Project Description

WHETHAN

Feat. OH WONDER

“Superlove”

(Single Review)

Reviewer:Vicky Hebbs

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Superlove is alt-pop duo Oh Wonder’s first collaboration with another artist. When I saw the hints dropped on their Facebook page before the song came out, I was super hyped as it is their first release since second album Ultralife debuted last July. It is far more techno than anything they have ever released before, however after the Lil Uzi Vert reworking of their song, Landslide, it is clear Oh Wonder are 100% capable of converting their sound to a more electronic medium.

19-year-old DJ Whethan emerged on the music scene after releasing a Soundcloud remix and has been rising rapidly ever since, producing track High with Dua Lipa for the Fifty Shades Freed soundtrack. He also released huge single Love Gang with Charli XCX last year and has remixed a bunch of songs from artists including Lorde and Bastille.

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Oh Wonder are no strangers to electro-pop, but this collaboration is unique in that the influence of a DJ is something very different for their work.

Superlove features the smooth vocals I’ve come to expect from the Oh Wonder pair, Josephine Vander Gucht and Anthony West. The song starts with a bouncy techno beat and Vander Gucht’s airy vocals that thankfully have not been altered and ruined by autotune as sometimes happens when a singer experiments with a more electronic sound.

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“My Love for You is Superlove.”

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It rises to a pumping dancefloor beat before the chorus drops. I really love that the song seems to have many distinct parts – the verses, then the rising dance section and chorus, followed by a bridge with tripping techno sounds and muted backing vocals.

When she sings “I might be a rebel,” Vander Gucht’s voice has a nice wavering quality and similarly on the final repeats of “superlove” each verse, her phrasing has been manipulated to repeat in a tripping electronic style.  Claps keep time and there is a constant bell-like clanging in the background that gives the song a bouncy tone and keeps the song moving along.

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“I might be the danger, that you never had.”

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Superlove is about the energy and power that comes with experiencing an intense love that makes you feel like you can be anything, push boundaries and perhaps break rules.

This track is certainly a new step in terms of medium for Oh Wonder, but it retains their familiar positive energy, emotive lyrics and rich vocals. I am keen to see this live and to hear it in a live DJ set, just because Whethan brings such a different feel instrumentally to the Oh Wonder sound I am used to.

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Connect with WHETHAN

Facebook | Twitter | Insta | Soundcloud | YouTube | Website

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Connect with OH WONDER

Facebook | Twitter | Insta| YouTube | Website

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