Abby London – Hysteria (2022)
Through her previous releases, Abby London has packed a lot of emotion into her music from the pain of loss to the negative side of relationships. With her new single ‘Hysteria’, she is looking beyond the haze that chaotic emotions can cause. Inspired by the predictability of the media and the mass hysteria they seem to rely on, she looks to expand our minds and hearts to see beyond the surface and into the heart of the matters at hand.
The alternative pop ballad uses some unique stylings to release frustration at the mainstream media and those who follow without question. Inspiring all of us to think for ourselves and look beyond the emotional reaction news is designed to invoke, the single is a wonderful challenge to the status quo. With a swing of electronic and organic instrumentation, the single also challenges some musical traditions.
The deep beats that vibrate through the opening of ‘Hysteria’ open the rather unique melodic movement. These beats are overtaken by a lighter piano line that slowly moves you into an almost retro synth flow. It is a really wonderfully different melody that flows in ways you are not expecting, but this only enhances your enjoyment of it. At times, the music has an almost funfair feeling to it, like you are caught in a dreamscape circus that you can’t quite get out of. As the single progresses, the dreaminess of the single weaves into a feeling of surrealism that slowly rises up on a rich swell. This all drops for a true circus vibe, complete with kazoo and jumping notes that dance from one foot to another. The unexpected swing of this moment is stunning in its execution and beautifully moves back into the dreaminess of the main melodic flow.
While the melody takes some unique twists and turns, London’s vocals call out to you across the top of the music. She opens her performance with a very important question that lays the foundation for the contemplations of the single. The slightly hazy vocal delivery hovers over you, while the lyrics turn your attention to the emotions being churned up by the mainstream media. Through the lyrics, she considers what the news has to tell us before considering pulling back the curtain and looking behind the emotional haze. Her performance is really powerful as it reaches out toward the curtain, only to drop into the circus vibes of the melody. At this point, her performance gets a really bouncy vibe that flows back into the question that opened the single.
Challenging both musical conventions and emotions churned up by the media, Abby London looks at pulling back the curtains and pushing past the haze of emotions in ‘Hysteria’. A stunningly unique single, the melody keeps you guessing about what will happen while the vocals leave you with a lot to think about. The interplay between the floating vocal delivery and the almost dreamy melody forms the haze of emotion that you push through, only to fall into a surreal circus.
Find out more about Abby London on her website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.
