.png)
Album: King of the Hill
Artist: Kate Stephenson
Genre: Alternative, Indie, Folk, Pop-Punk, Rock, Country, Pop
Label: Many Hats Distribution
Non-Airable Tracks: “Lie a Little,” “Sick of It,” “Kathy; A Story of Love, Lust, and the Country”
A week ago, I had no idea who Kate Stephenson was. The lyrical-genius, genre-bender from the Midwest was a complete mystery. Now, she’s been recommended to almost everyone I know.
I stumbled upon her music as an avid folk fan with a habit of doomscrolling on the music side of social media late into the night. Somehow, I dug deep enough to find Kate: a self titled “sad punk disco pop folk” artist who had only released her newest album a few days ago. Curious, I gave it a listen.
Oh, man, was I in for a rollarcoaster of emotions.
“King of the Hill” details Kate’s experiences growing up, maturing, and traveling the country after ending a situationship with a mediocre man. Sounds exactly like the kind of music I love. There are only 10 songs on the record, but each one packs an emotional punch. From her slow, poetic tracks like “Flying to Chicago” and “Treated You Well,” to her more upbeat, pop-punk songs like “Sick of It” and “Lie A Little,” she is able to craft a well known story of early twenties self discovery as a young woman.
There are so many different, contrasting aspects of this fantastic album that I could talk about. Kate changes genres on what seems like every other track, going from indie-folk to country to pop-punk. Half the album details conflicting feelings about womanhood and motherhood, while the other slanders the man who broke her heart. It seems impossible to compare her to any other artist or album, because she simultaneously delivers folklore-era Taylor Swift, the bridges and soft voice of Gracie Abrahms, the midwest lyrical flare of Chappell Roan, and the folk twang of a diddy written on a single guitar. I couldn’t seem to keep up with her, but was too interested to tap out early.
Kate Stephenson takes the listener through her thought process and gets personal after the end of a relationship. In the track “My Trip Down South,” she discusses all the little things this man did to make her feel small, how he would disregard her music and then proceed to show off her career to gain attention. She phrases romantic, intimate moments with double meanings that could bring either sweetness or disgust. She repeats quiet lyrics over and over again, almost to herself, as if she can’t show them to anyone else. Or anyone who will listen at least.
The two’s story continues in “Treated You Well” and “Sick of It,” where Kate expresses betrayal and anger over the relationship and its end. While “Sick of It” is yet another fantastic display of this artist’s talent, I want to focus on the other. The first time I heard “Treated You Well” I had to completely stop what I was doing and sit down with the lyrics: “You also said you loved me first/Just not at my worst/Or if I’m wearing an underskirt.” “And now I’m underdressed/At some who’s worse contest/And the voice in my head/Says that I should have left.” She’s able to so masterfully capture the feeling of realizing that someone is betraying you and realizing it all far too late. Knowing that they only wanted you for one thing. Only committing to you when it’s convenient for them. Seeing you as a jigsaw of all the things they like…
Kate ties up the story of this relationship with the song “In Me, Baby,” a reflection looking back at how things ended, wondering if her lover ever saw her as more than something casual he could use for his own benefit. She is now older, and she sees this time from a new perspective: “Claiming I was young/Knowing full well I was only dumb.” She can now see everything that this man has done to her, how both of them are at fault, but how she was ultimately used. She wonders if he ever saw her as a woman instead of a girlfriend, and then she proceeds to deliver what is most likely my favorite bridge of 2024:
“You gave me your ribs
And I brought them to show and tell
Your mama wouldn't hurt me
'cause she believes in hell
I thought you made me better
You just made me someone else
Put a girls' dress on a grown woman
A lover on the leash and
Forgave you
And forgave you
And forgave you”
In a mere five lines, Kate Stephenson tore my heart out. Yet again.
But the fun isn’t over there. Stephenson then delivers, “Lie A Little,” a fun punk-pop track about a man who “loves women.” Heavy in electric guitar, bass, and sillier lyrics, Kate mocks the subject of the song with her sarcastic tone. She regularly giggles, screams, sasses, and jokes within the music. I’ve listened to this song over and over again, and I’m pretty sure she’s talking about a very specific kind of male celebrity: the one who’s an open feminist and claims to support women, but has no respect for the actual, individual women in his life. I would say names, but I’m sure you know exactly who I’m referring to.
This magnificent genre-bent folk album isn’t all about a disappointing man, however. In another of my favorite songs, “For the Daughter I’ll Never Have,” Kate mulls over her conflicting ideas about and perceptions of motherhood. She discusses all the wonderful things that having a daughter would bring and all the ways she would show this girl love. She details an entire childhood and relationship between the two of them, only to claim it will never be. Whether because of the desire to not have kids, the enjoyment of being alone, health concerns, or a litany of other reasons women choose not to, we never know. But we do get a look inside this very personal subject of motherhood and maternal desire. Even if she never has children, there is still the thought at the back of her head, how would life be different if she did? Would life be better or worse? And this is one of the things that I absolutely adore about this album: Stephenson’s vulnerability. We have plenty of artists who write personal songs or are more open with their lives, but it’s been quite some time since I’ve seen an artist so raw.
In the final tracks, Kate Stephenson steps into more of a folk-country realm, with simple, twangy songs “Texas Wide” and the closing track, “Kathy; A Story of Love, Lust and The Country.” This final song details the entire making of the album and everything she went through to get to its release, all packaged up in a cute sing-along folk diddy. She talks about loving “a boy who loved God” and then proceeding to travel around the US, from Kentucky to New Jersey, South Carolina to Arizona. Along the way, she meets different characters, who were, in fact, real people, who teach her about life and let her share her experiences. This road trip that she sings about happened in real life, and while the song is silly and off pace from the rest of the album, I believe it is one of the most important. She’s telling the audience about everything that happened that went into the album. Not the lyrics or the writing or the production, but what she had to go through in order to be inspired in the first place. The song, packaged up all cute, is the heart of the story, because it’s how she healed from everything else she wrote about.
Talented, diverse, creative, and a little silly, Kate Stephenson has successfully established herself as a regular on my playlist, my inspiration, and my musical doomscrolling. From her raw, vulnerable lyrics, to her ever changing musical style, she is able to craft beautiful stories that make me cry and one’s heart soar.
Tracklist:
Flying to Chicago
Just A Kid ft. Liam Bauman
Treated You Well
In Me, Baby
Sick Of It
Lie a Little
My Trip Down South
For the Daughter I’ll Never Have
Texas Wide
Kathy; A Story of Love, Lust and the Country
Recommended Tracks:
For the Daughter I’ll Never Have
Kathy; A Story of Love, Lust and the Country
Lie a Little
In Me, Baby
Comentarios