Scott Helman & Blas Cantó - Hang Ups

Stream-buy Hang Ups here (external link)

I'll follow the lads from Spanish boy-band Auryn, but when former member Blas Cantó takes me to Canada to help me find the irrepressible pop styling of one Mr Scott Helman, well that is more than good enough for me. Blas has joined Scott on a remix of the latter's current smash Hang Ups. The song itself is a searing confessional all about the neuroses and insecurities we all bring to a relationship but how, at the heart of that, is just a desire to be with the person we love. Set to a buoyant, shoulder-shimmying groove, the sparse percussion accompaniment is infused with mesmerising electronica as if to replicate the swirling affect of a mind clouded with thoughts. It works well because it means both Scott and Blas can guide the melody with their distinctive voices, imbuing a sense of genuine longing into the vocal delivery. It is a bilingual approach where Scott sings in English, proving himself to be a gifted narrator of his innermost thoughts and feelings; Blas is no less compelling with the Spanish parts demonstrating that you don't always need to understand the words being sung to get a vibrant sense of the emotions in play. When their voices blend together it adds a real sense of camaraderie to the chorus - and that titular riff is an indelible delight. So not only a great pop song, but in a world where people argue that our differences will blight us, Blas and Scott are two fellas determined to show that music can unite us all. Aces.