ERIK HASSLE’s jams are way more pleasureable than HURTFUL /// The Burning Ear

it’s a fool’s fate counting mistakes i made

Apologies in advance to any Swedish readers ’cause Erik Hassle is full blown over there and they have been listening to “Hurtful” for 15 months now. Dude even won “Newcomer of the Year 2009″ at a recent event called the P3 Guld Gala. Anwway, the point is that “Hurtful” is about as excellent and infectious as sugary slick pop can get and it is currently my jam of choice for getting in touch with my inner romantic. The jam comes from a 2009 album our ginger-haired newcomer named after his daily hairstyling routine (see cover at right). However, things just got more tangled because Erik just dropped a UK version of that album with a few tracks re-produced/changed. That album is called Pieces and came out today. I only have last year’s version, Hassle, but have been listening to it a bunch this past weekend and digging it quite a bit. If you can get down with some Top 40 level production and catchy-as-shit soulful pop then this is your album. Every track is impeccably crafted and packs just enough sing-in-the-shower power to keep my inner teenage girl very happy. That is very much a compliment. (She doesn’t get much attention.) “Hurtful” too much of a love ballad for you? Get on “Don’t Bring Flowers” (below) and ride that little funk train straight to jams-ville. I’l be there. We can read more about Mr. Hassle and check out come sweet covers he did recently. Or we can talk about which one of these tracks would go best on a mix-tape for a girlfriend. I’ll vote for “Feels Like The First Time” but you’ll say “Isn’t It Obvious.” We’ll laugh. Good times.

♫ Erik Hassle – Don’t Bring Flowers After I’m Dead

If you are down with these jams then grab Pieces. Or Hassle. Whatever. They seem nearly identical so whatever you can get your mitts on should have you singing along through the week.

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