Erika de Casier was a songwriter on one of last year's best pop hits, NewJeans' "Super Shy," and she brings some of that same timid swagger to "ice," the latest single from her upcoming album Still.
Calling out the fickle flakiness of a lover who is "hot and cold," de Casier doesn't simply cast blame, but cleverly highlights the self-destructive paradox of being drawn to someone the more they pull away: "Falling harder every time you ghost me / Next minute in your arms like it's all gone."
It's a vulnerable, emotionally fraught sentiment, especially for those of us who have experienced a similar feeling. But rather than being tortured, "ice" has a self-assured strut — something that comes across in the ‘90s R&B airiness of de Casier's earworm chorus hook, the gliding bass that anchors its hip-hop groove, and the slippery cadence of They Hate Change's guest verses. Screeching to a halt mid-word with a final declaration of "stop," it feels more like extracting oneself from a toxic situation than wallowing in it.