The best music comes about when you make it with people you love. Such is true in the case of Happy Kitty House, the artistic braintrust of Adam and Meredith Moore, and their first album, My First Rodeo, a whimsical indie debut with a sound that traverses the time-space continuum.
Happy Kitty House formed through metaphysical means, according to their own legend: “It was a cold night, and the wind blew in a mysterious way, just like in The Grinch. Two strangers, guided by a huge gust of magical, mystical wind, were blown into each other’s path. It was in that exact moment that everything forever changed.” Translated: Adam and Meredith, both musicians in their own right, joined their forces to create a united front of music and love.
So My First Rodeo – released this past New Year’s Day – is neither Adam’s nor Meredith’s true initial foray into making music. But it is their first release together as Happy Kitty House, and by bringing both of their talents together and mixing it with their love for music and for one another, they have created a gem.
From the first track, “Somebody You Used To Be”, Happy Kitty House lays the dreamy indie sound on thick. Meredith’s and Adam’s voices have just the right amount of reverb behind them, and the balance of sounds and arrangement of instruments sound in place with the sun-kissed songs of M. Ward, She & Him, or Ty Segall. Despite their strong connection, Meredith and Adam sing about heartbreak and pining for lost love with the passion of people for whom the loss is fresh:
“Isn’t it funny how nothing really lasts?
I didn’t realize I’d never get it back
I didn’t mean it when I said goodbye
So, can you please return to me?”
Things take a shinier turn on “On Our Way”, which describes a fun little romantic evening out on the town. The track’s quite fun, complete with moments of laughter sprinkled throughout, sound effects (a car horn, a flat tire), and a moment where the track slows down as their car runs out of gas. But the song has a happy end where Meredith and Adam make it home alive, complete with a key change and several catchy la-da-das.
“One and Only” gets a little grunge action going, with some straightforward lyrics about unconditional love: “I don’t wanna be alive without you/I don’t mean to be dramatic, but it’s all true”. Lyrically and musically, the track doesn’t need to get more complex than it is. The heavy guitars drive the song and drive home its central point: When you’re so in love with someone, you don’t need too many words or chords to explain yourself.
To take a quick siesta from songs about love, “One Day” shifts the focus to growing up and looking back at fleeting youth: Scraped knees, watching cartoons, getting in one more bike ride before winter comes. “One day, you never went back to the park up the hill, didn’t give the same thrill,” Meredith sings, marking the shift from childhood to adolescence. “One day, you smoke your first cigarette as your hair slowly goes from baby blonde to brunette.” The darkening of the hair color, along with the loss of joy for going to the park, comments on the emotional perils of growing old.
And then it’s right back to fun love songs with “Tattooed Daddy”. Is Meredith singing about Adam on this track, or just acting as a character singing about an unrelated tatted-up dream guy? Either way, this is a delightful beachy song about a gentleman who by most standards would give most folks the ick: Shopping in bargain bins, smoking hand-rolled tobacco cigarettes, choosing Cincinnati as a vacation spot. But to some, as Meredith sings, “he’s as sweet as laffy taffy.”
“Downtown”, a truly catchy tune, has a bit of a Motown vibe to it, with wonderful vocal harmonies and key changes abound, with some choice whistling in between verses. And while the lyrics sound simple, they speak to coming up in the world, reaching new personal heights, and not caring what anyone else thinks: “It’s such a beautiful day, I’m on my way/And now I’m more downtown than I’ve ever been.”
The album ends with the slow swing tune “Muscle Memory”. Meredith’s voice layers on top of itself to deliver some beautiful lyrics about unconditional love, echoing the vibes of “One And Only”: “When we both return to dust/Know that I’ll be searching for you.” It’s a fitting end to My First Rodeo: After so many songs about romance, growing up, and not wanting to return to heartbreak, a track about taking love to the grave feels like the right place to cap things off.
My First Rodeo is the first of hopefully many more releases from Happy Kitty House. Meredith and Adam sure do seem to love each other and make music together quite a lot. And in times when things feel so bleak and dark and cold, it helps to have music that makes us feel warm and tingly inside, just like it helps to have people you love close by.
Take a listen to “One And Only” from My First Rodeo below, and follow Happy Kitty House on Instagram to keep up with their latest.
Written by Will Sisskind
