RAINBOW KITTEN SURPRISE - SUPERSTAR
Junior year of high school. Though it feels like a millenia ago, for me, that monumental 12 months was actually only two years ago. It was the year that I discovered rock n roll, the year I explored my passion for live music, and the year I came out to my family. Quite the itinerary, if you ask me. During this hectic time of teenage angst and soul searching, I found myself connecting with a group that had the most insane band name I’d ever heard. Their music was “weird”, their bass lines were hypnotic, and their message of acceptance and unity was most compelling. Rainbow Kitten Surprise was definitiely a band I never would’ve thought I’d even tolerate, let alone enjoy, but times change and life goes on, so here we are: just in time for their comeback after a 10 month hiatus.
Notoriously, Rainbow Kitten Surprise has been a consistent ve piece made up of vocalist Ela Melo (she/her), guitarist Darrick “Bozzy” Keller (he/him) , guitarist Ethan Goodpaster (he/him), drummer Jess Haney (he/him), and bassist Charlie Holt (they/them) but as of recent, Holt has been let go by the band due to unforeseen circumstances. On March 8th, the band released their newest single that is also the final piece of music under Rainbow Kitten Surprise that Holt contributed to, titled Superstar.
Superstar kicks o with the typical spoken word vocal techniques Melo lays down, similar to the band’s work o of their 2018 album How To: Friend, Love, Freefall. Due to this, the song reeks of the “old” Rainbow Kitten Surprise while also steering towards the next chapter in store for the band; it’s a solid balance they’ve achieved.
Lyrically speaking, it involves themes of self worth, relationships, and love as Melo guides us through a story that describes insecurities and the odd dynamic between herself and her connection with an undisclosed partner. She discusses mistakes and regret that lingers post-relationship with lines such as “still a bad taste when you try to save face, knowing damn well what we did” while ultimately declaring a sort of empowerment in the chorus with “I’m your superstar again, I was always gonna win, I was so above the rest”. Whether it was Melo or one of the other members, the writing is pristine because it captures the reality of romance: the ups, downs, and in-betweens.
Moving on to the actual instruments, the foundations of the song in a way, Superstar comes straight out of an indie queer coming of age lm. The bubbliness of the guitar meshes with the distinctiveness of the drums to bring out a sound that is similar to styles found in the music of MGMT, Two Door Cinema Club, and Neon Trees. I specically pictured the tunnel scene from The Perks of Being a Wallower during my rst listen of Superstar and with each go, my original visualization only strengthens with that imagery.
After the release of Superstar, the next steps for Rainbow Kitten Surprise are unknown. Many have speculated that they will hunker down in the studio with a new bassist to proceed with this new era of music whereas others think they already have a whole album locked and loaded. Controversies continue to circulate about Charlie Holt and the truth behind their removal from the band but it appears that the remaining four are more focused on the journey ahead with this new song and its coinciding music video directed by Matthew DeLisi. Perhaps one day we as fans will nd out the truth about Holt’s dismissal from Rainbow Kitten Surprise but for now, we have new music to enjoy and that is plenty.