Σtella — 80 Days

JUL 01 2025 · 12:00

Σtella — 80 Days (2025) Director: Io Papadatou Era: Mid-2020s Greek Indie Pop Internationalization (2025) - Σtella's fifth album cycle on Sub Pop Records, representing the maturation of Athens-based indie pop into a globally distributed, critically recognized form blending Mediterranean warmth with contemporary animation aesthetics. High curatorial value as a document of 2025 Greek indie pop at a critical juncture of international recognition. The video is notable for its complete animation authorship by a single Athens-based artist-animator, making it a rare example of fully integrated visual-artistic and directorial vision in contemporary music video. Preserves an aesthetic moment in which Mediterranean warmth, folk-pop instrumentation, and surrealist illustration converge into a coherent and distinctive visual identity. Context: Released April 4, 2025, '80 Days' is a single from Σtella's fifth album Adagio on Sub Pop Records — marking the continued internationalization of Athens-based indie pop. Σtella (Stella Chronopoulou), a painter and visual artist by training, has built a career bridging Greek and Anglophone musical traditions since her 2014 debut. Adagio was written and recorded over five years with international collaborators and is described as a meditation on love, desire, rest, and time. The animated video format, directed and animated entirely by Io Papadatou, extends Σtella's visual-arts background into the music video medium, foregrounding illustration over performance — a choice that situates the work within a broader 2020s trend of artist-aligned animation videos in the indie pop space. The album's Greek critical reception and sold-out European tour dates signal a significant cultural moment for contemporary Athenian pop. Director notes: Papadatou served as both director and animator on the '80 Days' official video, as confirmed by Sub Pop Records' April 4, 2025 release announcement. The dual credit indicates sole creative authorship of the animated visual work, consistent with her freelance multi-disciplinary practice. The video was released simultaneously with the parent album Adagio on April 4, 2025.