Pawl and Discrete: Sweden’s Next Top Electronic Music Stars

Pawl and Discrete are two Swedish artists who have partnered on a track titled “In My Heart“. “In My Heart”, which dropped on May 29, 2020 via Stockholm-based indie record label Loudkult and is currently available for download and stream, features Pawl’s dynamic vocals alongside Discrete’s skills behind the deck. Pawl and Discrete provided a creative blend of musical flavors to this chill-house track. “In My Heart” contains tranquil guitar playing, light percussive beats, and smooth synths. That blend creates an ambient sound which can transport the listener to Ibiza on a warm, summer night. Pawl and Discrete’s collaborative production can result in a lot of mainstream appeal as it is a track that listeners can listen to repeatedly.

Pawl is a producer-turned-vocalist who became well-known after The Chainsmokers took notice of his 2017 deep-house/pop fusion track “Young & Faded” featuring Jimmy Burney. Since then, he has attained over 20 million Spotify streams and headlined events including ADE 2019 and WEEKEND Festival. Discrete is a Stockholm-based producer who enhanced his music production craft through unreleased solo projects and producing for artists from nearly every genre. His 2018 debut single “Without You” featuring Mary Cicilia has earned over 40 million streams. Here is One EDM’s exclusive interview with Pawl and Discrete, two artists who are continuing Sweden‘s status as an electronic music powerhouse.

Kenny Ngo: How have you guys been for the past several months?

Discrete: Yeah! I’ve been good, all my gigs have been cancelled and so forth. However, it has given me so much time to focus on my music. It’s been kind of therapeutic to be able to work on music to try to take a pause from reality.

Pawl: These last few months have been an interesting and weird time in general. Although I feel humbled with everything that’s going on, it is giving me purpose and the strength I need to keep going.

Have you discovered any new interests or hobbies?

Pawl: I started running outdoors two months back, best decision I have made.

Discrete: It’s been a wake up call to take care of mental and physical health with a new way of adapting to these new life routines. I’ve been doing my best to stay happy and strong as possible and making a lot of new music!

How did “In My Heart” came to be?

Me and Pawl met during ADE 2019 and hung out all weekend. We really connected both musically and personally and we kept in touch after that. In the start of 2020 we booked a session, Pawl came over to Stockholm and we came up with the core idea on day one,  from there we just sent it back and forth to each other until we both felt it was complete.

What was the production process like for you when creating “In My Heart”?

Since the two of us both produce and write, it came natural for us to both produce and write ‘In My Heart’ together. Pawl took the lead in writing the lyrics since the story originates from a real life experience he’s had, along with with supervision from Discrete. After Day One, what we had was the electric piano, the topline melody, a kick and a clap. Everything else was added layers while sending the project back and forth.

Are you guys planning to create and release new music this year or next year?

Currently, we are working on some new stuff. We’ve realized we both push each other out of our own comfort zones and create a very cool mix of our sound. We are working on some really cool stuff right now.

Question for you, Pawl. How was it like performing at Amsterdam Dance Event and WEEKEND Festival last year?

It was my first time playing in Amsterdam so it was nerve wracking but still really fun. The vibe was kind of boutique and chill. My set came out really nice together with the environment/venue I was playing at. Weekend Festival was something else, it was my first time doing a show of that magnitude.

Did you make any fond memories from those events?

So many of them but what happens at ADE, stays at ADE.

Question for you, Discrete. How was it like working with chill-house music when you produced “In My Heart” with Pawl?

I never really try to put myself into a genre when making a song. Basically when the core idea of the song is written, it almost feels like everything else around the song makes itself cause the ideas that pop into your head just feels natural in a way.

What was the last show or festival you performed at?

I have been doing some gigs in Stockholm and the last festival was in Malta back in 2019. However, I’ve been really focusing on getting my music out there before getting my live-sets going. I’m starting to feel very confident about live sets and how to perform. I’m really eager to start doing that when it’s possible (because of COVID-19).