Katarzyna NINa Górnisiewicz | Detailed or mini-review submissions: song, EP/album | Suggest an artist

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Sit Kitty Sit - My Beloved (song review) |Gun Horse Records, Beautiful / Terrible, 2012|

Music like this cannot be given a low rating since it's true Music with a capital M. If you understand orchestration techniques more than the average listener you will find there is no need to read an artists' bio to realize when a musician is trained in composition, transposition and music theory.

Kat Downs along with drummer Mike Thompson have an extensive musical background that comes from experience and dedication. Kat is a professionally trained pianist, composer and music teacher which means that symphonies, pit orchestras, choirs and proper counterpoint are nothing strange to her. She is also in a gothic rock band called Saints of Ruin that toured with industrial rockers Slick Idiot. Mike has played drums in several bands of different genres (for example Tokyo Raid or The Big Nasty) for over 20 years. Moreover, drumming is in his family heritage. This aspect combined with listening to many different styles of music let him explore avenues such as blues, jazz, punk, latin, classic rock and progressive rock.

Sit Kitty Sit is a pretty new and recent project that is inspired by a variety of vibes and influences. The band was established in San Francisco, CA in 2010. Since releasing their debut The Push EP (2010), they moved on to create a brand new album entitled Beautiful / Terrible in 2012 where the song "My Beloved" appears at the end of the tracklist.

The songwriting along with the compositional structure is solid yet open, leaving comfortable space for the vocals. Kat's voice is set between mezzo-soprano and alto which allows her to fluctuate between octaves with middle to low notes that are well controlled. The track is strong, direct and confident, yet sounds impatient and almost angry. When Kat sings you may find yourself wanting to stand up straight and wait for orders... or an encounter.
The rhythm section is based on both piano and drums which makes the sound twice as dynamic. There are no guitars or bass used in this song. The drums are punctual in the background, however no specific percussive solos outline the song, so the beats emphasize the piano along with Kat's vocals.

Since both of the artists have been researching many styles of music on daily basis, "My Beloved" is a mixture between pop, avant-garde and classical music. If you're a director looking for a good musical score or even searching a live band to make an appearance in your movie, consider Sit Kitty Sit as a strong candidate. This song would be a perfect fit for an action or crime movie like Sin City if it were set in a 1930's-1940's environment with gangsters in suits, fedoras and black 'n' white shoes listening to piano along with a female vocalist. It may also be a match to historically related screenplays or documentaries from the WWII era as well.

If a majority of people were to understand the beauty of classical music, Sit Kitty Sit could have been nominated for the most promising music discovery of 2012. However, since most music fans seem to enjoy bouncy pop, electronica or hip-hop music as opposed to something dynamic and intelligent, let us believe that serious music connoisseurs and audiophiles will truly support this ambitious project by purchasing their music and enjoying their live performances.

Sit Kitty Sit tours quite frequently and also recently played during the 2012 SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. They plan to take part in the BASK Music and Arts Festival in July of this year as well as go on an East Coast tour planned for this autumn that may also continue into the Midwest until sometime in early 2013.

(Katarzyna 'NINa' Górnisiewicz, Fabryka Magazine, April 1st, 2012. Proofreading: Scott M. Owens)

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