A new single and video release from Hooked Like Helen delivers a message that is pretty damn relatable and it comes in the form of a righteous and edgy rock banger that involves these awesome textures that layer a top each other and create this hard hitting atmosphere between keys, synths, guitars, and these vocals that are just attitude riddled and soulful.
"It Doesn't Look So Good For You Now" is completely understandable from anyone that's been in a relationship where they feel like they tried and tried to be the person that they're companion wanted them to be and now they're tired of it.
This is a truck about someone who's had just about enough and Is standing tall and stepping away.
The cool thing about that is, that it's so insanely relatable that it works for many situations or just about any kind of relationship that resembles this situation.
This track has a way of feeling like a sucker punch to the gut but in the best ways you can think of.
It's got so much sonic drive to it but it's dynamically balanced super well also.
There are several different key and synth textures and sounds going on throughout the track and I feel like in the beginning of it all the lead vocalist may have written this with just herself and those keys because it feels like that.
One of the things that grabs you with this track is its Monumental and electric energy. In some ways, it feels like the song was recorded live on the floor to an extent and everyone involved was just feeding off of each other's energies the entire time.
Even if I'm wrong about the whole live on the floor thing, it still makes you want to see them perform it live simply because if this kind of energy is captured on record so damn well then seeing them live must be amazing.
Everyone in the band has a way of complimenting each other from the bass tones to the guitar riffs, the vocals, keys, and the drumming as well. Everything fits together super well and each element of the song drives the other.
This song has an amazing attitude to it and it's quickly addictive, and the whole song has a way of wrapping itself around you and keeping you right where it wants to.
This was a bright but edgy alternative rock banger that takes that hard-hitting and classic alt-rock soundscape and bends it by combining it with these powerful and soulful vocals that at times have layers of lush harmonies that fill any empty space and give the song this full-bodied feel.
I love that this track came from someplace real. it makes everything so authentic because it's got a little bit of emotional backbone to it and drive that helps the song reach a unique level.
I'm glad they didn't make this a ballad, which they certainly could have.
That little level of aggression that it portrays is a big part of the emotion that's involved with the song's premise.
I'm also really digging those textures of keys because they also have a sort of edginess to them along with providing another main instrument rhythmically that lets the song kind of feel expansive while still hitting hard.
The guitar riff is outstanding and helps the track in terms of that same aggression.
As I said before, all of these elements, the instruments and the performances actually do complement each other and work together to drive the song through the roof.
What's even better is the track's accompanying music video which shows their love for classic 90s style grunge and at-rock.
The video itself does an amazing job of showcasing the dance presence even more so and I think that it adds to the character of not just a singer but the whole band so it fits the song perfectly.
With the release of such a killer single, we had to have a sit down with the band to find out where this actually did come from and maybe what's happening next for them.
Here's what happened.
Buzz Slayers: Hello! and thanks for taking some time! First off, "It Doesn't Look So Good for You Now" was a killer track that had a great edginess and a bit of a classic 90's alt-pop rock feel! Where did this track come from?
Thank you so much for the interview opportunity! And thanks for the kind words on the new song. :) “It Doesn’t Look So Good For You Now” is one of those songs that we wrote when we needed to conjure up a new emotion. Sometimes we write songs that are an exact reflection of where we’re at emotionally at that given time, sometimes we write songs to process what we’re witnessing or empathizing with in other people’s lives and stories, and sometimes we write songs to comfort ourselves and shift the headspace to something better when we’re feeling low. “IDLSGFYN” is an example of the last of these. We had just been brutally ripped apart musically by someone who we thought was in the music industry, and rather than wallow in self-pity (which we had already done through some other new songs haha), we decided to write a song for the future. “It Doesn’t Look So Good For You Now” comes from the point of view of having risen up past the haters. It’s a quick look back over the shoulder at the ones who doubted you and held you down. It’s a middle finger to those who wanted to see you fail but now have to watch you flourish and live your best life. The beauty of it is that since writing the song, we seem to have manifested these sentiments into reality, and it feels SO good.
Buzz Slayers: Is this track part of an upcoming album or EP? What's coming up next for this project?
