Current - coming June 26th
CURRENT is an album, concert, and visual world created on the water by NYC based vocalist, pianist, composer, and producer Vivienne Aerts with an international ensemble, blending nature, jazz, and electronic music: “I recorded the album on board a 1951 Dutch sailboat, capturing songs, layers of voice, and the sound of water itself. It is built from original songs and soundscapes, shaped by themes of empathy and deep listening.
To celebrate, we are planning a very special release concert and party in New York on June 28. It will take place on the water with Manhattan By Sail, the historic Clipper City, which began as a cargo schooner before the Civil War and was reborn through restoration using original Smithsonian plans. We will cruise the harbor at golden hour while we enjoy sweeping skyline views and striking visuals projected onto the sails, all set to the songs from the new album Current, the kind of atmosphere that feels completely right for this project.
About the album
In the summer of 2025, vocalist and composer Vivienne Aerts set sail across the Dutch waterways aboard her 1951 mahogany sailboat De Vouw. Over two weeks she transformed the tiny boat into a floating studio, recording new songs and soundscapes that blur the lines between jazz, improvisation, and environmental art. Current captures the sounds of creaking wood, rippling waves, passing locks, and birds in flight, weaving them with voice, electronics, and acoustic instruments. The project explores how humans and water coexist – reflecting both the Netherlands’ heritage of “living with water” and the fluidity of creative life itself.
What began as an experiment in site-specific recording soon became a collective voyage. Aerts invited fellow Dutch musicians: Hermine Deurloo (harmonica), Susanne Alt (saxophone), and Adinda Meertins (double bass) to join her on different lakes and canals, each session shaped by the elements. Ted Steinebach documented the journey for a short film that will accompany the album’s release with help of NYC based Producer Art Jones. The resulting work blends documentary realism and sonic poetry, balancing spontaneity with deep listening, a continuation of Aerts’s long-term dialogue between mindfulness, sound, and community.
Set for release on Spring 2026, Current invites audiences to reflect on the movement of water as both metaphor and environment. The album will launch with floating concerts in the Netherlands and the United States, alongside workshops and talks on creativity and sustainability. Building on Aerts’s acclaimed collaborative album Typuhthâng, Current marks her most intimate project yet, one that flows between continents, generations, and disciplines, reminding us that music, like water, is always in motion.
About Vivienne
Dutch New York-based vocalist, conductor, and composer with a focus on electronics, chocolate, and multi-sensory experience design, as well as a clinical psychologist and faculty at Berklee College of Music in Boston.
Trailer
Press
“As a Dutch artist, I carry a deep connection to water, we live with it, not against it. CURRENT lets water steer the sound, capturing the movement, reflection, and resilience that define our culture.”
“Sound on the water is unlike any studio; full of resonance and mystery.” – 3voor12 Leiden >> Read more <<
“How many hours are there actually in her day? She laughs, ‘Not enough, by far! I recorded the underwater sounds with a hydrophone and the bird sounds using a field recorder.” – Leiden University >> Read more <<
“We were on this boat for two weeks and recorded the environment—the water, underwater, and above the water, birds—and used a lot of synthesizers, electronics, and loop stations. I recorded my voice in layers. This album sounds a little more electronic than the previous one. So I would say maybe it has a bit of a Norah Jones meets James Blake vibe.” – Make Music Day >> Read more <<
What you get
Of course, you can pre-order the digital album. The first track will be shared with pre-order supporters on June 12, and the full album will be released on June 26.
But I also wanted the physical edition to feel like more than just “the music in a package.” I wanted it to feel like an invitation to step into the world of Current. A little travel kit for stillness. A collection of things you might need for a journey on the water.
The CD edition comes in a cardboard fold. It includes the music, a water map with all the locations where we recorded, a captain’s log printed on handmade paper, a packing list, bird stickers of the birds we saw and recorded, and postcards you can send to your loved ones.
The vinyl edition carries the same spirit, the boat will float around your record player, with a shiny marble texture, made by Deepgrooves Vinyl pressing plant. I’m very proud to say that Deepgrooves is the only pressing plant in the world that produces their record as Co2(e) neutral as possible. Alongside the record, you’ll receive the water map and the bird stickers, so you can follow the journey while listening and maybe spot a few feathered collaborators along the way.
Explore the locations, songs, and stories behind the album.
