What does Hanna Ögonsten sound lik?
Alt-pop oddness with a splash of Charli XCX.
The review of Hanna Ögonsten – have you seen my mind cause I’ve lost it
I must admit, I purely listened to this initially because of the EP title. I use that phrase often (usually at work) and so I was intrigued as to what Hanna Ögonsten was bringing to the search party. As it happens, Hanna’s second EP is a sharp alt-pop collection of songs for the dance floor which borrow inspiration from a scattergun of other genres.
Taken from a scrapbook of notes akin to a diary, Hanna started looking back over entries from August last year onwards. She noticed a bitter tonal shift and didn’t feel like it was her that had written the notes down. She puts it down to being questioned as a female producer and the exhausting toll it takes so she channelled that energy into this eclectic EP.
Each track has a very different vibe and that plays to Hanna Ögonsten’s strengths as a songwriter. ‘Lost It’ is an immediate favourite as it takes dance floor beats, adds a streak of punk electric guitar and spins a hell of a bassline to drive the music home. Add in Hanna’s layered and processed vocals and you have a smash hit in waiting. There is always a hint of something unusual hiding in the background and on this track, it is the organs hiding in the background. On ‘stupidascoolboys’ is all out quirky with twisted steel drum percussion pattering out a melodic tune over industrial stick percussion for the skipping beat. Over the top, Hanna flicks from sultry spoken word to vocoded choruses. It’s the weirdest piece on the EP but the one that shows how vivid Hanna’s production prowess is.
On the total flipside ‘Big Teeth’ is like a bubblegum pop song from the 90’s mixed with something I’d imagine mid-2000’s Utada Hikaru creating. The gentle reggae beats mixed with bouncy synths and smooth vocals cater to a Europop audience in the best possible way. Often these reggae tracks can feel stilted but ‘Big Teeth’ is smooth like butter. That applies to the closer ‘Kick Off My Shoes’ which borrows from the RnB and synthpop world. This track showcases a minimalist vibe with simple melodies, beats and bass and lets the vocal layering do the heavy lifting.
A fun EP that showcases a well-rounded producer and songwriter who enjoys throwing in some interesting colour to her music, I very much enjoyed Hanna Ögonsten’s work. It feels like a good time to showcase decent Europop with an indie edge since we’re hitting Eurovision season. If you enjoy musicians like Oh Land, you’ll enjoy Hanna Ögonsten too.
Recommended track: Lost It
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Hanna Ögonsten - have you seen my mind cause I've lost it