There’s no shortage of musicians and artists of all descriptions of who have come from all over the world to make their home in Berlin, at least for a time. Bowie’s late 1970s Berlin trilogy (Low, Heroes and Lodger) still stands as some of his best and most radical work decades later. He bought Iggy Pop with him and made Mr. Osterberg’s The Idiot and Lust For Life. Nick Cave decamped there in the 1980s, fed up with miserable ol’ London town. And U2 decamped here to make their best album Achtung Baby.

Another person who has moved from her home to Berlin to make music is Australian Sophia Exiner. Under the name Phia, she uses the Kalimba to make ‘Alternative pop.’ Comparisons will inevitably drawn to the likes of Feist and Bjork, but there are more than enough exciting and original ideasgoing on in her music to stand out on her own.

Here is her latest single ‘Do You Ever?’ which is taken from her debut album, due out in 2014. You can buy it over at her bandcamp. It’s one of the most haunting things I have heard this year.

In fact, on the basis of what I hear from on her Soundcloud page, she could well be one of the stars from 2014. Let’s make it happen.

This is her cover of Mariah Carey’s ‘Always Be My Baby.’

Another cover she has taken on is MIA’s ‘Paper Planes.’ How does the song work without the sample from The Clash’s ‘Straight To Hell? Very well.

She also lent her vocals to EdwardFrancis’ ‘This City.’