KATIE GREGSON-MACLEOD – SONGS WRITTEN FOR PIANO

Well, if we’re talking success stories within the Scottish scene in 2022, you gotta bring up Katie. This year, the Inverness artist unexpectedly became a viral sensation with a demo of her song Complex and, well, naturally, she’s been on the up and up since, and deservedly so, as she’s a magnificent talent. If you haven’t been made aware of her as of yet, then this EP right here is the perfectly starting place.

I’m Worried It Will Always Be You is first, and within seconds her popularity is immediately apparent. Her voice is outstanding, bursting at the seams with so much pent up emotional sorrow in amongst the sleek delicacy, it’s all so lovely, and the piano work of course complements the gentle and hushed ambience.

Now that she has you under her spell, she follows with To Be Eighteen, where the piano is accompanied with faint but very nice acoustics. The writing here tears you apart, centring around the one you loved not truly loving you back, and in a veil of denial, wanting to so badly to teleport back to the good old days where all seemed perfect.

Then we come to the feature presentation, Complex itself, and wow, it’s absolutely no wonder why this exploded the way it did, it’s impeccable, everything about it is flawless. Katie’s singing is hauntingly beautiful and its power alone is enough to spark the waterworks, assuming the lyrics don’t, it’s so gut-wrenching and heart-breaking and your sympathies run at an all-time high, coming to the realisation that you’re not considered that special in the eyes of the one you devote yourself to, but still refusing to let go, it just hurts so much, and lastly the chorus is remarkable and sticks with you and builds up to a stirring finish. What else can I say? It’s a masterpiece.

And then there’s White Lies. Firstly, Katie’s vocal talents are at their highest pinnacle in this one; oh my gosh, when it hits the peak of the tune, her pitch and power is just breath-taking; and secondly, again, the lyrics just stab the heart, where even after everything, you’re swallowed up in a state of confusion and uncertainty about yourself, just highlighting how traumatic and damaging this whole ordeal was.

With all the hype and publicity Katie’s received, I feel like I’m just preaching to the choir and repeating what everyone else has said, but hey, this is a platform where I want to just share with you all some of my favourite acts that I love, and Katie I undoubtedly love. This EP is superlative, it’s a rare kind of special, and Katie is already far off to the races of superstardom.