Queer, Art Rock ensemble, Zara blends avant-rock genres with cinematic and symphonic sensibilities. Zara’s music “engulfs listeners in a whirlpool of emotion, enveloped by a dark, epic, and energetic ambiances, blending influences from grunge, post-rock, baroque-pop, and other alternative genres, embodying the tumult of internal and external chaos through its evocative lyrics and captivating arrangements.” Zara was founded by Seattle-based musician, filmmaker, and visual artist Max Zara Bernstein (she/they). 

Zara released its first full length album Unmasking Music on September 12th, 2025. Unmasking Music is a fearless exploration of the beautiful, terrifying, disorienting, and overwhelming experience of moving through gender transition. With soaring symphonic textures, raw lyrical intensity, and moments of both quiet introspection and symphonic crescendo, the album captures a deeply human metamorphosis.

Zara is currently hard at work on its second full-length album, which is being developed as a concept album, a theatricalized live performance, as well as an experimental film production. They are currently scheduled to begin tracking the next record at Studio X in November of 2026, with hopes for a spring 2027 release. Zara has also been awarded a production residency at B2 Center for Media, Arts, and Performance where they will complete work on the integration of lights, sound and video designs to support the live performance of the new album in March 2027. Zara has begun work on this production in collaboration with lighting designer Tess Skye, clothing designer Katrina Hess, sound designer Jacob Cona, photographer and darkroom chemist Dakota Seaborn, and game developer Brooklyn Littell.