Tove Lo teams up with Finneas for two new singles
The release of Tove Lo’s fourth album Sunshine Kitty (including the single ‘Glad He’s Gone’ that made it on our list of best singles and best videos of last year) is not even four months ago yet, but the Swedish pop star is already starting a next chapter. Album cycles as we used to know them in the pop industry do not really exist anymore and Tove and her team have released as they pleased from the get go. So why release another single from an album that is already on streaming services when you are sitting on two tracks produced by Finneas, the brother of Billie Eilish who produced all of his sisters hits? Tove decided to drop ‘Bikini Porn’ and ‘Passion and Pain Taste the Same When I’m Weak’ at the same time.

Let’s start by talking about ‘Bikini Porn’, produced by Finneas, A Strut and Jack & Coke. The title is typical Tove Lo, who brought us ‘Disco Tits’ and ‘Lady Wood’ before. The track itself starts out with an ear-catching minimal production, which gets richer as the song unfolds itself. The bridge towards the chorus is Tove Lo at her best: an impeccable melody, sassy and seductive lyrics and her vocals which exude personality. The only thing I would change here is the sudden end to the song, as it cuts the build up and it could have easily continued for another minute.

‘Passion and Pain Taste the Same When I’m Weak’ finds itself all the way on the other side of the Tove Lo spectrum. It is one of the most stripped back and bare affairs of her career. She wrote the poetic ballad together with just Finneas, who did the production of the tune on his own. He manages to convey the openness and vulnerability that her lyrics are known for into a rich production, that gives the tune even more depth. It is not necessarily catchy on first or second listen, but it successfully sets a mood.

These two Tove Lo singles still sound very much like her. You can tell how Finneas respected her sound, but put his own little twist on it. An exciting collaboration!