Up-and-coming Oslo, Norway-based indie pop act Hollywood is comprised of a trio of accomplished solo artists and friends — Billie Van, Jonas Alaska and Mikhael Paskalev. And while each individual member act has seen a fair share of success in their native Norway, they’ve managed to contribute to each other’s recorded output. Their newest collaboration together find the trio further blurring the boundaries between each other’s individual work — and discovering a bolder, more playful approach to their songwriting.
The trio’s self-produced full-length debut Close to You was released today, and the album which was written and recorded over a two year period is reportedly finding the trio’s sound morphing and twisting between several different styles of songwriting and production in a cohesive way — while being generally inspired by 80s and 90s pop. “Parachute,” Close to You‘s latest single is a slow-burning and atmospheric bit of synth pop featuring twinkling keys, achingly tender vocals expressing longing and desire with an aching vulnerability, a soaring hook and a swaggering Timbaland-inspired bridge. Interestingly, the trio mesh slick production, forward-thinking and ambitious songwriting with a heartbreaking earnestness that ensures that the material isn’t purely seen as homage to its influences.
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