Section Styles sticky
EPITOME
01 I Can’t Lie
02 Apple Tree
03 Paperread
04 Anthropology
05 Old Town
“Mixing scuffed, grungey purge-pop, hushed, contemplative acoustica and ambient psychedelia, Kai’s writing is instantly ensnaring, her lyrics recalling Fiona Apple, Liz Phair and Regina Spektor in their balance of the matter-of-fact and the impressionistic, her vocal delivery casual and upfront. The results are both intriguing and beguiling.”
–The Sunday Times (London)
I Can’t Lie
“This is an extremely promising first single. The laid-back instrumentation has a Southern rock tinge, but then there’s an amazing payoff in the second chorus as twinkling synths come in. The fascinating blend of these sounds and Kai’s crystal clear voice only make us more excited to hear other material from her.”
–B-Side Magazine
Apple Tree
“‘Apple Tree’ shows Jayla Kai as a force to be reckoned with. Her style of grungey indie-rock feels perfectly honed, it’s instinctive poetry, lyrically phenomenal and instrumentally powerful.”
–Gigwise
Paperread
“‘I don’t feel like a kid/Something I’m rid of now’, sings Jayla Kai on ‘Paperread’, each word croaked as if she’s sharing a private epiphany with the world. It’s one of many earnest, emotionally expressive moments on the 18-year-old’s debut EP ‘Epitome’ that suggests, at least for this young artist, the passing of youth is a perpetual battle of pain and confusion. Her observational songwriting is an attempt to slow down and make sense of the rush.”
–NME
Listen to my conversation with Theresa Widmann on “I Want What She Has”