WHETHAN - ALL IN MY HEAD FEAT GRANDSON

Whethan goes electroclash on "All In My Head" featuring grandson!

WHETHAN - ALL IN MY HEAD FEAT GRANDSON

All kinds of genres have been getting punked up, these past few years. There's the punk/emo/hip-hop hybrid of Post Malone and Lil Peep. There's the stripped down quirkiness of Mitski and Frankie Cosmos. There's the twee punkish indie rock of Girlpool. It's the perfect time to reconsider a punk/electronic music crossover.

Electroclash always seemed like a missed opportunity. While it yielded some cool bands, like Fishcherspooner or Miss Kittin and the Hacker, as well as some bands that went on to greater things, like LCD Soundsystem, it seemed like the movement died before it could truly get its legs. Which is unfortunate, as electronic music with some edge and angst and lots and lots of energy is a match made in heaven.

"All In My Head," the newest single from Whethan is here to set that record straight.

"All In My Head" kicks off with a simple, strobing, syncopated drum beat. It builds and builds and builds, though, until it reaches a breaking point. Monstrous fuzzy bass underpins grandson's low-key vocals, like someone freestyling over a rattling 12". It's surprisingly smooth, while also being rough and punk as hell.

And … it isn't just a electropunk anthem, either.

It's also a perfect indie pop single, clocking in at 2 minutes 30 seconds and crammed to the gills with ideas. You'll want to listen over and over and over and over, while either raving or pogoing. Take your pick.

"All In My Head" isn't just a throwback to electroclash, either. Maybe even more appropriately, it brings to mind other punk-infused electronic music like The Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim, with just a dash of Beck's slacker '90s aesthetic. Maybe it could help bring some of those styles, too, while Whethan's at it?

Whethan's been on a major roll these past few years, collaborating with bigger and bigger names. Even among big names like Charli XCX, grandson is still one of Whethan's strongest collaborators. We Are: The Guard can't wait to hear more from the pair.

J. Simpson occupies the intersection between criticism, creativity, and academia. Based out of Portland, Or., he is the author of Forestpunk, an online journal/brand studying the traces of horror, supernatural, and the occult through music, fashion and culture. He plays in the dreamfolk band Meta-Pinnacle with his partner Lily H. Valentine, with whom he also co-founded Bitstar Productions, a visual arts collective focused on elevating Pop Culture to High Art.