Sleeper Hold

Sleeper Hold, the new EP from Los Angeles-based electronic and alt-R&B duo Rituals of Mine, is as tense and captivating as its name suggests. Lopez began processing her grief through songwriting, and gradually faced her past traumas. Lopez flew from California to Florida to work with her longtime collaborator and producer Wes Jones, and began developing a brooding sound that would match the emotional intensity of her writing. Over the course of a few months the two would craft some of the project’s most cavernous and vulnerable songs to date.

Burst, Heavyweight and Bad News are some of the first songs Lopez wrote after feeling empowered to be more honest with herself. The sudden and tragic changes in her life forced Lopez to reconcile with old pains. The EP’s nightmarish yet self-assured first single Burst is Lopez processing her past traumas and demanding space that she has lived without for so long. The track’s haunting and staccato instrumental is in stark contrast with Lopez’s confident and melodic vocal delivery. Having the intimate space of a studio, occupied by only her and a producer, meant that Lopez could write from the heart in a way that didn’t feel possible when there were more people in the room.