HERO Talks Daft Punk Comparisons, New EP and Relationships

Photo: Nothing Wholesome

As we close out 2018, there's nothing like a tale of a dysfunctional relationship to bop to as winter comes and cuffin' season begins. Montreal-based electronic artist HERO is the source of said bop, as his latest offering, "Dirty Work," teases out the details of a romantic entanglement mired in misunderstanding. The song offers the perfect introduction to the EP of the same name. A head-nodding blend of electronic funk, rock and R&B, the darkly danceable collection gives more weight to the title of "the black Daft Punk" bestowed on him by HBO's Insecure.

HERO talks about being compared to the legendary French duo, the cinematic inspiration behind the visuals for the "Dirty Work" music video and his plans for 2019.



You got on a lot of people's radar after Insecure featured your song “The Juice” and dubbed you “the black Daft Punk.” I can definitely hear the influence on “Dirty Work” and “Stay The Night.” How do you feel about the comparison?

I think it’s okay, I wouldn’t say I sound exactly like them but I think those kind of comparisons help people categorize things in a way that makes sense to them so I’m definitely cool with that. There is a bit of a tendency to classify anything with a good bassline and/or vocoder as “Daft Punk” music but at the same time I think that’s just a nod to how impactful they’ve been to music as a whole.

Besides Daft Punk, 80's funk, pop, and R&B seem to have had a big influence production-wise on Dirty Work. The drums on “Nightcrawler” in particular have strong Phil Collins vibes. Was that the sound you were going for on the EP?

Photo: Nothing Wholesome

I don’t know if I was aiming for any one sound in particular. More than anything, I had a set of themes and feelings that I wanted to capture on these records and I just tried to build songs that worked around them. I’m hugely inspired by cinema as well so I tried to craft it like a movie and tell a story over the course of the EP.

Lyrically Dirty Work deals with the darker side of love, with you portraying yourself as a kind of romantic antihero. Are any of the scenarios you describe based on your own experiences?

I’d say a little bit haha, I think we’ve all been there though, we’ve all been the bad guy at some point in someone else’s eyes and that’s kind of what the song is touching on. No matter how much you’re upfront about a situation, you can’t take into account how the other person is going to feel.

On the final track “Note to Self” the narrator appears to come to a realization about himself and the part he plays in his chaotic personal life. Have you had a similar moment where you were like “Damn it's me?”

Multiple times...ha

The video for “Dirty Work” is more a performance piece than a narrative one, but still channels the song's moody vibe. What did you and the director look to for inspiration?

All credit goes to Johannes Muskat for the vibe and inspiration. The framing, style and location was inspired by Roy Andersson films but we also wanted it to feel like it could be something taking place in a movie like “Blue Velvet.” Basically, odd but mundane at the same time, if that makes sense.

What plans do you have for 2019 as far as live performances, touring etc.?

I’m still putting together the live set but touring is definitely one of my top priorities for 2019. I want to make sure what I’m doing on the shows is living up to what I have on the records and doing them justice.