Chances are you haven’t heard of Kate Boy yet. The electronic pop band consisting of Kate Akhurst, Markus Dextegen and Hampus Nordgren Hemlin have been teasing us with a lot of singles and EPs in the past few years, but now it is finally time for their first LP, appropriately called One. The record is full of energetic electronic pop music and these are the five reasons you should definitely check them out!
1. The best of two worlds
Singer Kate is from Australia while the boys are from Sweden. If you didn’t realize already, these are miles and miles apart in the upper north and down under. Of course this was always going to sound like an interesting combination. Kate and her boys are currently based in Stockholm and that is something you can hear clearly in their sound, but also in their lyrics. They sing about the glorious natural phenomenon on ‘Northern Lights’, which you can see in the northern part of Sweden in the winter and the fact that the sun doesn’t go down in the middle of summer in ‘Midnight Sun’. All very recognizable for Swedes or people who have ever made a trip to Scandinavia. If you are planning to go, definitely take the Kate Boy album with you as a soundtrack.
2. They sound unique
If you give One a listen you will quickly realize that Kate Boy sounds like no other act that is around at the moment and that is hard to achieve with your debut album. Of course electronic pop is a crowded genre these days, but there are not many acts who dare to combine catchy hooks with such powerful and deep beats. Kate Boy sound uncompromisingly electronic, but the melodies are very poppy at the same time, and that is just how we like it, right? Right!
3. Their beats are sick
Production wise, Kate Boy doesn’t take things lightly and rightfully so. The drums sound delicious and the deep bass gives the tracks exactly the right cold and industrial sound that clashes perfectly with the strong and shouty vocals of Kate. It doesn’t matter if it is the fast pace on ‘The Way We Are’ or the impressive finales on ‘Northern Lights’ or ‘Human Engine’, their sound evolves in every song. Every song swings and I dare you to try not to move while listening to their upbeat tunes. In that sense it is the perfect album to listen to with your friends while preparing for a night out.
4. The choruses are easy to sing along
Do you like your pop songs to be easy to remember and sing along? Then Kate Boy is definitely for you. Their choruses are always catchy which makes it easy to join in. We can all do the ‘Meet me under the miiiidniiiiiiiight sun, yeah yeah yeah yo’ or the ‘Everything we touch, it turn-turns into gold, so never ever let go!’, right? And these are not even the easiest when you take into accound the repetitions on ‘In Your Eyes’ and the huge hook on their equality anthem ‘Higher’. I recently visited their show in Amsterdam and I can tell you that every visitor sang these parts along at the top of their lungs, so I’m sure you can do it at home as well!
5. This album will get you through the day
You know what might even be the best thing about this impressive debut album One? From start to finish, it is one big whirlwind of energy and power. Do you have a hard time staying awake or finding energy after lunch at work? Put in those earplugs and put on this record and I am sure you will feel the energy running through your veins soon enough. Take for example the confident ‘Lion For Real’ or the uniting ‘Run As One’. If that doesn’t help you through a rough day, I don’t know what will.