RY X – When music becomes magic

An extraordinary artist, the power of silence, and a concert at the Royal Albert Hall that has stayed with me.

There are musicians whose albums I enjoy. There are artists who win me over with individual songs. And then there are those very rare exceptions who make me sit down, start the music, and suddenly forget everything else around me.

For me, RY X is one of those remarkable exceptions.

I have lost count of how often I have listened to his albums. Yet it keeps happening: I lose myself in this music. It has an atmospheric, almost weightless quality. Individual notes hang in the room, electronic textures unfold slowly, a guitar enters, strings join in — and above it all is that unmistakable voice. A voice that does not try to dominate everything, but blends with the music in a way that feels almost perfect.

What fascinates me is how RY X shapes his songs. Often, surprisingly little happens — and at the same time, so much. His music needs no spectacular effects, huge choruses or constant changes of pace to hold your attention. It creates its own atmosphere. And if you give yourself over to it, something can happen that I struggle to describe as anything other than magic.

From Australian surfer to an extraordinary musician

Behind RY X is Australian musician Ry Cuming, who grew up in Angourie on Australia’s east coast. The ocean, nature and surfing played a major part in his youth. Perhaps that helps explain why his music so often feels fluid to me. It moves, changes, retreats and returns — sometimes almost like waves.

His musical path was far from predetermined. As a teenager, he discovered artists including Jeff Buckley, whose extraordinary voice and emotional intensity left a lasting impression. Later, he began writing songs himself.

His early steps as a musician were much more conventional. In 2010, he released the album Ry Cuming under his own name, with a sound closer to traditional singer-songwriter music and pop. He even toured as a support act for Maroon 5.

The musical identity we know today emerged a few years later. In 2013, he released the EP Berlin as RY X. Its title track became internationally known and opened up a new chapter in his career.

Looking at that development, I find it a lovely story: a musician discovers his own distinctive sound only after stepping away from what first seemed the most obvious route to success.

A voice that becomes part of the music

What particularly fascinates me about RY X is the relationship between his voice and the arrangements.

Many singers seem to stand in front of their music. The instruments accompany them while the voice takes centre stage. With RY X, I often feel that his voice is itself an instrument within the soundscape.

It is soft, sometimes almost whispered, then insistent and full of strength. It fits these atmospheric arrangements so naturally that it is hard to imagine the music being sung any other way.

He draws on very different musical elements. Acoustic guitars, piano, electronic rhythms, synthesisers and strings come together in soundscapes that sometimes remind me more of film music or contemporary classical music than ordinary pop.

RY X is also at home in electronic music. Together with Frank Wiedemann of Âme, he founded Howling. Here, his musical world becomes more rhythmic and electronic without losing the particular atmosphere of his voice.

That is why my personal TIDAL selection includes different versions of “Howling” and “All I Have”. With the latter, Jan Blomqvist’s remix is a wonderful example of how differently the same musical idea can be realised.

And that is a large part of his art for me: RY X does not simply write songs. He creates worlds of sound.

Three albums and a musical journey

His first studio album under the name RY X, Dawn, came out in 2016. Everything that makes him so special to me is already there. Songs such as “Berlin”, “Only”, “Sweat” and “Shortline” draw their strength from restraint, his emotional voice and that almost hypnotic atmosphere.

“Berlin” grew out of a very personal experience. RY X travelled from Australia into a cold Berlin winter to pursue a relationship that did not develop as he had hoped. To me, the song sounds like longing and a closeness that remains out of reach. Knowing that story may help explain why so few words and notes can say so much.

With Unfurl in 2019, his music became bigger and more layered. Electronic elements grew in importance, and strings and rhythmic structures became more prominent. Tracks such as “Bound” and “The Water” show how he develops musical ideas slowly, building ever greater tension.

Blood Moon followed in 2022 — another deeply personal album, exploring love, loss, vulnerability and human connection. I find his collaboration with Icelandic composer Ólafur Arnalds on “Colorblind” especially interesting.

“Oceans”, which the two released together in 2020, is also part of my personal selection. That combination of electronic atmosphere, restrained instrumentation and an emotional voice works exceptionally well for me.

What runs through all these releases is a remarkable sense of continuity. The music changes — becoming more electronic, more acoustic or more complex — but it never loses that unmistakable signature.

What does RY X sing about?

His lyrics are an important part of that effect, too.

They often deal with love, closeness, longing, vulnerability and loss. Yet RY X rarely tells these stories in a traditional, straightforward way. Sometimes, his lyrics feel like fragments of thoughts or memories that only acquire their full meaning through the music.

I hear my own stories in them. For me, “Berlin” captures longing for someone you cannot quite reach emotionally. In “Howling”, I hear physical passion meeting something almost spiritual. I associate “Sweat” with emotional surrender and what we give of ourselves in relationships.

“Shortline” makes me think of a deep bond between people that remains even when a relationship becomes complicated. In “Lean”, I hear the trust involved in letting go, hoping someone will catch you. These are my interpretations, not definitive explanations of the songs.

