IONNA Turns Breakdown Into Breakthrough In “Avalanche”
We’re all forces in our own right, though most of us spend far too much time underestimating the power we already carry. It’s easy enough to say in theory, but far harder to hold onto in moments of doubt and alarm. That’s where the real work lies. Luckily, great art has a way of pulling dormant truths back to the surface, even when it arrives disguised as a synth-pop earworm filtered through a space pirate’s mythic quest. For that reminder, we turn to “Avalanche” by IONNA.
“You’re in too deep\ you can’t feel your feet,” the song begins, capturing that enveloping sense of helplessness that surfaces in moments of panic. Curious tones flicker around a steady pulse as the track progresses, before erupting into an opulent rush of melodic rapture that restores confidence and resolve just when it’s needed most. “You’re an avalanche\ Avalanche\ Breaking walls without a sound,” IONNA sings in a skyward surge, dissolving any notion of collapse as a cavalcade of electronic layers swells into something towering and assured.
The video follows a space knight and her adventuring party as they journey across a fractured terrain in search of the mysterious Lamia Core, an arcane relic within the IONNVERSE universe. Along the way, they encounter an inter-dimensional wizard who blurs the line between ally and adversary, leading to an ending that frames triumph in battle as both glorious and devastating. As the song and film reach their climax, the lyrics capture the moment fully: “what once held you back\ now lays beneath.”
Filmed on Super 8 by Soraya Silene, the singer-songwriter behind the IONNA alias, and Dietrich Teschner, alongside Kyle Brinn, Sophia Santopietro, Kas Harrison, and Paxton Chapman, the video was created for the Super Gr8t film festival in Harrisonburg in October 2025. “I had already written the music and was using the festival as an opportunity to give more to the story,” Silene said. “We used props and costumes from my shows, and after spending the summer experimenting with Super 8 and shooting several rolls of film, this project felt like a natural continuation of that process.”
The festival’s no-edit format provided a challenge for production that Silene found “invigorating” to the process. “You had to plan and time all the shots beforehand,” she explained. “3 seconds here, 3 seconds there. No reshoots. You just go for it. I was thrilled to coordinate small fight scenes within those constraints. It ended up being six of us creating something together in a really immediate, instinctive way.”
Though framed as Chapter One in the video’s final moments, “Avalanche” is actually the closing track to IONNAVERSE, and was preceded by the 2025 singles “The Phoenix,” “Calling To A Star,” and “Supernatural,” as well as “Waking” in 2024 and a slightly altered mix of “The Seeker” in 2023. Produced alongside multi-instrumentalist Ross Wright, the album features lush backdrops of dreamy and vivid synth-pop that deepen and elevate the lore-driven nature of its lyrics. Earlier this year, the record earned recognition on the shortlist for the 2026 Newlin Music Prize, highlighting it as one of the standout releases of 2025 from the Richmond area. More chapters are sure to be explored in the IONNAVERSE in 2026, with the video for “Avalanche” serving as a curious invitation to whatever comes next.
You can watch the video for “Avalanche” below, and you can stay up to date with IONNA by following along on social media for more on new music, videos, and upcoming shows.
