Taken from artist Instagram @rskbandofficial
Six years after their beloved and emblematic album, How To: Friend, Love, Freefall, Rainbow Kitten Surprise returns with their new full-length album, Love Hate Music Box.
Before digging into the band’s latest release, don’t forget to catch up on the band’s previous work.
A Change in Trajectory
Rainbow Kitten Surprise resurfaces with a greater audience and a completely different attitude than 2018. The melancholic yet optimistic story introduced in the 2018 release is in full contrast to Love Hate Music Box. It’s immediately harsher in both sound and lyrics. The dualism of love and loss, hope and pain, is lost in the latest release, where right from the start, a new, harsher tone is set. The band painted life’s ups and downs, and traces the turbulent trajectory of relationships out loud in hues of pop, as well as through unexpected electronic, rock and hip-hop influences.
Hiatus and Inside Issues
On May 24, 2023, Rainbow Kitten Surprise cancelled their 2023 tour. The decision came shortly after a bandmate fell ill.
Hi everyone! I’m Ela, lead singer of Rainbow Kitten Surprise. Over the past couple of years, I’ve been doing some major soul searching in the pursuit of my authentic self. I’m happy to share with you that I am trans. My pronouns are she/her.
Ela Melo came out on Twitter on March 30, 2023. However, positive news soon left the place for uncertainty and breakups. The news followed the release of the single “Work Out,” their first new single released in nearly 18 months, which indirectly led fans to the idea of a potential upcoming album. The album however never came, or at least not before a year from the single.
Following the group’s long time out, the five members reappeared to the public on March 4 of the following year as a quartet. On that very same day, in very vague terms the group announced that the band took parts due to issues between singer Ela Melo and bassist Charlie Holt.
Since our hiatus last summer due to Ela’s mental health, each of us took the time to address ongoing issues in the band. After spending some time contemplating the future of RKS, we are excited to announce our return.
Signed: Bozzy, Ela, Ethan and Jess
On a heavier note, we must also announce the departure of our dear friend, Charlie Holt. After a concerted effort to move forward together, Ela could not find a way to continue working with them.and the band seriously contemplated calling it quits. Charlie is one of a kind and will always be part of our legacy. They can’t be replaced in anyone’s hearts or minds.
We are extra proud of the new songs we’ll be dropping soon because they represent our last collaboration as our original lineup.
Your support and this community means the world to us. We can’t wait to see you on the road.
Rainbow Kitten Surprise’s Latest Love Hate Music Box: A Continuation Or A New Start?
With Love Hate Music Box, the band returned to the industry six years after their latest full-length album. Daniel Tashian, Konrad Snyder and Melo produced Love Hate Music Box in Nashville.
Right from the start, the album sets the tone for an unsuspecting and unpredictable sound. Hitting the first note with electronic instruments and building up the tempo and atmosphere with a raging guitar, the intro song, “Peter Pan,” is the beginning of the end of Rainbow Kitten Surprise as we know them. The band in this way took a drastic turn from the music that made them popular both in the underground scene and on the more mainstream TikTok with their It’s Called Freefall.
Diverging from the sound we learned to love, the band continues the album with harsher sounds, even touching some hip-hop and hyper-pop chords in their ironic single, “LOL.” In this way, the band takes a step back from the original, comforting, lowkey music that has defined their career so far. And, fans are not appreciating it, blaming the departure of Charlie Holt not only for the change in their music, but also for the latest lack of personality in the band’s new style. Just a quick look at the band’s latest posts could show you the general reception of the record.
However, many artists before have navigated through different genres, or even landed completely into a new one, and no such critique ever appeared. The opposite: these artists were praised for doing so. Is this a problem of quality, or rather, of lack of solid foundation for Rainbow Kitten Surprise’s cohesion and sound? We’ll need more records to discover more.
