PinkPantheress Invites Flume, Powfu, FKJ, and More to Reimagine 'to hell with it'
Photo: Brent McKeever
The past year has seen PinkPantheress emerge as a transcendent, albeit hushed, voice in music. Merging the hazy daydreams of nostalgic drum 'n' bass and lucid, tranquil pop delivery, the UK breakout star took the world by storm fueled by a series of viral TikTok snippets of her music. The first landmark in what is likely to be a lustrous career arrived in the form of her debut mixtape, the lauded to hell with it.
Upon its original release, we praised PinkPantheress' debut mixtape, stating, "to hell with it is an enthralling glimpse into PinkPantheress’ fantastical world, a momentary glance pieced together by a series of fragmented memories that are neither lacking for sonic or emotional cohesion." And today sees to hell with it taking on newfound life.
to hell with it (Remixes) features reimaginings and reworks from artists and producers spanning the gamut of music, from powerhouses like Flume and FKJ to fellow TikTok-driven breakout stars like Powfu. The latter of whom opens up the project with a rework of "Pain," transforming the original lovelorn hit into a hypnotic back-and-forth. It's an interesting juxtaposition to LSDXOXO's vision of the track, which falls more in line with PinkPantheress' penchant for drawing forth nostalgic soundscapes, although here it feels as if the remix is crawling out the darkest corners of the internet during a late-night doomscroll.
The Flume remix of PinkPantheress' "Notice I cried" pulls no punches either, colliding the UK artist's distinctive drum 'n' bass with the producing savant's flurry of lush, experimental electronic textures until the original is nearly unrecognizable. A transcendent moment of maximalism; two opposing forces crashing against one another with all the force of a large hadron collider.
Rarely does a remix album feel as necessary as it does here. Likely in part to the already impressive groundwork laid down by PinkPantheress and the cross-pollination that results from the UK artist and producer handing off her own generation-spanning collection of influences to a vast range of artists, to hell with it (Remixes) arrives as kaleidoscopic tour de force where each mesmerizing turn unveils a newly discovered sonic playground.
Listen to to hell with it (Remixes) below:
