Katie Wighton has long been an integral part of All Our Exes Live In Texas. However, ‘Good Guy’, her debut solo release as Kit, is a turn away from the folk stylings of that band; a raw and fire-bellied rocker. Juxtaposing fuzzed-out, overdriven guitars and driving percussion with Wighton’s soaring melodic vocals, it’s a powerhouse of a track that will appeal to fans of Alex Lahey or Ruby Fields.
Co-written with Ali Barter, Wighton says the song was conceived after having “one too many conversations” with other women about men in the entertainment industry not being held accountable for toxic behaviour.
“There is a long and specific story behind it, basically I was tired of hearing sad songs by incredible women about other remarkable women who were wronged – I just wanted to get mad about it,” she explains.
“The chorus is kind of a G-rated ‘fuck the patriarchy’. One of the lyrics is ‘It’s bigger than us both.’ The conversations stopped just being about my own sadness, anger, disappointment and horror and turned into ‘What the actual shit is going on around us? How can we fix this?'”
The clip for ‘Good Guy’ was created in collaboration with Gina Somfleth of Pop Candi Films and serves as a particularly appropriate visual complement to the track – alluding to the all-too-familiar experience of meeting someone who seems wonderful, only for them to turn around and exhibit shitty behaviour.
“I feel like it’s so common now. Sometimes it’s not even something that bad. Ghosting and not replying to texts, not going straight for a condom, not being honest and open about where they’re at.”
The outbreak of coronavirus has meant that the planned single launch shows for ‘Good Guy’ have been shuffled around a bit. Wighton will instead be performing live from her living room over Instagram on Friday, April 17th at 7PM AEDT, with support from Bonnie Songs, Nancie Schipper and Hannah Blackburn, with a Bandcamp link so that fans can purchase the single and donate what they may have to come to an IRL show, with a percentage of the proceeds going to Support Act.
Watch the video for ‘Good Guy’ below.
