Kirsten Izer and the metrical organica and blindfolded introspection of "Anyone But Me"

 

"Cut me up last night / Holy cow, sacred knife / Told me what they like / So I shifted my shape for show / Should have said no..."

The metrical organica and blindfolded introspection of "Anyone But Me", by New Jersey bred / Los Angeles based alt pop singer-songwriter / producer Kirsten Izer, is instantly telling and ultra magnetic. The stark indie folk nature feels different for Izer but I should not be surprised because she has never been tied to one genre, one format, she is way too divergent for that. The stark compelling acoustic nature that feels folk adjacent to artists like Edith Frost, Fleet Foxes, Nick Drake, Drug Cabin and the personal confessional atmospheres of artists like Marika Hackman, Lorde, Camper, Lea Willms, Phoebe Bridgers sets the stage for personal, intimate revelations. 

I absolutely love Izer's vocal performance that feels both raw and unabashedly emotionally present. From her latest EP, "The Perfect Hire", and as PRESS NOTES (excerpted / bracketed) reveal [Izer publicly opens up about her lifelong battle with body dysmorphia for the first time, with Izer holding herself captive in a prison of self loathing.] 

“I have spent so much time in my life body-checking in the mirror, trying to gain a better understanding of how I look as I move through the world, but I never come to a conclusion no matter how hard I try,” Izer shares. “How I feel on the inside doesn’t match how I look on the outside. Combined with OCD (obsessive rumination)...it’s very exhausting.”   

[Co-produced with Ari Pent, and co-written with Ari Pent, Jake Cassman, and Andy Chess, the track features lush vocal harmonies from all four songwriters, meant to mimic the different voices that compete inside the mind. Drawing inspiration from artists like Elliott Smith and boygenius, the driving acoustic guitar propels the song forward and the subtle, eerie soundscapes leave listeners haunted.]

“When it came to the production, this song was a major lesson in restraint,” Izer says. “Every time we added another instrument, we felt like it took away from the charm that was there in the original demo, so we tried to stay close to that. Most of this process was adding sounds that are ‘felt, not heard.’ We kept removing instruments up until the very end of the process, which was very new for me as a producer. I’m glad this song taught me the importance of leaving space and knowing when to do less.”

I, for one, am very thankful that Izer and her co-producer settled on a less is more aesthetic. It absolutely works here and while a daring choice since it focuses so much attention on Izer's emotional bloodletting, the result is beautifully moving and addictive. I literally cannot stop listening to it. The track is accompanied with a wonderfully inventive Official Video. 

-Robb Donker Curtius

LYRICS

Cut me up last night
Holy cow, sacred knife
Told me what they like
So I shifted my shape for show
Should have said no

Paint me in your light
Makeup, blood, black and white
T-shirt fits too tight
Feel so ugly but at least I tried
To be right

[CHORUS]
Never look right in the mirror
Close my eyes to be her
But I just can’t see

The prisoner
The key I need to free her
The walls are closing nearer
Lungs too bound to breathe

I’m anyone but me

[VERSE 2]
Paper cup and string
From my mother, passed to me
I'd give anything
To hear what's on the other side
The voice that's really mine

[CHORUS]
Never look right in the mirror
Close my eyes to be her
But I just can’t see

The prisoner
The key I need to free her
The walls are closing nearer
Lungs too bound to breathe

If the air inside is hell
if I can’t free myself
I want you to be
Anyone but me





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THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM 

https://open.spotify.com/artist/6FGemJvcrQ1GhqzErrl8jA

https://soundcloud.com/kirstenizer

https://www.instagram.com/thekirstenizer

https://www.facebook.com/Kirstenizermusic


Kirsten Izer has been making a name for herself in the indie music scene. Born in New Jersey to visual artist parents, Izer always felt a deep need to tell stories. After working as a music journalist and publicist in NYC for outlets like Billboard, Izer relocated to Los Angeles to begin telling her own story as an artist. She soon met Randall Belculfine (Tones And I, Tanerélle), and the pair began working on a collection of breakup songs inspired by a toxic workplace relationship riddled with complicated power dynamics, which would later become her critically acclaimed debut EP, The Perfect Hire. Izer has been compared to the likes of Hayley Williams, Alanis Morisette and Kate Bush, and with good reason. She crafts stories with intention and with a sound uniquely her own, transforming specific memories or situations into authentic emotional experiences for the masses.


“[Kirsten Izer] has, very powerfully, and thrillingly, her own sound.” -SPIN Magazine

“Her lyrical ability is matched perfectly by her vocal technique, which knows when to hold back and when to let loose. Much of Izer’s writing is instinctive, but she is a storyteller.” -Get Some Magazine

“The strength of her writing, exquisite self-awareness and ability to emote vulnerability is really special.” -American Pancake

Kirsten Izer, New Jersey bred, Los Angeles based, singer songwriter, producer, creator, writer, musician, NEW EP "The Perfect Hire", single "Anyone But Me" (Official Visualizer), indie rock, folk indie,