EDM supergroup Swedish House Mafia have represented innovation in dance music culture since the early 2010s. Made up of producers Axwell, Steve Angello, and Sebastian Ingrosso, the group proves how much power an artistic dream team can have.
Fans know these artists individually for their clean production, expertly-written melodies, and infectious grooves. As a team, their work can be even more potent. Swedish House Mafia exist as a story of how collaboration often leads music into new territories. “Ray of Solar” is no exception, and the release serves to continue their legacy at the forefront of electronic music. With ethereal vocals and classic house grooves, the track will earn playlist adds from listeners around the world.
Swedish House Mafia via AP
History of Swedish House Mafia
Swedish House Mafia’s 2012 album Until Now helped break them into the mainstream. Aggressive club classics like “Greyhound” show their roots. Their anthemic pop tunes like “Don’t You Worry Child” carry just as much weight.
In many ways, Swedish House Mafia helped bring dance music production value into pop music of the 2010s, inspiring many artists along the way.
By collaborating with top-of-the-line vocalists, they introduced a new generation to house music. Their songwriting is innovative yet nostalgic, a balance of old and new, in a way that captivates fans to this day.
Official music video for “Don’t You Worry Child”
The Reunion
The members of Swedish House Mafia took a years-long break from releasing music as a trio around 2013. Beginning around 2018, they began to perform together again, rekindling some of that fire they had for working together. In 2022, they released their album Paradise Again, a decade after Until Now. The support for their reunion album shows itself in numbers- “Moth To A Flame” with the Weeknd has over 600 million streams on Spotify.
The New Era of Swedish House Mafia
Between projects like “Ray of Solar” and Until Now, the three members of Swedish House Mafia also take the time to work on personal projects and smaller collaborations. Axwell and Sebastian Ingrosso work together as Axwell /\ Ingrosso, with tracks like “More Than You Know” hitting over a billion streams on Spotify.
“U OK?” by Sebastian Ingrosso, Steve Angello, and PARISI exemplifies the consistency of Ingrosso’s work. The drums sound clean, yet particularly dark. Steve Angello goes a slightly different direction with his 2023 release “What You Need” with Wh0. Featuring funky samples and classic, bright synths, this track oozes character.
Swedish House Mafia Logo
Tracks like “Ray of Solar” support the notion that dance music producers often work best in groups. Collaboration exists as a cornerstone of electronic music- if the most successful producers in the world believe in it, maybe there’s truth to it. Even when Axwell, Steve Angello, and Sebastian Ingrosso aren’t working as a trio, they tend to seek out other creatives to help fulfill a vision.
The Magic of “Ray of Solar”
Since their 2022 album, Swedish House Mafia have continued releasing singles together. “See The Light” with Fridayy exemplifies their modern production direction. The track juxtaposes washed out vocals with upfront, driving drum grooves- similar to the aesthetic of “Ray of Solar”. This magical take on house helps draw a line between their goals as a group- balancing catchy, emotional hooks, danceable grooves, and forward-thinking production techniques.
Official visualizer for “Ray of Solar”
“Ray of Solar” opens with a heavenly, reverb-heavy intro. Swedish House Mafia use this spaciousness to hook the audience with emotion. Gentle vocal melodies float atop a bed of ambient synth pads. To build rhythmic tension, the producers add in classic syncopated house piano chords. Risers and crashes accentuate the buildup before leading into a high energy drop. Using vocal chops and a rolling bassline, the drop maintains a cruising momentum.
Swedish House Mafia’s “Ray of Solar” shows how contrast creates interest: the difference in intensity between the drops and the chorus sections make the song incredibly replayable. Musicians often describe their craft as “tension and release”, and Swedish House Mafia prove that such a concept can apply to dance production techniques as well. In fact, a lot of festival hits are known for their bittersweet nature. The space between sadness, joy, and danceable energy places melodic dance music in an emotional limbo that is easy to come back to.
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