In a house in the woods about 40 miles west of Cleveland, Hooked Like Helen began as the musical brainstorms of husband-and-wife, Jon and Nikki Stipp. Experimental home recordings quickly developed into an alt-pop vision; within a year of the project’s inception, Nikki and Jon had shaped a new sound that reflected their truth and their influences in a seamless blend of organic and electronic production. The band’s 2019 five song EP, Tragedy Of Physics, co- produced by Nikki and long-time friend and collaborator, Grammy-winning Isha Erskine, garnered international attention: The music video for the angsty-beautiful piano ballad ‘Liar’ was premiered on Radio Disney platforms and was released Oct 4th as part of the soundtrack for the movie High Strung: Free Dance starring Thomas Doherty (Disney’s Descendants 2 and 3). ‘Liar’ is featured prominently in a ballet dance sequence in the film, choreographed by Tyce Diorio (So You Think You Can Dance, Taylor Swift’s ‘ME!’) and recently received an Honorable Mention for the prestigious 2019 International Songwriting Competition in two categories. The ISC’s panel of judges included Coldplay, Dua Lipa, Tom Waits, Bastille and other highly respected industry professionals. Track 2 from the Tragedy Of Physics EP, ‘No Turning Back’ premiered on CLASH Magazine who praised it as “a soaring, vastly uplifting piece of bouncy, addictive alt-pop”. The song was then used in the official movie trailer for High Strung: Free Dance, making it the 4th song in total that Nikki and Jon wrote or co-wrote to be included on the film’s soundtrack. The band’s single ‘Tear This Place Apart’ premiered on the highly influential UK-based The Line Of Best Fit and received rave reviews from the publication. Hooked Like Helen entered 2020 with a fresh set of musical placements in the wildly popular Netflix docu- series, Cheer. Nikki custom composed tracks for 9 scenes in 4 of the 6 episodes that aired in January and garnered tweets of approval from Reese Witherspoon, Chrissy Teigen, Amy Schumer, Gabrielle Union, and many more. The band is no stranger to scoring music for docu- series’; previously, Hooked Like Helen tracks ‘Get Well’, ‘Surface Break’, and ‘Concrete Tub’ were placed on MTV’s Unlocking The Truth and were included in the show’s official Spotify playlist. Hooked Like Helen is now preparing a new EP for release in Summer 2020 and is slated to perform shows in L.A. and the Ohio area. Hooked Like Helen played a Livestream show from the historic 1500 seat Sandusky State Theatre on May 20th, broadcast to local fans via the Sandusky Register. The duo’s sound embodies a unique vein of pop music; Nikki’s haunting, layered harmonies and lush vocal arrangements create a surreal atmosphere of simultaneous melancholy and hope, dissonance and resolve. Dark lyrical themes of existential pondering provide an eerie contrast to HLH’s sonic sensibilities in a timeless, ageless context in which melody reigns supreme. Piano hooks, intricate, rhythmic bass lines, and epic, driving drums carry the songs of Hooked Like Helen through a slightly sad world view, always with a groove and a constant sense of Pop.
Mike Wagner is a 30+ year broadcasting veteran interviewing the most interesting guests from celebrities, actors, singers, writers to the most interesting people today! Mike is currently a weekend host on KFYR radio in Bismarck, North Dakota playing the greatest songs of all time every Saturday from 6-10a and Sundays from 2-6p Central time. Tune in to KFYR AM 550, KFYR.com, 99.7 FM, and iHeart Radio. You can also listen to the Mike Wagner Show on Soundcloud, Spreaker, Anchor FM and Spotify.
Listen to Hooked Like Helen on The Mike Wagner Show here:
iHeart Radio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/966-the-mike-wagner-show-30182319/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6I5vOSUDSJZgUVQKqw2AIT
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