French heavy rock & metalcore outfit Ashen release their cover of Charli XCX's Brat-era hit "Sympathy Is A Knife" on all digital platforms via Out Of Line Music. The cover first surfaced earlier this year as an Amazon Music Original within their "Artists to watch" promotion, and now arrives on all other digital platforms for the first time.
Where Charli XCX's original rides on glossy synth-pop production, Ashen trade the sheen for heavy, cinematic riffs and frontman Clem Richard's raw vocals and screams, turning one of Brat's most talked-about tracks inside out. The reinterpretation keeps the song's emotional pull intact while pushing it firmly into Ashen's own modern rock territory.
"We wanted to have some fun starting with a hyperpop track and see what we could do with it. When we listened to 'Sympathy is a Knife,' we found that, emotionally, it felt surprisingly close to an emo song.
We were deeply moved by the theme and wanted to create a cover that would blend these different genres. Today, this cover really feels like ASHEN, while still preserving the original song's subversive strength and energy. We wanted to make the song our own without losing what made the original so powerful and provocative in the first place."
The release lands on the back of a couple of monumental years for the band. Ashen tore up the Mainstage at Hellfest 2025, where Will Ramos (Lorna Shore) joined them live on stage, and have previously supported Bloodywood, Three Days Grace, and Papa Roach. The band now head out on Chimera Tour Pt. 3, running September through December.
About Ashen
Formed in Paris in 2021, Ashen fuses modern metalcore arrangements with the rock-driven presence of vocalist Clem Richard. Building on early successful singles, the band released their debut album Chimera in September 2025 via Out Of Line Music, a record built from anguish, ecstasy, delusion, and clarity that helped earn them a Mainstage slot at Hellfest 2025.
▶ Stream "Sympathy Is A Knife" now
