Alt-Pop duo Hooked Like Helen will be sharing their new single ‘Beautiful World’ on 17th May, lifted from their upcoming EP, Tragedy Of Physics set for release on the 31st May via Stipp Manor Music. Co-produced alongside Grammy award-winning mixer, engineer and producer Isha Erskine (Ziggy Marley, Maroon 5, Black Eyed Peas) the EP also features vocals by NBC’s The Voice contestant, Emily Keener. Their recent singles ‘No Turning Back’ and ‘Tear This Place Apart’ were premiered by tastemaker publications Clash Magazine and The Line Of Best Fit respectively.
‘No Turning Back’ was used as the soundtrack in the trailer for the film High Strung: Free Dance, set to hit international theatres this year. ‘Liar’, also lifted from the EP, won acclamation by winning the Indi.com songwriting contest and has been snapped up for use in a dance scene choreographed by So You Think You Can Dance’s Tyce Diorio for High Strung: Free Dance. The soundtrack for the film includes 3 Hooked Like Helen songs and 2 tracks co-written by Hooked Like Helen’s Nikki Stipp. Previous tracks ‘Get Well’, ‘Concrete Tub’, and ‘Surface Break’ were placed on MTV’s Unlocking The Truth docu-series alongside its official Spotify Playlist, and their track ‘Stable’ was placed in a promo video for the television show Nashville.
Husband-and-wife duo, Nikki and Jonathan Stipp, craft their sound in a humble home studio in the woods, just outside of Cleveland, Ohio. Nikki’s affinity for artists such as Prince, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Carol King, Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Halsey, Rihanna, and the Weeknd, contrasts Jon’s love for rock such as Guns and Roses, The Eagles, Steely Dan, Green Day, Rage Against The Machine, 2pac, Twenty One Pilots, Chris Stapleton. Instead of working in opposition, this fusion of pop, rock, and R&B as well as the merging of classic and current songwriting structures, are defining attributes to Hooked Like Helen’s sound. The appealing combination of Nikki’s vocals paired with the balance between whimsy, sensitivity and fun, conjures images of Ellie Goulding meets Of Monsters and Men.
In terms of pure power-pop delight, ‘Beautiful World’ is hard to beat – it’s one of those tracks that taps directly into your musical pleasure centre and jabs at the best bits. It is everything that pop music should be: eloquent, spirited, with an infusion of freshness.
Nikki and Jon give their insight on the track: “’Beautiful World‘ came about during a time of sad reflection on the state of society. We wrote this song as a way to combat our feelings of discontent, as if the upbeat groove and flying synths could convince us that things aren’t as bad as they seem. Music is our medicine and our voice, and we hope that Beautiful World conveys the sense that although there is much to mourn, there is much to celebrate if we take action to be a part of the healing.”
Tragedy Of Physics EP Tracklist:
1. Tear This Place Apart
2. No Turning Back
3. Liar
4. Beautiful World
5. It Goes On (featuring Emily Keener)