Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith to return with new album, Ruin: It’s Not Just Music

Ruin: It's Not Just Music follows Smith's 2025 electronic rhythm-driven album Gush, and sees her shift into a sound defined by her idea of "combustion and deconstruction". This is characterised by drum and bass-inspired textures, and grooves closer to club music than the ambient and meditative elements that have defined her catalogue.

"Ruin" is the first preview of the album, reflecting the moment of collapse that the work is built on.

Speaking about the album, Smith says, “I realised I needed to make something confrontational, almost like sonic combat. Not a ‘fuck you’ aimed at anyone in particular, but a record that creates space for catharsis. I wanted the music to feel physical and direct, something that releases tension as much as it creates it.”

“Ruin lives in that moment where everything breaks and something else asserts itself,” she continues. “It’s music for the shock and the aftershock. Sound designed for endurance rather than comfort.”

The announcement comes ahead of Smith's performance at the Barbican Centre in London, taking place tomorrow (27 May) alongside the London Contemporary Orchestra in celebration of the tenth anniversary of her second album, Ears.

Ruin: It’s Not Just Music artwork