Late Hala – Never Had a Good Dream (2022)
With their latest single ‘Never Had a Good Dream’, Late Hala leave the message of the track open to interpretation. Using a dreamy and nostalgic vibe, he traverses the dreamworld, tapping into soft clouds of happiness and haunting nightmarish darkness. With a lot going on in the melody, the soaring vocals rise like something from another dimension, to leave you with a tingle of emotion that could be good or bad, depending on how you take it.
Using a swirl of psychedelia, he washes the dreamscape with soft dream pop before driving into the depths of indie rock for triumph or melancholy. The blend of sound in this track continues the combination of soft vocals, atmospheric instrumentation and retro synths that have packed his previous releases. A multi-instrumentalist, composer and songwriter, Late Hala does everything in this track except for the drums which are provided by Mathias Madsen.
There is a dramatic feeling to the piano opening of ‘Never Had a Good Dream’ that is washed with a hazy and slightly dreamy electronic tone. It is a really powerful opening that grabs your attention and instantly pulls you into the dream world of the track. The softness of the higher levels creates a floating feeling of soft clouds and good dreams, but there is something resting in the lower levels that sharpens the soundscape. This lurking darkness is constantly in your peripherals, only to skitter away if you turn to look at it. This creates a rather intense feeling that the hazier touches try to soothe. The arrangement of the melody is stunning and beautifully nuanced with dreamy tones dancing through the grasping fingers of a potential nightmare. As the single comes to a close, the music gently puts you down, allowing you to carefully wake from the dreamscape Late Hala has created.
It is not only the melody that brings the nuance of dreams and nightmares to life. Late Hala’s vocals have a heavy sigh to them as he enters the single. There is a touch of yearning to his performance before it slides into the reflections of the chorus. The female backing vocals call out across the dreamscape like light bouncing off clouds as they drift across a clear blue sky. While the melody brings an interplay of dreams and nightmares, the vocals are a delicate dance of melancholy, whimsical memories and longing. As the main and backing vocals merge, they create an unstoppable movement through the pastel dreamscape that you can’t help but move with.
Soft, delicate, melancholic and haunting, ‘Never Had a Good Dream’ by Late Hala is a beautifully nuanced single, packed with emotion and open to interpretation. Both the melody and vocals play light against dark in their own way. The softness of the synths meets a creeping darkness in the lower levels, while the vocal lines bring a splash of wistfulness and melancholy.
Find out more about Late Hala on his Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
