Iona Zajac & Robin Kester
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Leeds Inspired

Iona Zajac & Robin Kester

20th November 2025
The Attic

Iona Zajac

There’s an unwavering resilience coursing through Iona Zajac’s music. That power is essential in striking a perfect balance of light and dark narratives drawn from stark realities and a desire to find escapism in the surreal. Zajac expands on her unique world building which is very much inspired by her poems and dreams. ‘I enjoy trying to embrace discomfort.’ Zajac’s motivation to be so frank in her songwriting is spurred by her desire for women to see themselves outlined in her arresting words. To have their own similar experiences illuminated and heard. We can expect a lot of this in her highly anticipated debut album, due for release this year.

As much as lived experiences inform her lyrics, Zajac weaves surrealist narratives into her songs inspired by dream sequences that she has logged over the years; her humour casts a cathartic lightness in her work. Always rooted in simple chord sequences on nylon string guitar, Zajac’s music is growing into a mesmerising palette of rumbling percussion, radiant casio motifs and bursts of invigorating driving electric guitar.

The strength in her voice has been honed over the last few years during which Zajac has been perfecting her craft on stage as she joined several acclaimed artists such as Alison Moyet, Arab Strap, Lankum, Anna B Savage, Cassandra Jenkins. More recently, Zajac was invited to open for, and sing with, The Pogues in Dublin and is joining their line up for upcoming tours.

Robin Kester

Drifting between chamber pop, electronic music and psychedelic rock, Kester’s experimental pop exudes a hazy euphoria and dark tension.

Robin Kester made waves with the release of her debut album Honeycomb Shades. Her songs received substantial rotation on international radio stations; ranging from various spins on BBC 6 Music (UK) – from the likes of Guy Garvey, Gideon Coe, Huw Stephens and premieres on Lauren Laverne’s morning show – as well as in the US (KEXP, KCRW), France (FIP), Belgium (Radio 1) and most stations in the Netherlands. Robin Kester culminated her successful year by receiving the accolade of Best Dutch Album of the Year from renowned national newspapers NRC and de Volkskrant.

In recent years Robin Kester was invited to open for artists such as Villagers, Arlo Parks, Alela Diane, Laura Gibson, Wende and Haley Heynderickx. With her band, Robin performed at a multitude of esteemed festivals, from Pinkpop to Valkhof and MOMO Festival as well as showcase festivals such as SXSW, Primavera and ESNS.