Pathos by Ionne: EP Review

by admin September 11, 2025

September 11, 2025

Ionne’s new E.P. Pathos, released August 29, 2025 under 5015 Records, is an artistic gamble and a triumph. Born from a whirlwind collaboration with fashion designer Tea Montgomery for his Union Station runway show, the project was written and recorded in under 60 days, but can you tell it was rushed in any way? Instead, it distills five emotional states of pride, envy, imposter syndrome, patience, and acceptance, into a journey pursuing metamorphosis of the soul, with Afrocentric EDM and soulful textures. It channels influences as wide-ranging as Black Coffee, Soul II Soul, and Sade.

The opening track “Pride” brings an insistent percussive pulse and a soothing high voice that begins in restraint before spiraling into something raw and uncontainable. The performance, recorded in one take, mirrors the very theme it addresses. It sees the struggle to hold dignity in a world eager to strip it away. The lyric recalls James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time where pride is the soul survivor of the self.

Then comes “Everybody Said – Ionne’s Euphoria Mix,” reworked from its original house form into a hypnotic groove of amapiano percussion, piano warmth, and soulful harmonies. Over and over, the refrain “Everybody said I would be a waste of time… but you” lands like an accusation that turns to salvation, compassion and recognition. It’s imposter syndrome transmuted into a dancefloor mantra, with each repetition digging deeper until the words almost unravel, yet the rhythm keeps carrying forward.

The closing title track “Pathos” is where everything expands. Anticipatory synths brood under gentle melodies before opening into shimmering choral harmonies, like the release of a long-held breath. Epic yet intimate, it captures the arc of the project, as the struggle radiantly blooms before all and the private pain is communally acknowledged and accepted.

With Pathos, Ionne brings you states of being where you have been before. Check it out on Spotify.