OH MADONNA – Obsession Nouvelle (Digital Single – Cold Transmission Music)
Side-Line contributor Karo Kratochwil reviews “Obsession Nouvelle,” the new single by OH MADONNA on Cold Transmission Music, released October 30.
German darkwave/synth-pop duo OH MADONNA released the single “Obsession Nouvelle” on October 30, 2026, via Cold Transmission Music, following the duo’s debut single “Touch” on the same label. Side-Line contributor Karo Kratochwil reviews the single below.
OH MADONNA have an enviable understanding of how to make electronic music seductive without sacrificing its physical impact. Their latest single, “Obsession Nouvelle,” has that wonderfully immediate quality which cannot be manufactured through production alone. The rhythm is insistent, the synthesizers beautifully tempered, and the melody possesses an almost insolent ability to lodge itself in the listener’s memory.
The composition moves with confidence and a certain delicious irreverence. There is a cool, almost aristocratic elegance to its electronic arrangements, interrupted by a rhythmic urgency that refuses to let the music become too comfortable. The influence of ’80s synthpop is unmistakable, although the production has a contemporary sharpness, free from the excessive nostalgic sentimentality that sometimes plagues this particular musical territory.
Its greatest attraction lies in the songwriting. OH MADONNA understand that electronic sophistication means little without a memorable musical idea, and here they have several. The transitions are beautifully handled, the energy remains consistent, and the melodic structure has enough personality to make repeated listening a genuine pleasure. “Obsession Nouvelle” is a splendid little piece of dark electronic pop, intelligent in its construction and gloriously unconcerned with hiding its accessibility.
About OH MADONNA
Behind OH MADONNA are GEISTHA and nana del gray, two artists who met in Mannheim’s club scene and eventually brought their respective interests in music, visual art and literature into a shared project. Their collaboration is especially interesting because neither discipline appears subordinate to the other. The visual component belongs to the same artistic imagination as the music; it does not function as an elaborate accessory to it.
Their fascination with religious iconography, human desire and the contradictions of intimacy gives the project a wider cultural context, although the songs are perfectly capable of standing without that conceptual framework. And perhaps that is the crucial distinction. The imagery may invite interpretation, but the melodies do not require an explanation.
Cold Transmission Music deserves considerable credit for its discerning catalogue, and OH MADONNA are an excellent addition to it. With their debut album approaching, “Obsession Nouvelle” suggests that GEISTHA and nana del gray have a particularly rewarding musical partnership on their hands.
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Based in Wrocław, I work as a music journalist and photographer covering electro, industrial, EBM, gothic, and darkwave. My work includes features and live coverage, as well as concert, portrait, promo, and theater photography. What interests me most is the connection between artistic intention, what the work communicates, and what unfolds live on stage, all in pursuit of the bigger picture behind the music.
