Another name gathering attention on our playlist has been Kat Higgins, she's formerly played a hand in songs for Kenny Chesney, Runaway June and Carrie Underwood among others but it is the material she is recording herself that is garnering the additional attention.
With only two releases under her own name, she has already displayed great flair with lyrics that are just that little bit more poetic than your average release and a Kat Higgins song seems to come with a quality guarantee. Both songs are also completely different in sound, and while "We Go Driving" has a full on band playing, her latest single "Gone Let Her Go" has much less production and could almost be recorded straight from the "guitar porch" mentioned in the lyrics.
It's something of an unusual relationship break up song in that it comes in the form of well meaning motivational advice to move on and "let her go", that it's no good hoping "that she'll come back for something she forgot". It will possibly bring solace to people in a similar position, the voice of reason that is being avoided by the person refusing to accept the reality of their situation.
The chorus puts if both far more poetically and pragmatically "Like cigarette ash you can't burn it back", and that "Holding on to hope is like holding on to smoke". Produced by Bobby Hamrick who also played every instrument on it there is a lightness of touch in the sound with just guitars and a small piece of percussion behind Kat's vocals.that at times have a lovely echo to them.
Her earlier single "We Go Driving" clearly displays the art of the storyteller. From seeing a mother and child driving late at night. Kat has conjured up a narrative that will seem harrowingly believable and goes to show the power of a good songwriter. We are provided with very few actual details, yet so slickly is it done that the listener mentally builds up their own back story
Our narrator for the song is a young boy "In my Superman pyjamas I'm all tucked watching the fan go round trying not to listen, the tv doesn't drown at Daddy's voice downstairs"". His Mums solution to get both him and her out of their situation is to go driving and for a while, they are both free. For the child it's a big adventure, while for the mother it is a temporary respite and so when he naively says "Why you crying? it's really fun when we go driving" no further explanations are required.
The temporary nature of the release is again relayed by our narrator and the cycle of abuse begins once again. "By the exit where she always turns around, she takes my hand and tells me that it's different now".
With a mix that is gloriously rich in mandolin and hugely enjoyable, this is songwriting of the highest order and we here at #TEAMw21 fully expect her name to be on many more of her own releases going forward.
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