YES! This track is the 3rd single off of our forthcoming EP, “Promise Me You’ll Run” which will drop on October 4th. We’re also working on a follow up EP because we’ve got SO much music that we need to get out to the people haha.
Buzz Slayers: Are you touring or playing live right now?
Ideally, we’ll be touring in late fall after the EP drops. For the time being, we’ve got 2 shows coming up in Wisconsin with Aranda on September 20th and 21st. We’re super excited to play with those guys!
Buzz Slayers: Do you record your stuff in a big studio or is it a home set up?
It’s kind of a hybrid. We write and demo everything in our home studio, and we lay down the final vocals, bass, synths, and keys at home as well. We inherited a small Pro Tools set up with an Apollo Twin and two KRK speakers from Jon’s uncle Ben who was an audio engineer in Seattle before he passed away. We collaborate with producers who also happen to be world class guitarists, and they track their parts remotely. Live drums are also tracked remotely in bigger studios, and then we pull everything together and get it mixed in a 3rd location, another home studio. This particular track was co-produced by myself and K Thrash (Jelly Roll, Blink-182), and mixed/mastered by Chris Collier (Korn).
Buzz Slayers: The music video was awesome! I love the whole fish eye camera approach! Even more 90's! Plus it was very colorful and vibrant like the song! Did the video come out how you expected?
Thank you so much!! We love the 90’s comparison because that’s 100% what we were going for with the song and the vid, and kind of our whole aesthetic overall. The fisheye approach was our friend and cinematographer/director Josh Loney’s idea. He had this crazy wide circular lens and wanted to try this concept with a gimbal rotating around at 360 degrees. We thought it was a super cool idea because the song refers to “The Upside Down” (little nerdy Stranger Things ref haha) and the shots were literally spinning around in all directions including upside down. It was also helpful that all of this could be shot during our band rehearsal at our local historic - and most likely haunted - Town Hall. So, it was efficient AND vibey haha.
The vid actually needed some tweaking before it was done. We were originally going to make it a lyric video, but the lyrics flying around the circle in the center of the frame ended up being a distraction from the actual footage. We’ll probably end up with some alternate versions of the video available on our VIP page, which is free to join at hookedlikehelen.com/vip
Buzz Slayers:You guys are a duo, correct? So how did this all come together? How did you meet and what made you start playing music together?
We are officially a duo, yes. Mostly out of necessity. Where we live in the woods of Ohio, there are lots of very talented musicians, but not many who are willing to sacrifice everything and throw their lives away for rock and roll haha. So as Jon and I got more serious about the project and it became more and more all-consuming, it made the most sense to keep it just the two of us as official members of HLH.
Jon and I met when we were in a different band in LA, a 7-piece rock group called Red Circle Underground. He and I became a “thing” romantically after about a year of being in the band together, and when we discovered that we were gonna have a baby, we bid farewell to the LA band and moved to Ohio where Jon is from originally. Even as new parents in a new state, newly sober, etc, we never stopped creating music, and we started Hooked Like Helen within weeks of relocating.
Buzz Slayers: I am certainly hearing some heavier alt rock, grunge, indie-rock and more in this track Who are your biggest influences musically?
We have a super wide range of musical influences. I was raised on Prince, Nirvana, Metallica, Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey, Alanis Morissette, Jewel, etc. Jon grew up listening to Guns N’ Roses, Green Day, 2Pac, My Chemical Romance, Korn, and Rage Against The Machine. We’ve combined our early influences with other inspirations like Queen, Muse, Twenty One Pilots, Tori Amos and No Doubt to create a hot mess kaleidoscope of a sound that can’t be replicated haha.
Buzz Slayers: Who is in your headphones right now?
We’re really digging Hot Milk, the new Blink-182, Fallout Boy’s new album, the new Green Day release, Holy Wars, The Last Dinner Party…
Buzz Slayers: Before we go, what would you like to express to fans of the music?
We’d like to express the biggest THANK YOU to our fans. From the bottom of our hearts. We like to say that we don’t have “quantity” fans, we have “quality” fans; our listeners are genuine people, kindred spirits, kind-hearted, sensitive souls who feel us and understand us. We commiserate, we lean on each other, we cope together in this sometimes-ugly world. We are so grateful for the love and support we receive from our loyal fans, and we hope to always be giving them what they need in return.
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