Rock Monsters Romania

NiXA is the musical project of Denisa Pătru – a raw blend of emotion, vulnerability, overthinking, and overdoing, channeled into lyrics and sound. An alternative act born from the need to speak uncomfortable truths and to build a personal world where music becomes the bridge between what we feel and what we can’t otherwise express.

On May 5, NiXA officially released her new track “Spân.exe” across all digital streaming platforms. (Technically, the music video premiered earlier, on April 23, during the first edition of the Foreign Humor Productions showcase at Control Club in Bucharest, where NiXA headlined alongside Brainwasher, RusT, and Walking to the Moon.) However, to highlight Ivan Sobianin’s stunning 8-bit retro-style animation, the decision was made to slightly separate the visual and auditory experiences. The animated video is rich with hidden references, building a world where errors are signs of awakening — not mistakes.

“Spân.exe” shows a new side of NiXA, offering a contrast to her debut single “Mașina din ’95.” This new track is a glitch in the iridescent ROGVAIV of emotions — a hybrid of hyperpop, 8-bit aesthetics, and bedroom lo-fi that climaxes with a heavy guitar twist (but shhh, that part’s a surprise near the end).

The sonic palette NiXA works within makes her a perfect fit for fans of emotionally immersive and genre-bending artists, and it’s a great fit for the fans of Mitski, Lana Del Rey, Halsey, Marina & The Diamonds, Melanie Martinez, Issues, Falling in Reverse, Magdalena Bay, Cocteau Twins, Bat For Lashes, Penelope Scott, Lord Huron, and Cavetown.

The track was composed and written by NiXA, with production, mixing, and mastering handled by Matei Tibacu-Blendea (formerly of Coma, Bosquito, now active in The Details, Illuminati, Lost Society, Dulceața Morții, and more), under the banner of Foreign Humor Productions (home to Asincron, Brainwasher, Walking to the Moon, RusT, Noah K, Silvia Niță, Jacqueline Crăciun, Dianna Project, and others).

“Spân.exe” is a song about never quite being someone’s first choice. It captures those moments when we struggle to be seen, only to realize we may be forcing ourselves into spaces where we’re not truly wanted. The title references the trickster character from the Romanian fairytale “Harap Alb” — the Spân, a false ally with hidden intentions. In this track, the story unfolds in the context of a pixelated video game, with a “princess-NPC” who starts to feel, despite being trapped in code.

“Sometimes, once in a long while, anomalies appear in the code of reality. This one made me feel,” says NiXA.