Every week for New Music Friday there’s a new release that bring us two distinct waves of emotion: The first an immediate intrigue, a fast appreciation for the sounds running through our heads pumped in directly from the speakers; and the second an idea of needing more time, later, alone, intimately, away from the grind of the content game to embrace a deeper listen. Today (September 24), that release comes from SOUNDR, the alt-pop project of Katherine Thomas that drops her new EP MONSTERS IN MY HEAD, led by a haunting damage-pop single called “IT ME”.
“I started writing for the SOUNDR project after moving back to Salt Lake City, right in the middle of the pandemic,” says Thomas. “I had very few friends in the area, was in a new living environment, and working with a new producer on songs that were under my skin more than anything else I’d written. At the same time, I was juggling severe depression and anxiety, as well as manic phases. I felt like I was living this whole other reality inside my head that no one else cared to see or could understand. I was dissociating a lot, and I was feeling a lot. Anger, sadness, chaos, power, feeling ruthlessly numb. All these emotions and thoughts stuck in my head, creating dissonance with the real world around me. I wanted a way out of the cycle — a way to process, to take the chaos in my heart and mind and turn it into something meaningful.”
Previous singles like “CONTROL” and “MANIA” helped share the styles and sounds swirling around the EP, but with the five songs presented now almost like chapters in the start of a story, we’ve given a true glimpse into SOUNDR’s world, offering up dark imperfections and raw self-examination. It’s a devilish dance through her headspace. And we’re hooked.
“Each song on this EP is an expression of those feelings,” she adds. “Each song carries an unfiltered piece of me. It is vulnerable in saying: I am the ‘MONSTERS IN MY HEAD.’ I own who I am, even the ugly parts. And I am okay with being everything at once. But I realize now that I am also the catalyst and source of change. I control how much power I let those pieces of me have. I control who I want to be, and what I want life to look like. I’ve grown so much in writing these songs. I shifted my focus over the past year to two main things: creating art and healing mental scars.”
Listen to it now, but be sure to take it with you later for a proper embrace.