Mothica – Somewhere In Between

Mothica releases her new EP Somewhere In Between on Sharptone Records and releases the new single “Weapon.”

“I wrote the verses for ‘WEAPON’ the day before I went to rehab, it was my last night I was truly intoxicated and self reflecting on the uglier sides of myself. It’s painful to be so self aware but not change anything. I used to think I used drugs because I wanted to lose control, but as I learned more, it’s actually a way for me to control my surroundings. If I control the state of mind I’m in, then I’m in charge. When I left rehab, I got to finish the track with Curt Martin, Matty Beats and Trever Stewart. At the end of my shows, I tell people that ‘being sensitive is a superpower’ so this song is how I brandish the powers of having a heavy heart.”

“Weapon” follows the previously released singles “Save Your Roses” and “Evergreen Misery.”

Born McKenzie Ellis, the singer, performer, and visual artist has gracefully navigated personal despair since beginning her work as Mothica as a teenager. With potent songs detailing everything from surviving a suicide attempt at age 15 (“forever fifteen”), to going public about an abusive youth pastor in her most popular track (“Buzzkill”), she has seen her audience grow globally via tours with icons like Coheed & Cambria, Halestorm, and many others, while tallying hundreds of millions of streams (2020’s “VICES” charted on Billboard and reached No. 2 on iTunes’ pop chart). After getting sober, releasing three albums, relapsing and getting sober again, Mothica is now back and bolder than ever on Somewhere In Between, opening up her heart with intention.

“Like a moth to a flame, I’ve been attracted to drugs, alcohol, and self-destruction,” Ellis explains. “As Mothica grows, I’ve asked, ‘How can I make the darkness I’m attracted to be positive and utilize it as a vessel for sharing my story?’ It’s hard not to get lost in the dark sides of life and the music industry; it’s easy to compare yourself to others and feel ‘not good enough,’ but I’ve decided to take everything I’ve been through and to use it in order to inspire.”

Mothica will be on an extensive U.S. tour with I See Stars. The 30-date trek includes shows at NYC’s Gramercy Theatre (3/04), LA’s El Rey Theatre (3/22), and more.

Mothica 2026 U.S. Tour Dates:
02/26 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave *
02/27 – Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge *
02/28 – Columbus, OH – The KING of CLUBS *
03/01 – Cleveland, OH – Globe Iron *
03/02 – Philadelphia, PA – Brooklyn Bowl *
03/04 – New York, NY – Gramercy Theatre *
03/05 – Hartford, CT – The Webster *
03/06 – Worcester, MA – Palladium (Upstairs) *
03/07 – Baltimore, MD – The Recher *
03/08 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground *
03/10 – Atlanta, GA – Center Stage (The Loft) *
03/12 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – Culture Room *
03/13 – Orlando, FL – The Beacham *
03/14 – Destin, FL – Club LA *
03/16 – Houston, TX – Scout Bar *
03/17 – Austin, TX – Come and Take It Live *
03/18 – Dallas, TX – Trees *
03/20 – Mesa, AZ – Nile Theater *
03/21 – Las Vegas, NV – 24 Oxford *
03/22 – Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre *
03/23 – Roseville, CA – Goldfield Trading Post *
03/25 – Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre *
03/26 – Seattle, WA – El Corazón *
03/28 – Billings, MT – The Pub Station *
03/29 – Denver, CO – Oriental Theater *
03/30 – Colorado Springs, CO – The Black Sheep *
04/01 – Kansas City, MO – Warehouse on Broadway *
04/02 – St. Louis, MO – Del03/Hall *
04/03 – Indianapolis, IN – Deluxe At Old National Centre *
04/04 – Detroit, MI – Saint Andrew’s Hall *

• w/ I See Stars, Until I Wake, and Diamante

For the past decade, Mothica has attracted listeners with albums Blue Hour [2020], NOCTURNAL [2022], and Kissing Death [2024], the latter a visual album with 12 accompanying music videos. Leveraging art school roots, her experience as an illustrator and graphic designer, and an unstoppable D.I.Y. drive, she handcrafted an inimitable world, powering everything from merchandise design, to prop building, to creative direction on all of her videos and photoshoots. “In my brain, Mothica is one big art project,” Ellis explains. “I can wear all of these hats, and wigs, and do everything from writing the songs, to overseeing the merch designs, building the abstract world the music lives in.”

