Swedish singer-songwriter Erik Hassle made a big impression last year with his EP Somebody’s Party, which chronicled the emotional depths of a gnarly breakup with an ex-girlfriend. Standouts “Talk About It,” “Pathetic” and “What Is He Like” found him emotively crooning in his Prince-ly falsetto over wobbly, rafter-scraping beats that hit harder than the average synthpop ballad. It also earned him tour dates with the likes of MØ, Broods and Twin Shadow, as well as a co-writing credit on Shakira and Rihanna’s equally mournful “Can’t Remember To Forget You.”
But for his latest single “No Words,” released Friday (April 10) via Artist Company TEN/Sony/RCA, Hassle picks up the pace to a disco-funk groove that makes it an early contender for Song of The Summer. It suggests Michael Jackson grooving on the illuminated “Billie Jean” dancefloor with Robyn and the Daft Punk robots — after all of them drown their sorrows in a few martinis. Indeed, the song’s deceptively bright single artwork features Hassle shedding a single tear.
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But while the tempo may have accelerated, Hassle reports his love life hasn’t improved much since Somebody’s Party — which will nevertheless make for all more material to mine. “I’m still sad and heartbroken, from another breakup though,” he says. “That just seems to be story of my life. But I’m learning to cope with it in a more positive way. I used to drink and take drugs to feel better, now I can focus on more creative things and feel better from that, and then have a drink. That might reflect in more happy vibes or something.”
The making of “No Words” came about last summer during a trip home to Sweden for Hassle, who was shuttling between trips to his new adopted home of L.A. “I was really in love with a girl but I couldn’t communicate it to her, and I missed my chance there. I knew I wasn’t gonna get her, but I still had hope. The song is about feeling very happy and sad, like dancing and crying.”
With a full-length still coming, Hassle has been popping up on other people’s projects, too, including Gorgon City’s Sirens album and a recent collab with French alt-R&B duo The Picard Brothers. And there’s more coming soon, Hassle teases. “There is a song coming out with me and my friend Rrreymundo that I’m really excited about and I wrote a song with my label mates Icona Pop that is awesome, not sure what’s going to happen with that one though.”