Hot List 2013: Quadron

Photography by Christopher Dibble

The best way to describe Quadron's evolution from their 2010 self-titled debut to their latest, Avalanche, is to say the Danish electro-soul duo has gone from purple to eggplant. They've grown deeper.

"With the first album, we had no expectations," says singer Coco O. "We did it for the fun of it, but then people liked it, and we had to take ourselves more seriously." Coco and Quadron's producer and multi-instrumentalist, Robin Hannibal (neither of whom is formally trained), first collaborated as part of the Danish music collective Boom Clap Bachelors, which Coco joined when she was just 16. "None of us were real singers," Hannibal says. "We asked Coco to sing because she was a great performer. She had that element."

There's certainly something elemental about the tracks on Avalanche, which are as pained as they are catchy. Look no further than lead single "Hey Love" for one of this summer's surefire dance hits. And it all comes natural to Coco, who explains soul music, quite simply, as "convincing people you have something you feel in your heart." If that's the case, the pair seems to be doing little besides feeling. Hannibal is also one-half of the soul-pop act Rhye, while Coco can be heard on "Treehome95," a cut from Tyler, the Creator's latest album, Wolf, and on "Where the Wind Blows" from the soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby. "I have so many goals and such a long way to go, so I'm just going to keep on working," she says. "I'm just getting started."

Avalanche will be available June 4. Quadron's live concert dates begin June 3 in Los Angeles.