South East London-based songwriter: Kitty Fitz‘s music is on-paper, very consistent with what a good chunk of British indie music is now: DIY offshoots of bedroom pop that are lyrically confessional and sonically understated. But while a lot of bands and artists seemingly aren’t trying to diversify this, there’s a growing vein of musicians who see the mould as a starting point.
This is the main angle I approached her brand-new EP with, seeing Kitty Fitz as an artist with a uniquely charming and often heart-breaking take on the increasingly popular genre of alt-pop. After all, Kitty’s music is observably infectious, and frequently I find myself absentmindedly humming along to her previous single: ‘Malibu’, a full twelve months since hearing it for the first time.
The title track starts off the record in a tranquil, almost sombre manner, with quiet percussion brushes striking out below Kitty’s very sweet voice as these featherlight synths ebb and flow between her words. I previously felt her lyrics improve with each release, and ‘The Man in Me’ continues the trend. She always finds one singular metaphor or statement that really captures a tone perfectly, and there’s a fair few of them in this first song, painting a pretty stark image of her emotional mindset.
In this vein: Kitty’s second track: ‘Laughing Stock’ which was released as a single earlier this year.
I noted previously how this track illustrates her more pop-centric sensibility, with a laidback sound that’s radio-friendly without being uninspired. As with the first song, there’s a keenness in the way she speaks of feeling distantly unlovable that isn’t cartoonish or disingenuous. She’s able to keenly explore her own emotionality while still writing a catchy, very sing-along-worthy track with a lot of charm and character.
‘Life of the Party’ brings some synth-pop nostalgia, and it rings heavily with notes of bands like Alvvays and LCD Soundsystem. It’s pretty short and again, sweet, but it’s very endearing to her as a character within her own songs. Kitty Fitz doesn’t have any pretence in the way she discusses the person she is and I do find that an engaging element of her songwriting. The track feels like an anecdote that I can somehow relate to even if I haven’t lived it, and will come off as either traumatically reminiscent or tragically comedic depending on what kind of person you are.
The EP concludes on what is probably the strongest song on the record for me, with a very tight culmination of what Kitty tries to accomplish with her sound. Catchy and confessional with raw strands of abstract sonic element that flesh out the last half of the track. Throughout the record there are these floating electronic flourishes that come together in the final crescendo this track, which gives some dynamic consistency to the EP as a whole.
If you are someone who is looking for a engaging and relatable personality, that writes well-realised and earnest alt-pop, then I think this EP is a strong statement of what Kitty Fitz achieves as a songwriter. It is on the shorter side, but there is a coherent thread of clear wit and emotional intelligence running through all the tracks. This records adds well to an already growing discography and I can’t wait to hear what Kitty has coming next.
‘The Man in Me’ is available to stream now via Sad Club Records, and cassettes and downloadable versions are available via the Kitty Fitz bandcamp.
