The dawn of a new era for any sort of scene and/or genre has historically been marked by two or more like-minded artists coming together to cement it in stone. These events are certainly rare, but absolutely fascinating to observe as they occur. But even with that being said, no one can truly emphasize the magnitude of an event like this happening to a genre as all-encompassing as the grander state of pop music as a whole.
Believe it or not, that event is beginning to take shape before our very eyes; and who better to fully realize this moment than pop music’s two faces of the future in glaive and ericdoa. These two have fostered a relationship that begins at just being genuine friends by themselves, and ends with the two coming together to shift the paradigm of pop music moving into the future. It is a once-in-a-lifetime type of chemistry, and one that without question should be noted as being as monumental as it is.
Right as these two were placed on the cover of Spotify’s wholly influential hyperpop playlist, they dropped a collaborative single entitled “cloak n dagger” along with an accompanying video. This moment represents a true changing of the guard as far as mainstream pop music is concerned, as the greater world is finally getting both a full look and listen to the coming household names of music moving into the future.
But even still, the music itself is what speaks the most volumes here, and what a track they had in store for this occasion. This single is a magnificent spectacle of a pop offering — channeling each and every single facet of what makes these two and the rest of the figures involved with its construction so unbelievably special.
The quartet of Glasear, Kimj, Whethan, and Zac Greer flaunt their unmistakable pop prowess via their production efforts on this track by itself. Laced with all the sonic character in the world, this instrumental is fittingly momentous for the moment it was meant to convey. The opening synth leads are nothing short of awe-inspiring and magnetic, and the further shift into these rapid percussion sections and their own gripping synth riffs work to make this beat far more than a simple setting for the two performers; it is an experience within itself. There are no better approaches to making pop music sound this important and memorable than what these four were able to come through with.
As is always the case with 16-year-old phenom glaive, his performance here is just as empathic and passionate as any other trip. His untapped gift of songwriting is perhaps at one of its highest peaks yet here, setting up a tale of lost trust and bewilderment as the instrumental builds and builds towards its climactic chorus in which glaive lays out his unbridled thoughts in a beautifully intense moment.
The dust settles a bit for ericdoa to enter in the fray — delivering a verse that is far more sentimentally driven than its predecessor. He contrasts the angst-induced passages that glaive had brought on his own with one that seems to arise from a much more down to earth perspective of the narrative this track presents. It is a fitting approach to take for the soothing and glistening vocals that Eric delivers on his end, again just setting up another emphatic chorus from glaive to end things off.
These two were meant to change the music world together, and tracks like this are vivid reflections of that fact in full effect. With a collaborative EP on the way from these two, expect more and more of these types of experiences to become the norm as each day passes. The new normal is beginning to take shape, and these two are just getting started on paving their own influential lane towards that conclusion.