In 2024, a pivotal decision instigated the sonic evolution that followed: she had fallen back into a pill addiction fueled by her intense phobia of airplane travel. While touring Europe, she realized she needed to get clean and go back to basics before her next record. “I made the terrifying decision to cancel my first-ever headline tour and went to rehab,” she recalls. “A lot of intense emotions I had been numbing came up. I thought about quitting music because the anxieties around traveling and the industry is what lead me back to substance abuse. I was mad at myself for letting it go that far. Finally, I thought, ‘Why don’t I channel these feelings into some angry music?’ I’ve always wanted to combine pop songwriting with grittier, heavier guitars.”

Lead Somewhere In Between single “Evergreen Misery” kicks off her new chapter, layering a waterlike synth loop into the bones of a glitchy beat. Mothica’s voice flutters as she admits, “There’s a garden in the graveyard I once called home / Now the whole place is haunting me, it’s overgrown.” Kicking into overdrive without warning, a distorted riff boosts the bold hook, “Go ahead and bite the hand that feeds / My misery is evergreen.” “In the past, I knew the album and song titles before I made the music, since I was always so visually-driven,” explains Ellis. “This was different. I went into the studio with a bunch of complicated feelings and let them out. ‘Evergreen Misery’ is about various scenarios in my life—friendships and business relationships—when the other person took more than was given to me. Somebody was even imitating parts of my traumatic story and using them on their own. It was so bleak. I thought, ‘My misery is evergreen. I can keep pulling from this experience, so take what you want.’ Don’t worry, I’m a bottomless pit of despair to take inspo from.”

On “WEAPON,” Mothica holds nothing back. Raw pain is fearlessly embodied in lines like “Every drug and every man is a gun inside my hand” as keys blink in the background, slipping into the undertow of a distortion-drenched plea, “Forgive me for my sins / My heart is just a weapon.” “I started the verses the day before I went to rehab,” she recalls. “I’m acknowledging that I’ve been the villain in another person’s story. I know what I’m doing, and it’s only because I’m in so much pain. I’m taking ownership of the hurt I’m capable of causing.”

On the anthemic “Save Your Roses,” Mothica contrasts catchy, energetic production with dark, complex lyrics. “I wanted to write a song that on the surface sounds like it’s about a lover I’m pining after, but the subject is actually substances,” she shares. “The verses are about how intoxicating it is to lose yourself in drugs, and mirrors my experience with sobriety. The lyric in the chorus ‘Don’t save your roses for my grave’ is inspired by a conversation I had with a fan after one of my shows in Paris. The fan said ‘I believe we should give people their flowers while they’re here.’ That image stuck with me, that we often tell people how much they mean to us only after they’re gone.”

“BULLET”–co-produced by Ellis –teems with anxiety until releasing with controlled chaos on its vulnerable refrain (“It’s better than a bullet in my head / It’s better than a noose around my neck.”). “It’s intense,” she observes. “I’m rationalizing why I relapsed, and I’m saying, ‘Well, it’s better than killing myself. I’ll do it one last time.’ It came out of the depths of my addiction.”

The title track closes out the record with an emotional flourish. Sparse piano and icy synths heighten the atmosphere as the chorus takes hold above a crunching serrated groove (“Like a cut that never bleeds / My heavy heart is killing me”).“It references this in-between phase of the EP and where I’ve also been for the last year,” she reveals. “Due to my depression and being a recovering addict, I’m so ‘all or nothing.’ Everything seems fatalistic to me. How do I exist in the middle? I had just gotten out of rehab, and I was able to be vulnerable. A lot of the words were initially written as poetry on my phone, and the lyrics are the most vulnerable and poetic I’ve ever written. I’m dealing with my struggle to get sober again, my first major breakup, and other significant life events. For so long, I had been numbing out my emotions. I was finally able to process them, and it was freeing.”

In sharing Somewhere In Between with the world, Mothica aims to provide solidarity with others in times of deep suffering. “I know what it’s like to feel like nobody in the world understands you. To be afraid to ask for help. I just want everyone to feel welcome here.”

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