There are two things you need to understand about me: I am not a patient person, and when I like something, I really, really like something.

I really, really like Isak Danielson.  

He is my splendid solution, my perfect pearl, my lovely lily, my sensational sunset. 

And if I had to summarize Danielson’s music, I would use these two words: quick and quality. Although,  I’m not sure “quality” encaptures all that his addictive music is.

Six songs. Six months. 

Danielson did the impossible— or what appears to be impossible based on the popular artists’ release schedules. He dropped a new single every month for the last six months with the exception of December which he compensated for with two songs in February. And he has an album on the way soon, a huge announcement he nonchalantly tagged on to the end of a recent Instagram post. 

September 27th, “Silence” was dropped. 

Forboding and dark, “Silence” spreads a message of strength and courage, just one of the interesting juxtapositions that Danielson’s music can be characterized by. While it opens ominously, the chorus parallels the message with a steady marching beat. Danielson’s voice is edged in both despair and optimism as it echoes and resounds.

Truly, these oppositions are offputting and diverting; they disguise the words of hope in regard to the multitude of crises plaguing our generation. Though Danielson wrote it with the intent of it being applicable to any problem whether it be personal or political, “Silence” is song threaded green with environmental activism.

He uses his voice to raise awareness about all of our anxieties and desires in the bridge: wanting a long life, wanting snow in the winter, and wanting a good, safe world for our children.

By speaking out—  rather, singing out— Danielson is exemplifying his own message which is laid out transparently in the chorus as he sings, “I want to see the change before I die and lose my voice.” 

October 25th, “Silence (acoustic)” was dropped.

Just as influential as the original but much less jarring, “Silence (acoustic)”  is a more melodious masterpiece. Danielson takes advantage of the mellow music and seizes the opportunity to show off his range. Though the notes are identical, his vocals stretch smoothly and serenely to catch your focus in the acoustic version as it no longer must delicately dance with the demanding music. Altogether, the acoustic version is simply silkier and more preferable thanks to Danielson’s voice and the lovely accompanying violin. 

November 8th, “Snowman” was dropped.

“Snowman” is Danielson’s first and only Christmas song, made even more wonderful by also being a complex and devastating love song. Yet, it thankfully refused to stray from Danielson’s enchanting style: emotional and weirdly uplifting.

Anything but cliche, the jaunty, candy-cane colored piano tune of “Snowman” offsets his lyrics and voice that are coated in inky impermanence. Danielson’s voice takes on a sweet and smokey quality as he tenderly talks to his lover.

In fact, the whole song is an extended metaphor in which Danielson refers to his lover as a snowman melting away from tears. But in the chorus, he promises that “’til death we’ll be freezing/ Yeah you are my home, my home for all seasons.” This song seeps melancholy and denial, infatuation and loss.

And I love it— Christmas with a tantalizing twist. 

January 7th, “Light Up” was dropped.

Completely different from the past three singles, “Light Up” is empowering exposition of understanding without any eerie or dark undertones. Beginning deep and mellifluous, “Light Up” takes the listener on the journey to self-confidence and self-assurance. Rising and falling, the grandiose of the single mimics this journey, leaving the listener feeling full, feeling whole, feeling worthy.

“I am who I am and there’s no more looking back/ I’ll be okay, I can do it all on my own”

My favorite line. 

The entirety of the song expands on this single line powerfully sung towards the end of the single. “Light Up” is about being there for another, helping one another through their struggles and anxiety. But, it is also about being there for yourself, about finding the strength to be there for yourself. 

February 14th, “I Don’t Need Your Love” and “Part of Me” were dropped.

In honor of Valentine’s Day, Danielson released these two fulfilling moving-on anthems for all the single people. With lines like “I can feel my heart beating all through the saddest parts” and “from what I’ve learned, I’ll be okay because baby you were not my first [love],” both songs are uplifting tunes that tell of how Danielson left his emotionally abusive and toxic exes, despite the differences in how the lyrics come across. 

Where “I Don’t Need Your Love” is powerful with understated weakness and heartache, “Part of Me” is the opposite. “Part of Me” is soft and subtle with harsh words, contrasting the grand explosion that is “I Don’t Need Your Love.” Additionally, Danielson’s voice in “Part of Me” is accented with the most delicious and fragile shakes and waivers, something nowhere to be found in the other single.

Every single one of Danielson’s singles these past six months has been exceptional. How he consistently produces compositions like these songs in such a short amount of time will never cease to astound and appease me. 

With teasers like these, I’m not sure how I’m going to wait for the album because, as I said before, I am not a patient person and I really really like Isak Danielson.