Single Review: The Ghost of Helags - 'Wildest Dreams'

It is pretty much a musical rule of thumb that female-fronted Scandinavian music cannot be anything other than overwhelmingly ethereal and life-affirming.

Having released their debut EP 'Shibuya' in March of this year, Scandinavian duo The Ghosts of Helags have wasted little time in furthering their electronica-infused offerings with ‘Wildest Dreams’, the first of two A-side single releases.

As a standalone track, it’s almost as if ‘Wildest Dreams’ consist of three different Euro-pop style elements centred around those beautifully-delivered vocal lines. The opening verses sees a series of sampled vocals blended together to underpin the main melody, easing in the listener with pure pop sensibilities. While threatening to take off, the track instead pulls back somewhat into a slow-burning middle section of minor chord melancholy and introspect. Indeed, this change acts as the perfect foil to the wash of trace-esque electronica and, yes, more elegant vocals, that sweeps in to great effect, building gracefully to conclusion without threatening to overly embellish.

Fans of this particular genre will be sure to find much to enjoy. Indeed, 'Shibuya' is also well worth a listen (see for example opening track ‘The Universe and Mankind’ as how to do emotive, lushly-produced pop to near perfection). ‘Wildest Dreams’ is available now to stream. While it’s early days for The Ghosts of Helags, there’s a real sense of class here. WTHBlows looks forward to the next instalment.

Words of DS_Convertible