Last year, we gave some love to Scott Helman’s excellent pop record, Nonsuch Park (sa), the name being a tribute to his grandfather and his British roots, but it’s his home country of Canada where the artist really shines. With three studio albums down, the Toronto-based artist has a loyal following as proved by his impressive streaming numbers, but even if you’re a newcomer to his work, you’ll probably be tempted to give his tracks multiple listens.
Let’s take new release ‘Pretty’ as an example. It’s a moreish and refreshing bite of electronic and pop influenced songwriting. One reason we gave it a few listens is down to the subtlety and originality of his lyrics, with lines like, “firefly in a blue glass bottle, whipped cream coming out the nozzle, there’s an elegance at the root of everything that you,” calling up admiration, sexual longing, excitement and even a bit of envy.
Most of all, we get a sense of fearlessness from Scott Helman. He isn’t afraid to share all manner of emotions, to change the way his music sounds or to experiment with his style. Speaking about the process behind ‘Pretty’, he shares:
“This song was a big step for me in exploration and limits. I wanted to take myself as far as I could down the line of ‘uncomfortable’ while still maintaining what feels like me. Ultimately, I thought it was such a special thought – the idea that someone can be so beautiful that you just want a bit of them to become part of you. In that thought, there is so much beauty and humour – the transcendence of traditional gender roles, the flirt, the strangeness. That’s what excited me about our initial demo, and what continues to excite me now.”
He’s excited, we’re excited and you should be excited too, just watch or listen to ‘Pretty’ to find out why.
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