Un-kool Kat.
It's all very unsettling. The crazy vocal pitches rattling about like a pinball, the rhythms and tempos swerving and dipping and all over a backdrop that is punctuated by brass section that have dipped in jazz. So musically it's all a bit overpowering and that’s before you consider the lyrics. Not only do they allow Kat Vipers ‘unique’ delivery to find a home, they’ve no doubt saved her a fortune in psychiatry bills. Peppered with references to family members, to lost love, to shutting down and of wanting to be elsewhere, it's not a pretty painting that Ms.Vipers is painting on ‘Hot Air Balloon’ EP.
The lead track had a repeating chorus that will definitely nag in your mind and the song is memorable, but more for the way it spins everywhere. Kat Vipers is quoted as one of the best punk-jazz artist, which explains a lot of the rapid changes and jagged edge of her songs but its hard to imagine many other artists who would be considered in this genre.
‘Wasting Time’ has some notable similarities to Fiona Apple's ‘Fast As You Can’, another female artist who went a bit kooky but Apple had the manners to construct it around a fairly pleasant tune
There is a variety in some of the tracks, with a children’s chorus further adding to the unsettling nature of the release but overall, the EP sounds very samey over the course and it can only be a good thing that it's not an album. An EP of material which begins to repeat on itself is bearable but an album would be too much.