Alternative outfit Hooked Like Helen marks the 20th anniversary of Slipknot’s “Duality” with a stark, powerful reimagined version. The release provides an appetizer for Hooked Like Helen’s upcoming EP, Promise Me You’ll Run.
Talking about “Duality,” vocalist Nikki Stipp says, “One of the most cathartic moments in this song, for me, is the ‘All I’ve got is insane’ mantra in the bridge. Our version breaks this part down into 2 sections: it starts out soft, sad, and full of self-doubt…not knowing what’s real and what’s not. And then the script is flipped when the arrangement expands, and I start singing at the top of my voice with a choir behind me. We might be insane, but now it’s with strength, power, and fearlessness. Like, no one can do anything to hurt me any worse than what I can do to myself. I’m still alive after all I’ve been through and I’m batsh*t but I’m unstoppable.”
Creating a new version of “Duality” didn’t happen easily. Initially, Hooked like Helen went in one direction, and then shifted to a totally new direction. In the end, they fashioned a piece spanning the space between rock and pop.
Within a year of inheriting a small home studio, Nikki and Jon Stipp created Hooked Like Helen and became sought after by music supervisors for E!, MTV, and Netflix. The band’s ballad, “Liar,” inspired the script for the film High Strung: Free Dance. Nikki scored nine scenes across the three-time Emmy-winning docu-series CHEER and continues to provide music for upcoming titles through BMG.
In 2023, the band completed two national tours with Icon For Hire and No Resolve/Halocene, opened for Jewel, Taylor Hicks, and Blood Sweat & Tears, and played as direct support for PVRIS at Sandusky Pride. At the present, Hooked Like Helen is in the studio, working their creative magic.
“Duality” opens with Nikki’s whispering voice, flowing into a starkly passionate melody highlighted by a rippling piano and sweeping strings. Dripping with aching tones, Nikki’s voice imbues the lyrics with ever-evolving new tonal surfaces, intensifying the emotional disquiet at its core.
With its beautifully shaped melody, baring surging feelings, Hooked Like Helen’s version of “Duality” is an innovative tour de force.
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