BEST NEW ARTIST: MR. KITTY

Here I was thinking the world had moved past eighties nostalgia and into the nineties: with neon pastels, the golden age of Marvel and impeachable presidents. And then along comes Mr. Kitty with the most eighties thing since cocaine was first used to figure out how a personal computer worked. But that’s the cyclical nature of nostalgia though, isn’t it? We’re always going to come back around to the same things over and over and over and over again until it’s 2599 and we’re looking at Teddy Ruxpin dolls like it’s a Christ figure, here to save us from the mute society we’ve evolved to after the iPhone insurgence of 2371 took all of our voices away.

Mr. Kitty’s Soundcloud is filled with 80’s synthwave covers of modern pop songs. Turning Rihanna and Calvin Harris’ “We Found Love” and Alice Deejay’s Rave Anthem “Better Off Alone” into time traveling radio-friendly classics that belong blasting out of battery operated boomboxes right alongside your tape (and haircut) of Flock of Seagulls.

If you really want to get deep take a listen to Mr. Kitty’s Jon Benet Ramsey influenced cover of the Cure’s “Pictures of You.” Its meta-commentary turns the Cure’s classic into a completely re-contextualized #tbt of a remix.

But we’re not here for remixes and covers (all amazing by the way — check out Health - Drugs Exist (Mr. Kitty Remix). We’re here for his originals. Because sure Mr. Kitty can translate… but can he write?

The answer is obviously yes, otherwise we wouldn’t be here, would we?

MR. KITTY - THE GLASS INSIDE YOUR SKULL

Mr. Kitty’s positivity pop goth is so throwback, it’s futurist. With chiptune trance melding with casio-tone riffs that feel so of the past that they’re more or less timeless. Like someone threw these songs up into space thirty years ago and a couple aliens named Mister and Kitty got ahold of them and transformed them into what we’re listening to today. Look at that mustache! You’re telling me that’s human?

“The Glass Inside Your Skull” is like if The Faint were less worried about looking cool and wrote songs that fit more in the oeuvre of their Saddle Creek labelmates (aka emo goth pop). The Faint is the closest comparison I can make to the music Mr. Kitty, but it’s not a far comparison by any means. IT’S JUST THE BEST I’VE GOT. For fans of the Faint!?

MR. KITTY - CRISIS POINT

“Crisis Point” is exactly what your dreams of playing Contra— and dying over and over and over again, because it’s so fucking hard— sound like. The music is a lot more aggro and modern cause this is 2018 baby, and we’ve got chiptune dialed in by this point. Doesn’t matter though does it? 25 years later and you still can’t get those Contra Nightmares out of your head?

If “Crisis Point” isn’t the soundtrack to an 8-bit video game out by the end of the year, somebody is fucking up.

MR. KITTY - IN YOUR BLOOD

This Austin singer/songwriter/producer has got every trick in the eighties book pouring out of his sleeves like he’s some synthpop wizard who’s not quite in control of his powers and all sorts of shit is falling out of his sleeves and landing on the ground, but somehow working together to create classic eighties jams that never existed. And you’re like, “Oh, you’re a music Wizard,” and he’s like, “I am now!” That’s pretty much what “In Your Blood” sounds like. Listen and tell me I’m wrong.

This one is curated by Daniel Ragnar. So give him props for the find. And no, he is not related to Thor: Ragnarok. I already asked.

From deep within the murky depths of the Los Angeles River emerged a creature: 50% raver, 50% comedian, 10% Robotcop. Kurt Kroeber doesn’t own a dog, operates Soundbleed (the world’s only dance party comedy talk show rave), and is down to party with you. Come up some time and say “Hey dude!” But definitely make sure to casually drop the secret Illuminati password.