Hanne Mjøen – Strangers

“And THEN IT BANGS.”

Tim: Remember how we all got incredibly excited by the concept of Robyn releasing a new album last year?

Tom: Well, I remember you getting incredibly excited, sure.

Tim: …and then she brought us Honey, and it was largely garbage, because nothing nice ever happens to us in the world right now? Well, imagine if we lived in a lighter timeline, and that instead it had been full of tracks like this.

Tim: I mean, FLIPPING HECK that’s a beautiful chorus, isn’t it?

Tom: First chorus, I didn’t really think much of it. In fact, I got distracted by a phone notification. A minute or so later I realised that I was quietly tapping my feet and nodding along. By my standards, that’s a ringing endorsement.

Tim: It reminds me, in particular, of You & I, a song that seven years on is still one of my favourites we’ve ever featured here just because it’s so light, jaunty and upbeat while still being a great electropop number. And this song is the same. Sure, it’s a bit lower to start with, but OOOH when that pre-chorus comes along there’s a sense of ‘huh, what’s all this then?’, we get that brief solo piano bit and THEN IT BANGS, and ALL IS GOOD.

Tom: I can see why you compared it to Robyn. It’s not quite reached the heights of Dancing On My Own, but then, what can?

Tim: Seriously, Robyn, would this have been so hard?