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Welcome to the wild and wonderful world of LØREN, with whom some listeners might already be familiar: The singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist out of THEBLACKLABEL and 88rising had a stacked resume before debuting as a soloist with original music in 2020. Between earning production and writing credits with G-Dragon and BLACKPINK, the alt-rock artist has been working to establish his own musical identity, too.

2023 has seen LØREN lean into this part of his story — a successful showcase at SXSW in Austin started an official US chapter, and he’ll be making his first appearance at Coachella this upcoming Sunday, April 15th. His alt-rock, pop-punk influenced style is a departure from the sound he’s worked with in the past, but there’s a clear sense that his recent release, an EP called Put Up a Fight, is the music he’s most excited about on a personal level. Take his song “Panic,” for example, which he wrote, composed, and provided every instrument for in the recording process.

“During the hook, the word ‘panic’ was repeated almost ten times, while the entirety of the rest of the track was recorded with little to no additional takes,” he tells Consequence. “I found it funny how the one word that titled the song was the hardest bit to finish off.”

Today, LØREN exclusively breaks down the inspirations behind “Panic.” Stream the song below and read on for his breakdown.

Creative Catharsis

The main concept of “Panic,” ironically, came from the state of being unable to create. I felt like I was stuck in a loop with no way of progressing further with music. At the same time, the anxiety of time moving on and me becoming more obsolete by the minute was eating away at my mind. I almost begged my feeling of panic to help me create something meaningful, so that the time I spent while being in that mental state wasn’t wasted.

Over time, I do feel like a certain amount of urgency and anxiety helps with creation, as if being chased by something makes people run faster. For me, the fear of getting left behind is a huge fuel for me to burn.

Self-Doubt

Another influence that the track held (and pretty much all my tracks hold) was a feeling of uselessness towards myself. It’s hard to tell whether you’re doing well or not enough when you work by yourself, and drawing that line to make sure I’m not too harsh or too lenient on myself is something that I still work on until today. With time, I’ve come to the realization that though I do enjoy working in solitude, having people around both for encouragement and criticism helps tremendously.

Balance
As for the video, I thoroughly explained my thoughts behind the track and my (extremely talented) director helped me create a visual form of what I wanted to express. Essentially, I think it came down to expressing the two sides of being in panic. While it does feel like you’re trapped in something, that place also keeps you motivated and with time, helps you create something meaningful.