The Oracle Sisters is a

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

-based

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

indie folk Indie folk (also called alternative folk) is an alternative genre of music that arose in the 1990s among musicians from indie rock scenes influenced by folk music. Characteristics The staff of '' Paste Magazine'' said in 2020: "No music genre ...

, and

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

band formed in 2017. The band consists of multi-instrumentalists

Lewis Lazar Lewis Lazar is a musician, songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and painter based in Paris. He has been active around three musical projects: under his own name, Oracle Sisters and formerly the supergroup Summer Moon. Prints from his ill ...

, Christopher Willatt, and Julia Johansen. They were featured as one of NME's Essential New Artists for 2019. The name "Oracle Sisters" was inspired by the film The Warriors. Lazar said in an interview with

Clash Magazine ''Clash'' is a music and fashion magazine and website based in the United Kingdom. It is published four times a year by Music Republic Ltd, whose predecessor Clash Music Ltd went into liquidation. The magazine won awards including the Best New M ...

, "We were trying to find a gang name that connotated the type of music we were writing at the time. The Oracle Sisters was inspired by that concept of all these games. Like The Baseball Furies – the two words put together describe an entity. We were looking for our own warriors gang."

History

Despite being based in Paris, none of the members of the band is of French origin. Lewis Lazar is from

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, Chris Willatt is from

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, and Johansen is from

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. Lazar and Willatt met at school aged 15 or 16 in Brussels but diverged afterwards to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, respectively. The pair met Julia Johansen in 2017, a year after reuniting in Paris. Originally, Johansen collaborated with Lazar and Willatt as a singer, officially forming Oracle Sisters, but soon found her place primarily on drums. The band released their first single, "Always," in 2018, followed by three more standalone singles in 2019, and their first EP, ''Paris I'', was released in 2020. ''Paris I'' includes their most popular song, "Asc. Scorpio," which as of June 2025 has over 71 million plays on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

. ''Paris II'', their second EP, came only ten months later in 2021. They released nine more songs in four single releases in 2021-22. Their debut album, ''Hydranism'', released in 2023. It was recorded in 2020 in the midst of the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

pandemic on the island of Hydra, in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. The band remained there while on "lockdown" from the pandemic for 2 months. 35 songs were written, 20 were recorded, and only 11 made it to the album. A three-song release of live versions of "Hail Mary" and "RBH" from ''Hydranism'' and "I Don't Wanna Move" from ''Paris II'' came a month before the album via OurVinyl. In addition, the band covered

The Strokes The Strokes are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1998. The band is composed of lead singer and primary songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikola ...

' song "Under Control" for ''A Tribute to the Strokes: The Songs of Room on Fire'' later in 2023. ''Divinations'', the band's second album, was released on February 14, 2025, via Wizard Artists, their own record label. It was heavily inspired by the band's time touring abroad in 2023.

New Noise Magazine ''New Noise Magazine'' is an American music magazine that focuses on artist news, band interviews, album reviews and underground culture. It was founded in February 2013, by Lisa Root, who had previously been the co-founder and editor-in-chief o ...

called it "a nomadic record," as it was "partially recorded in Parisian studios, Valentine Studios in L.A., and even an icy barn in the French wilderness." Oracle Sisters has played at various festivals throughout Europe, plus

SXSW South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

in 2023, and opened for

Declan McKenna Declan Benedict McKenna (born 24 December 1998) is an English singer-songwriter. He initially gained recognition for winning the Glastonbury Festival's Emerging Talent Competition in 2015. McKenna self-released the song "Brazil (Declan McKenna s ...

's US tour in 2023 and L'Impératrice and Colapesce in 2024. They headlined a 23 date UK/EU tour in 2025 and will play the main stage at the Tramlines festival. They tour the US and Canada in the fall of the same year with 18 venues.

Music

The band's sound can be described as

, and

. Their music often resembles retro pop riffs. Lazar has cited

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

, early

Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionist Moe Tuc ...

, and

Simon and Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...

as early influences on the band.

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

described ''Paris I'' as, "folky, sun-kissed and oozing with mellow optimism." The city of Paris is often brought up as a main inspiration for their music. Their EPs ''Paris I'' and ''Paris II'' are described as narratives set in the city. Though the instrumental roles within the band are very fluid, Lazar and Willatt both primarily contribute guitar and vocals and Johansen primarily contributes drums. The band brings in other musicians to fill the roles of bass and keys when performing live.

Discography

Albums

*''Hydranism'' (April 7, 2023) via 22TWENTY *''Divinations'' (February 14, 2025) via Wizard Artists

EPs

*''Paris I'' (July 8, 2020) via 22TWENTY *''Paris II'' (April 7, 2021) via 22TWENTY

Singles

*"Always" (November 22, 2018) via La Torpille *"I'm You" (January 30, 2019) via La Torpille *"Spotlight" (August 21, 2019) via La Torpille *"From Kay's to the Cloisters" (November 20, 2019) via 22TWENTY *"Asc. Scorpio" (from ''Paris I'', March 11, 2020) via 22TWENTY *"Most of All" (from ''Paris I'', April 22, 2020) via 22TWENTY *"High Moon" (from ''Paris I'', June 3, 2020) via 22TWENTY *"The Dandelion" (from ''Paris II'', December 2, 2020) via 22TWENTY *"I Don't Wanna Move" (from ''Paris II'', March 3, 2021) via 22TWENTY *"Midnight Afternoon" (October 15, 2021) via 22TWENTY *"Captain America/Siren Song" (December 14, 2021) via 22TWENTY *"Tangerine/Prisoner of Love" (September 14, 2022) via 22TWENTY *"Who Knows Where the Time Goes/Yerre Blues" (December 7, 2022) via 22TWENTY *"Tramp Like You" (from ''Hydranism'', January 18, 2023) via 22TWENTY *"Hot Summer" (from ''Hydranism'', February 15, 2023) via 22TWENTY *"RBH" (from ''Hydranism'', March 8, 2023) via 22TWENTY *"Oracle Sisters , OurVinyl Sessions" (March 10, 2023) via OurVinyl *"Under Control" (from ''A Tribute to the Strokes: The Songs of Room on Fire'', November 10, 2023) via GM Records *"Alouette" (from ''Divinations'', October 30, 2024) via Wizard Artists *"Riverside" (from ''Divinations'', December 11, 2024) via Wizard Artists *"Blue Left Hand" (from ''Divinations'', January 15, 2025) via Wizard Artists

References

{{reflist French musical groups French folk music groups Musical groups from Île-de-France Musical groups from Paris English-language musical groups from France 2017 establishments in France French musical trios Mixed-gender bands Indie folk groups Indie pop groups French indie rock groups