MEET CAT
Cat Matthews is a singer who thought she might never sing again. Sitting at her childhood piano in her parents’ home, she was right back where she started–only this time, recovering from a surgery gone awry. She was unable to speak for months, rendered completely mute, writing songs in her head. While grappling with doubts about the fate of her singing voice, she found solitude and a new form of self-expression in songwriting. 6 years ago, she and her then-boyfriend formed dream-pop duo, “niña”, and released an EP of songs recorded in her NYU dorm room. They garnered a little success and toured across the US, performing with acts like The Marias, Cuco, and Role Model.
6 years later, following the dissolution of “niña”, dropping out of college, her first breakup, and a 5-centimeter tear to her trachea, she healed and could finally give a voice to the body of songs she had written in her period of voicelessness. Cat was determined to capture these songs to a 16-track tape machine–no computers, software, or auto-tune, just like the artists the California native grew up listening to. Her own heroes, Mazzy Star, Lucinda Williams, Willie Nelson, and Neil Young, made records that were raw and rough around the edges, yet beautiful and refined at the same time. 8 reels of magnetic tape, 3 repair techs, and 1 year of vocal rehabilitation, she found out just how hard and rewarding it was to make this album the same way.
6 years later, following the dissolution of “niña”, dropping out of college, her first breakup, and a 5-centimeter tear to her trachea, she healed and could finally give a voice to the body of songs she had written in her period of voicelessness. Cat was determined to capture these songs to a 16-track tape machine–no computers, software, or auto-tune, just like the artists the California native grew up listening to. Her own heroes, Mazzy Star, Lucinda Williams, Willie Nelson, and Neil Young, made records that were raw and rough around the edges, yet beautiful and refined at the same time. 8 reels of magnetic tape, 3 repair techs, and 1 year of vocal rehabilitation, she found out just how hard and rewarding it was to make this album the same way.