Following the success of her 2021 LP Cool Dry Place, Brooklyn-based indie folk artist Katy Kirby has inked a deal with ANTI- Records—and to celebrate that news she’s shared a new single entitled “Cubic Zirconia.” The pop-infused track is built around bouncy and twinkling piano melodies, a drum groove highlighted by smoky cymbal work, and a guitar part that features slides up and down the fretboard. Kirby’s voice sounds as confident as ever, equal parts beautiful and powerful. “Why wouldn’t that be enough?,” she asks during the chorus.
While there’s no official news around a future release through the label at this point, we had the chance to chat with Kirby about the new song, what the meaning behind the title is all about, and more.
Check out the video for “Cubic Zirconia” below, and stream it here.
How did you decide on “Cubic Zirconia” as a theme for the song? What does it imply?
I meant it to be a way to think about loving the parts of someone that are technically unnatural or artificial—the choices they make about how to present themselves as they move through the world—and a little bit a defense of anything deemed “synthetic” or “unnatural” or “artificial.” It seems stupid and deeply suspicious to me when those words are used to imply that something or someone is inferior or less legitimate.
When did you write the song? Was it part of a larger collection, or was it part of an individual songwriting session?
I’ve been writing this song in pieces for about four years. It felt like such a large concept that I’m not sure I could even get it down into a song. I’m still not sure if I really have?
Cool Dry Place was really beloved by old fans while still finding a bigger audience. Have you reflected on that era yet? What are you most proud of that that album accomplished?
I made that record with my dearest friends, and I’m most proud of how much we learned throughout making it. Sometimes I come across pictures from recording Cool Dry Place and I remember how much we were just guessing at the right things to do. I’m also so happy it opened up opportunities for us to keep working together in new and exciting ways.
Was there anything on “Cubic Zirconia” either during writing or recording that you wanted to do completely differently than ever before?
Something that I noticed a lot during writing was how often I found myself picturing a specific setting—a type of scruffy South Florida beach town the characters in the song seem to inhabit. The enveloping heat, the aimlessness of everyone on vacation, the way everything is decaying a little bit in the humid salt air. I grew up visiting my grandparents in a town like that, and there was always this unsettling mix of celebration and leisure with a hint of despair underneath.
What are you most looking forward to about releasing a new song? Fan reaction? A chance to play it live? Something else?
Definitely most looking forward to playing it live! We’ve done a few different versions of it on tour already but it’s come together for real now.
