your heart and soul into and are proud to call your creation. We have faith that the right audience will resonate with our sound rather than chasing popularity or fitting in.
OSR: Collaboration can sometimes dilute emotional honesty, but this track feels deeply unified in tone and intent. What did each of you bring to the process that helped sharpen the emotional core of the song?
Isabelle Rose: After working together for 10 years, the trust and care for each other allows us to write vulnerably from the start. Difficult conversations are easy between us, exploring painful topics comes naturally, and we both want to be as honest with our work.
NMDA: I brought the instrumental idea to Isabelle; she gave us the subject nature, and together we spent months exploring the lyrics and music for this. When it comes to lyrics and melody, I always try to encourage Isabelle to explore her emotions with the song and let it all out on the recording.
OSR: ‘Stoned’ explores difficult emotional terrain without offering easy resolution. When listeners finish the track, what feeling or question do you hope lingers with them most?
Isabelle Rose: I want them to feel a sense of recognition and vindication. Like, “Finally, someone said what I was thinking…” – both genders feel acknowledged and heard in their struggle.
NMDA: I hope that a message of awareness and understanding is communicated through this song, and I hope that people going through these situations find comfort that they are not alone.
Many thanks to NMDA and Isabelle Rose for speaking to us. Find out more about NMDA on his Instagram, and Isabelle Rose on her Instagram and TikTok.
