It is fair to state that Snake Boots, a project by artists Karolina Preuschl and Tony Wagner, is a power duo. Both of them are household names in various artistic contexts in Vienna. Preuschl studied contextual painting at the Viennese Academy of Fine Arts and has since been working at the intersection of experimental music, literary and theatrical practices as well as drawing. After pushing language to its edges and renegotiating the contradictions of experimental and E-Musik (serious music) to its volatile core with solo projects like Coco Béchamel and MC Rhine or in collaborative efforts with koenigleopold and Wien Diesel, Preuschl is now expanding her versed musical journey as a member of the doom metal band EAERES and the duo project at hand – Snake Boots. Childhood friend and long-time collaborateur Tony Wagner is an artistic luminary in his own right. Working with experimental sound, avant-garde compositions and transdisciplinary performance practices, Wagner’s body of work is informed by an ever-leftfield-leaning approach yet grounded within a profound sensitivity for the contemporary. His output spans from solo compositions under the monikers Tony Renaissance and Bogland and original scores for film, theatre and performance to the continuous collaborative project Transformative Narratives with research-based artist Lena Kuzmich and the joint effort with Preuschl – Snake Boots. Additionally, they take on an organisational role as the co-manager of the music platform Tender Matter, where The Garten finds its home.

In 2021 Snake Boots released their debut tape “01”, also via Tender Matter. A raw and intense exploration of noise music utilising the cathartic character of improvisation creates an affective dyadic journey. Since then Snake Boots have presented their work in various concert settings in Austria, always reinventing themselves while keeping a coherent auditive and performative aesthetic. The bold performativity and earnest experimentation of their live shows now feel like an indication of their newest record, “The Garten”, a 5-track record that was released digitally and on vinyl on the 16th of May 2025. I remember seeing them perform live at Klangfestival in Gallneukirchen, Upper Austria, witnessing a rendition of the opening track equally titled “The Garten” for the first time. There was a theatrical playfulness in the way the two musicians were yearningly shouting out each other’s names: “Tony? Caroline?” – that neatly translates onto the recorded version in an astonishing manner. A haunting drone meets melodic textures and a pulsating kick drum, creating the base for Karolina Preuschl’s repetition of “I lost my mind; I lost myself in the Garten”. After the scenery, the garden, has been set, we meet “SOPHIE”, a piano ballad that seems to be an homage to the beloved boundary-pushing musician SOPHIE. Echoey strings and spoken words processed through a vocoder paint emotive lines over the clarity of the piano melody.

The following track, “Stimmung”, functions as an interlude that marks the midpoint of the record. It could easily go on for longer and have you lost in its dissonant vibrations. Synthesised violins drown in their own resonance until they turn comprehensible again towards the end as the violin is being tuned, which preludes the single “Sickly Victorian Boy”. The only track on the record that builds on a continuous yet dismantled rhythm, always on the verge of falling apart, until it does. You’ll find yourself trying to make out the spoken word lyrics by Karolina Preuschl and be embraced by Tony Wagner’s distant harmonies. There is an enigmatic presence that invites the listener to indulge in the perplexity of the eerie. Then there’s the minimalist, concrete closing track “Happy” around the corner, where perplexity is spared yet the eerie is being pushed to the fore even more. A mellow baseline and Preuschl and Wagner singing the word “happy” repeatedly throughout the whole track create an almost humorous bizarreness that doesn’t necessarily grant resolvement but potentially communicates a twisted contentment with being lost in the Garten. 

The record is accompanied by a fantastical short story by Kenneth Constance Loe that matches the dramaturgical flow as well as the musical and lyrical storytelling of “The Garten” and offers the listener an additional layer to engage with the ghostly world created by Snake Boots. The 5 tracks on this record display the musical versatility and clarity of Karolina Preuschl and Tony Wagner and make the opportunity to catch them live soon highly anticipated.

This article is brought to you by Struma+Iodine as part of the EM GUIDE project – an initiative dedicated to empowering independent music magazines and strengthen the underground music scene in Europe. Read more about the project at emgui.de

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