Introduction
Out of all the artists I have gotten to know within the hyperpop scene, Wido (pronounced widow) has been one of my favourites to not only listen to but also get to know as a person. I first was introduced to his music through his production for Afourteen’s song “!” off their album “Dalee,” “!” was by far my favourite song on the album and piqued my curiosity about hearing Wido’s solo music. Looking up their name on SoundCloud I came across their double single “the dead’s after party,” this was one of my first introductions to hyperpop. I checked out every release he dropped from that point on, including iconic songs from that era like “paintings,” “goblin ?,” and “push it”.
Biography
“I started making music in late 2016 with a software called LMMS” states Wido in my interview with him. “A few years of making beats and improving I started uploading type beats to YouTube,” In early 2020 Wido started making his way into the hyperpop scene. He joined the collective slowsilver03, started by fellow artists kurtains and glaive. At this time hyperpop was seeing the growth of many collectives such as NovaGang, GoonnCity, graveem1nd, Bloodhounds, mommworld, and slowsilver03.
In summer 2020, Wido participated in one of the largest multi-collective collaborations, a song titled “RED,” featuring 19 artists from Bloodhounds, NovaGang, GoonnCity, slowsilver03, and Midnight Society. The attention that “RED” received propelled Wido and fellow artists into prominence. It wasn’t long before Wido started receiving millions of streams cross-platform on his songs (ex. “push it” and “goblin ?”). With this newfound fame, Wido got to work on his EP “through your eyes” which was released on June 21, 2020, with five tracks in total with one track “acceptance” featuring fellow vocalist and producer dœgægé.
Album Review
“Field Day” as a complete project is a massive improvement from Wido’s previous album “Decision Making”. When I asked Wido how he feels his music has evolved since “Decision Making”, he said “I take more time writing lyrics and creating something that fits the beat I’m layering my vocals over. I just think my music is more mature and I feel I can treat some topics in a better way, not necessarily (in) a more mature way, but a way that gets whatever message across in a better way. Not only in terms of lyrics though, but also the beats,”
Two singles that were released after “Decision Making” were “Scary” and “who was”, Wido cites these songs as the moment that he began the process of further developing his sound prior to “Field Day”. “For a long time, I overanalyzed my music and fell into a big depression. But I kept practicing and practicing, just didn’t release anything. I think that depression combined with practicing and analyzing my old music overall shaped the album,”
The introduction track “Chrysalis” sets the tone for the rest of the album, it’s reminiscent of Wido’s previous songs such as “MEAN WORD HARM” and “Caretaking” but with a polished finish that provides a pleasant listening experience. The main focus of the song is Wido’s evolution as a person. This process is described in a metaphorical sense, as a butterfly. This chrysalis symbolizes the shell that Wido finds himself trapped in when he tries to express himself. Wido evolved his craft in a similar fashion as a butterfly, maturing in a chrysalis. He emerges as a newly developed musician.
The second track on “Field Day” is titled “Crush on me,” featuring the Welsh artist kurtians. The placement of “Crush on me” switches up the flow of the album to a more adagio and mellow ambiance. The opening chorus is delivered by kurtians in a vocal cadence that is very reminiscent of his solo music with songs such as “axel ocelot” and “upside down”. This signature style is composed of simple drum n bass percussion with a stripped-down synth melody and overlayed with soft vocals. kurtians starts in his opening chorus that I can only describe as an almost egotistical, yet humble way of talking about people taking interest in him “They got a crush on me/ Eyes on me, fixed on me/ Try to relax like one, two, three/ They got a crush on me, She want me, he want me/ There’s no denying, I’m a beast/” For me, the ending word “beast” is what ties this whole chorus together as kurtians is acknowledging the fact that many people find him attractive.
I asked Wido to describe his experience with kurtians during this song’s production, he said “The kurtains song had been done for over a year and as we have been making music together for a while the process was very fluent and easy,”
My second favourite song on “Field Day” was “Crush It Up Put It In My Hands”. While the song’s lyrical content may seem lacking, this song truly shines in its production. The opening chorus drew me in on my first listen “Wo-Wo-Woke up in the noon, I feel exhausted/ Wo-Wo-Woke up with the world on the mattress,” Wido implements vocal glitches, reminiscent of his earlier music, even though there has been a heated debate amongst hyperpop listeners about whether vocal glitches are tackey. I feel like the vocal glitches really give the song some volume to it, it draws in a first-time listener.
My favourite song on the album “I Was Born To,” The opening of the song throws you right into the chorus, complemented by a hard-hitting synth that perfectly complements the energy of Wido’s vocals.
This song wouldn’t be complete without Wido’s confidence. Flexing is a common trope in modern music. But Wido flexes, he does it nonchalantly and almost in an aura of class. “I was outside countin’ all these fuckin’ blues/ I was strangled in the car and then it flew, flew, flew,” and “Bartender got my name written in her damn head … And it’s March, 21, 22, 23/ The weeks just pass like days/ Ah, yeah, to what degree,” This song perfectly represents Wido’s growth not only in his artistry but in his self-confidence.
“Mason Crazy Person” couldn’t have been a better choice for an outro song. It carries a similar ambiance as “Crush It Up Put It In My Hands” and “I Was Born To” but is introduced with a gradual crescendo. This is a perfect transition from the previous song “Nothing Forever” in contrast is a very mellow and slow-paced song. The change is so heavy that it causes a listener to feel an almost uncomfortable shock, the sudden change in cadence may throw someone off on their first listen.
Closing Opinion
There are a couple of things with “Field Day” that I feel could have made it a more cohesive project (not that it isn’t cohesive already). Although these reasons are arguably nitpicky it’s the fine details that really polish a project to the best of its ability.
First, I feel that one of Wido’s songs that were released following ‘Scary’ titled “Come on stacy” would have been a great addition to the project. “Come on stacy” follows the same energy and flow as “Mason Crazy Person” but adds a bit of upbeat atmosphere to the production. It would have made the perfect pre-outro or outro track.
Second, I feel the arrangement could have used a little improvement. If you want to get the full experience of the album how the artist intended it, listening to it in order is the best way. The arrangement of “Field Day” is a little bit all over the place. The transition from “Chrysalis” to “Crush on me” (to me) insinuated that the album was going to take a more mellow direction, but instead, it goes right back into energetic pacing. The same thing happens again further down the tracklist going from “Suicide Uber” to “who was”. I feel all the more slow/mellow songs (“Crush on me,” “Suicide Uber,” and “Nothing Forever,”) could have been placed in the same section of the tracklist to give the album a more cohesive flow.
Of the four projects Wido has released during his career “Field Day” definitely has to be my favourite. Although I would like to give credit to “Decision Making” for laying the groundwork for “Field Day”. “Decision Making” was my anthem towards the end of summer 2021, every day I would dedicate time to enjoy each and every element. Overall I give this album a 9/10.
