Stockholm-based artist NOEL released his moody new single “Without Calling” last Friday. NOEL gained fame on TikTok through his bedroom covers, but he’s quickly making a name for himself with his original songs thanks to his honest lyrics and expressive vocals.
“Without Calling” is an emotional track that sees NOEL ruminate on a fractured relationship. He elaborates further on the inspiration for the song:
“‘Without Calling’ is about the struggle between doing what you want and what’s right. In this case it’s about wanting to love but not feeling good enough for it, which ends up with you distancing yourself from it.”
The track starts off with some gentle guitar plucking before his warm yet somber vocals kick in. The first verse expresses his frustration with his tendency to run from love.
The chorus is ushered in with a subtle electronic piano hit and NOEL’s vocals take on an element of distortion. The song grows even more melancholy as he sings “I’m the mystery no one’s solving / shouldn’t love me but you do”.
The second verse introduces a steady drum as the lyrics pick up the intensity. The vocals are dripping with emotion as he sings “everybody seems to hate me and I kinda get why they do”.
The next chorus comes in with some intense guitars after the first few words. The combination of the distortion, choral background vocals, and the ambience of the instrumentals gives this chorus a cinematic feel.
After the last words, the music strips back down to the guitar plucking. The melody of the chorus is repeated with different lyrics this time: his vulnerable vocals come in claiming he doesn’t have much love to give and he wonders how to move forward. He leaves us with this last thought as the song fades out.
The release of “Without Calling” came almost immediately after the release of NOEL’s EP Headed North, which came out in March of this year. With this track, he enters a new era and lets fans know he has no plans to stop anytime soon.