The themes themselves are not unusual. What is unusual is the way RY X turns them into music.

In an interview, he spoke about people getting married to “Howling” or having lines from his songs tattooed on their bodies. He also described how moving it is to see his music become part of other people’s personal stories.

Perhaps that is one of his songs‘ secrets: they leave enough space for each of us to find our own memories and feelings in them.

The Royal Albert Hall — the high point for me

And then there is one album that, for me, takes everything even further.

RY X – Live from the Royal Albert Hall.

The concert was recorded in October 2019 at London’s famous Royal Albert Hall, together with the London Contemporary Orchestra. The live album was released on 15 January 2021.

I have listened to this recording countless times. It has lost none of its fascination for me.

The studio albums are already extraordinary. But something else happens at the Royal Albert Hall. The orchestral arrangements give the music another dimension. Strings, electronic elements and his voice form a great sweep of sound that somehow remains wonderfully intimate.

And then there is the hall itself.

What keeps impressing me is not just the sound of the instruments, but the atmosphere. You hear the size of the room, the air between the notes and, above all, that incredible concentration.

As I listen, I keep feeling that the audience is hanging on his every word.

People are sitting in this enormous concert hall, yet for long stretches I hear almost nothing except his music. No restlessness, no constant shouting. Instead, there is this expectant silence from which the music emerges — and into which it sometimes returns.

Of course, I do not know what every individual in the audience felt that evening. But listening to the recording, I cannot help feeling that RY X must have held the whole hall spellbound.

With music that does not need to be loud to feel immense.

“Sweat”, “Salt”, “Berlin” and “Shortline” are especially extraordinary to me in these live versions. The songs are allowed to unfold; they are given time and space. Some last considerably longer than their studio versions. The orchestral arrangements make the music bigger without destroying its fragility.

In interviews, RY X has described how carefully he chooses the spaces, lighting and sound for his concerts. He is looking for an intimate experience that can happen even in a large hall.

Perhaps that is why his performances can feel so intense.

If you would like a glimpse behind the scenes, the film “The force that pulls” is available on RY X’s official YouTube channel. It follows the Royal Albert Hall concert and offers an insight into his work with the London Contemporary Orchestra. It is not a complete concert recording, but a companion to listening. You will find the direct video link below.

A record that means a great deal to me

A small story from my own collection may show how much I admire this concert.

The regular vinyl edition of Live from the Royal Albert Hall is already an expensive record. Even so, I eventually bought a test pressing of the recording.

If you know a little about vinyl, you will know that test pressings are usually made in very small numbers before the main production run. They are used to check pressing quality and are correspondingly rare.

A test pressing does not necessarily sound better than the regular release. That was not what mattered to me.

It cost considerably more than the already expensive standard LP. But some recordings mean so much to you that you want to own them in a particularly special edition.

For me, this concert is one of them.

I could claim that it was a sensible collector’s decision. But it probably says more about my enthusiasm for this artist if I simply admit it: I really wanted it.

You can read the story of that special edition here: The most expensive record of my life – RY X.

And now there is new music

Following Blood Moon, RY X has announced a new studio album, DUSK, for early 2027. “Holy Water”, released on 10 September 2026, is the first song to emerge from it. That is the position as this article was written in October 2026.

For “Holy Water”, he describes a deliberately stripped-back, immediate approach to recording: music that takes shape in the room and allows breaths and small imperfections to remain.

The song uses water as an image of connection, love and something spiritual. RY X describes relationships through images drawn from nature — an idea that fits his music remarkably well.

I am certainly very curious about this album.

This time, I also have something else to look forward to: I have bought tickets for his concert in Berlin in April 2027.

I want to experience this artist in person at last.

Of course, I do not know whether the special atmosphere of the Royal Albert Hall can be repeated. Perhaps it was a unique moment, created by that hall, the orchestra, the audience and the music.

But that is exactly why I am curious.

I hope to experience something of the magic in Berlin that has accompanied me on his recordings for years.

Music worth making time for

For me, RY X is not an artist to leave playing in the background. His music deserves attention.

Sit down, turn on your system or put on a good pair of headphones, and give it time. Rather than waiting for a huge chorus, listen to how these soundscapes slowly develop. How his voice blends with the instruments. How a handful of notes can suddenly create extraordinary intensity.

I have put together a personal selection of my favourite tracks on TIDAL. It includes early songs, more recent recordings, electronic remixes and, of course, several tracks from the Royal Albert Hall.

If RY X is new to you, I would start with that selection. Then I would wholeheartedly recommend listening to the complete Royal Albert Hall album. You will find the direct album and RY-X-Collection links below.

What stays with me

The magic of quiet sounds

There are many musicians I think are wonderful. But very few make me sit down, forget everything else, and lose myself completely in their music.

For me, RY X is one of those rare, truly great artists.

And when I sit in that concert hall in Berlin in April 2027, I will probably be waiting for that one moment: when the room falls silent, the first notes ring out, and that special magic begins again.