dān dān – end of august (hand-pulled noodles) (2025)
Celebrating life in its playfulness and profoundness, singer-songwriter Danielle Hao-Aickin reflects on identity and culture with poetic lyricism and moving melodies. Performing under the moniker dān dān, she steps away from the pop duo, Ersha Island, sauntering through the realms of pop, folk and R&B. We came across the New Zealand-based musician a little while back with her 2024 single, ‘pressure cooker’. Join us as we catch our breath, close our eyes, and take a head-first dive into her new single, ‘end of august (hand-pulled noodles)’.
Following her well-received debut song, ‘pressure cooker’, dān dān’s sophomore single – if you exclude the acoustic version of ‘pressure cooker’ released earlier this year – continues to lean strongly toward folk-pop sounds, yet inserts a slight R&B vibe in the rich vocals. Moreover, ‘end of august (hand-pulled noodles)’ seemingly presents a softer, more subdued sound as compared to the debut track.
Produced and mixed by Dan Martin, with mastering by Chris Chetland, the new single brims with wistful, multi-coloured lights, like seeing fairies dance across a pool of water. Delicate and fragile, but with robust confidence and strength, ‘end of august (hand-pooled noodles)’ simultaneously sends tingles across your skin while remaining anchored in the swirling sound. Moreover, the duality exudes in an intricate combination of free-falling and classical structure with dān dān’s piano and her sister, Tee Hao-Aickin, on strings. Both showcase their classical training, but dān dān’s vocals reach out with innocent whimsy.
Melodically, ‘end of august (hand-pulled noodles)’ is a simplistic sonic wave of youthful playfulness; however, lyrically, there is greater weight with profound sentiment. dān dān explains:
“’end of august (hand-pulled noodles)’ is about the feeling of knowing something’s ending before it actually does, and being okay with that. It’s about turning what could be bitter into something tender, something sweet, something worth savouring, even as you watch it inevitably slip away.”
In addition to the single, dān dān released an official music video for ‘end of august (hand-pulled noodles)’. You can view the video below and/or on her YouTube channel.
Find out more about dān dān on on her Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.
Listen to more folk-pop on The Other Side Reviews Folk Pop playlist:
