For Oslo-based Hellebaby, going solo meant creating space for the ideas that didn’t need the band’s buy-in.
Having previously been the front woman of Jadudah, Feber and High Heeled Giants Helle Larsen is now stepping into more personal territory with her debut single Replica Gun out now via Oh So Quiet.
Written straight after the second therapy session the song is all about those uncomfortable realisations seeping into conversation.
It’s restless art-pop production, capturing the rush of thought with a free-form riff, a TAL Juno plug-in and chorused vocals. Larsen and long time collaborator Patrick Jaklin were able to capture that moment.
That openness is reflected in her lyrics too with mental health, family trauma and the realities of adult life all present alongside a dry sense of humour. She can be quite critical of the life she’d envisaged for herself and still have a punchline in her tiny apartment in Oslo.
In this FM PRO Quickfire 5, Hellebaby talks about creative freedom, humour as a coping mechanism, and how a riff she initially thought was rubbish became the seed of Replica Gun.
I actually thought the riff was quite stupid at the time, but we just ended up rolling with it.
Q1. After fronting Jadudah, Feber and High Heeled Giants, what did you want to permit yourself to do differently as Hellebaby?
While I love all my projects equally, bands and collaborations are sort of a result of beautiful compromises. With Hellebaby I could focus on creating something closer to what I listen to, create even more personal lyrics and not feel like we have to put the music in a box that fits a certain sound.
Q2. Replica Gun captures the uncomfortable realisations after a second therapy session. What made that moment the starting point for your debut single?
For me, Replica Gun is a way of explaining the people around me how I have been and actually am feeling, but also a way to sort out my own thoughts after these realisations. We almost immediately went to the studio after the therapy session and the song wrote itself in about five minutes, and looking back at it it was almost like me trying to express this feeling to my co-producer Patrick who is also one of my closest friends.
Q3. Your songs make room for dry humour alongside difficult subjects. How do you decide when humour helps you say something honestly?
I don’t to be honest, and it’s actually kind of a problem. People tell me that sometimes I joke too much about dark and serious subjects, but it’s just my way of coping I guess. I just don’t like taking life too seriously, and shit happens to all of us so why not just have a laugh about it?
Small disclaimer: I’m actually working on this in therapy. They are trying to tell me that it’s not always such a good thing. Whoopsie.
Q4. The project speaks to anyone who expected adulthood to come with instructions. Which expectation about having life figured out have you had to let go of?
Just about everything. Maybe I was just naïve, or maybe grown ups used to be better at creating illusions of having everything figured out. I thought I was going to live in a house, put up the laundry in a big, idyllic garden, never worry about money and have a couple of kids by now.
Then I realised life is more fun with variety, like-minded people, lots of travelling, and music. And I really love my small apartment in Oslo; that way, there is less to clean (yes, that’s also a metaphor).
Q5. FM PRO TECH: Working with Patrick Jaklin, which production tool or recording technique helped give Replica Gun its restless, stream-of-consciousness vibe?
We were sort of stuck, and I was annoyed. So I just started playing the riff saying something like “see? It’s not that hard to make music”. I actually thought the riff was quite stupid at the time, but we just ended up rolling with it.
We thought a quirky Juno sound would fit well, but instead of using a real one we pulled up the TAL Juno plug-in that Patrick bought on sale for about €20 many years ago. From there everything is kind of a blur. The vocals do not have any overdubs or anything like that, but a bit of chorus to make it kind of spacey and suit the stream of consciousness vibe.
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