Germany Band RIKAS Share Sophomore Album + Official Video For “Bike In LA”

German indie rock band Rikas release their highly anticipated sophomore album Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet. The album id the band’s most cohesive and contemplative work to date, consisting of 12 vibrant tracks that reflect the band’s tight rhythms and gentle expressiveness. 

For the album, Rikas set out to create a cohesive concept album. “This wasn’t easy to achieve because we’ve experienced that each of our songs differs from the others. We have four songwriters who are also multi-instrumentalists, so we don’t have to make much effort to bring diversity to our music. Instead, we pressured ourselves to create something consistent. But we also didn’t want every song to sound the same. The concept of the album lies in its themes.”

Following sessions in Amsterdam with Benny Sings (Mac DeMarco, Rex Orange County) and a visit to Jonathan Rado (Whitney, Father John Misty, Weyes Blood) in LA, Rikas found the sound for their second album, which they produced with Daniel Schaub at the Hansa Studios in Berlin. The songs for Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet were written last year, developing old ideas and fragments while creating new songs entirely from scratch. “Somehow, when we started writing and listening back to the songs, they all shared a similar feeling of driving, traveling, being on the move,” says guitarist and keyboardist Sascha Scherer. “That wasn’t originally intended, but it fit more and more as we continued writing. We realized we enjoyed the songs the most when driving in our van, looking out the window, and watching the landscape pass by. There’s something very meditative about that, which is amplified by the right soundtrack. That’s the soundtrack we tried to write. The entire album is meant to feel warm and enveloping, like being ‘wrapped in cotton.’”

“We originally made this album to have fun. However, it wasn’t easy because so much change has occurred,” explains Scherer. “We had to learn to adapt… This album is more introspective. We’ve reflected a lot.” Scherer continues: “I think many bands struggle to stand still. When you stop touring and moving to a new city every day, you feel lost. I feel like our new album captures that feeling of ‘always moving forward.’” This sense of inertia carries multiple layers: there is restless energy, but also a strong sense of cohesion – emotions that Rikas aim to depict in every one of their music videos. 

This morning they premiered the official video for the album focus track, “Bike In L.A.” An indie pop ear worm inspired by classic Americana rock anthems with cheeky lyrics inspired by the car culture of Los Angeles. 

WATCH + SHARE THE OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR “BIKE IN L.A.”

For the visual design of the album, the band traveled to San Remo in northern Italy to capture the late November sunlight. “In a way, you could say we were trying to shoot the first part of the movie whose soundtrack we had just written,” Scherer concludes.

Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet is a testament to Rikas’ ability to adapt and reflect on their journey. It offers listeners a meditative and immersive experience that captures the essence of being on the move.

To celebrate the release, Rikas will play select shows in Germany and embark on a European tour in spring 2025. Full list of dates below.

About Rikas:
With ease, Rikas can turn an unplanned evening or a film without a plot into something unforgettable. Ferdinand plays drums, Sam is on bass, Chris plays guitar, and Sascha plays guitar and keyboards. Each of them has a unique superpower, but none stand alone in the spotlight. They create their songs together. All of them sing, often with anthemic backing vocals. Based in their hometown of Stuttgart, they’ve built a steadily growing fanbase across Europe. Singles like Overthinking or I Always Think Of You (When I Listen To This Song) have amassed millions of streams. This has helped Rikas become a live phenomenon in Germany, with word-of-mouth carrying them across borders.

With over 300 performances, including festivals such as Fusion Festival and MS Dockville in Hamburg, and as support for artists like Milky Chance, Alt-J, and Alice Phoebe Lou across Europe, they quickly built a reputation. After releasing their debut album Showtime in late 2019, they followed up with the EP Short Stories in 2020, and the Goodbye Sunshine EP in 2022. The group then toured the U.S. in 2023, playing SXSW to acclaim from Pollstar, Luna Collective, Spin, Flood, and more.