Seventeen year old superstar in the making Cathy Jain impressed us back in June with her debut single “Cool Kid”, and returns today with news of her debut EP, artificial, which will come out on November 5 through Yala!. Encapsulating just how musically and emotionally intelligent she is, Jain tells us about the EP:
“In a word my “artificial EP” is about authenticity. Together, the four tracks take a look at how we define what is really “real” when we spend so much of our time either in our own heads or in a virtual world online.
“With each song on the EP, I’ve tried to create a snapshot of a few moments in someone’s life where they are thinking about this. I think that people (especially those my age) stress a lot about their image and how their life and feelings match up to what other people expect of them, but these songs have a more light-hearted, observational, and kind of reassuring style.“
Today she shares the title track, and says about it: “So, in the title track “artificial”, I’m picturing someone who feels like their life lacks authenticity but realises that their imagination and virtual life are all part of what makes up who they are.”
To capture this feeling of physical isolation, we’re introduced to “artificial” through plaintive acoustic guitar strums and a beautifully wallowing and wordless vocal, putting us in mind of a person waking alone in their bed; “it’s the same every day / looking in the mirror, but it’s the same anyway.” However, as she comes to realise her online presence is still a part of herself, she sings of being “artificial, synthetic / made of metal and plastic / but it’s all good,” and from there, “artificial” takes an up-tick in sound as the beat kicks in. We can hear Jain’s protagonist coming to accept themselves for who they are, and skilfully employed synthetic textures allow us to envision them hopping on their phone and connecting with the world, with the people and things they love. A bright and ear-catching array of piano and vocal melodies signify a subtle sense of happiness pervading them as they scroll, and satisfaction and peace is achieved – at least for a little while.
Listen to “artificial” below, or on your preferred streaming platform.
Cathy Jain’s artificial EP is out on November 5 through Yala!. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram.
