EP Walkthrough: Kito on her mind-bending debut, HAANI

If you're at all familiar with the Perth electronic scene, chances are you've already heard of Kito. Formerly one-half of electro-pop duo Kito & Reija Lee, the producer is one of WA's most versatile and elite, something she's out to prove on her own with her debut EP, HAANI. Now based in LA, the six-track EP showcases the many different sides of Kito, whether it be warping, genre-bending electronic with her long-awaited comeback single and EP leading track Ego, the more pop-centric Broods collaboration Creature Kind, or the more experimental and percussive Pamplemousse, which features Hudson Mohawke.

It's experimental and off-centre without jeopardising any accessibility or attractiveness, with her experiences working with names including Laneway Festival-bound Jorja Smith, Normani and Wafia ultimately combining to create an incredibly slick and polished release that's sure to have at least one track you'll enjoy.

With the full EP out now – grab it HERE – we got Kito to walk us through its creation, which you can dive into while you get swept up in HAANI's warped and twisted goodness below:

Ego

I wrote this song with Ed Thomas and Gina Kushka in my old house and studio in London with my cat meowing in between every vocal take (loudest cat in the world, but also the greatest cat in the world) while drinking Hennessy and oversharing everything about our lives - how very cliché of us. These two know me so well and have been very important collaborators over the last couple of years (Ed and I co-wrote Jorja Smith - The One together). The beautiful voice on the track is Gina’s, and this song is about the ego getting in the way of basically everything. It’s a giant FU to the ego.

Creature Kind (feat. Broods)

OMFG - Broods. I love these two. I met Broods in LA end of last year and we wrote this song over two very fun days. The breakdown in this song is such a big epic festival journey - we had everyone in their house play the flute and Georgia played the keys with both hands and her face (I have a video as proof). I finished off the production beginning of this year, but it didn’t stray too far from the demo.

Pamplemousse (feat. Hudson Mohawke)

HudMo is one of my favourite producers and also a very dear friend of mine. When I first moved to LA, I was staying at his place and in the middle of finishing off my EP. When I thought it was basically finished I played it to him to get his feedback, and he felt I was missing an instrumental track. We made Pamplemousse that afternoon and it just tied the whole project together so nicely. I love this track, and I’m so happy to have this collab on my EP.

Strawberries (feat. Elley Duhé, Trinidad James, Kodie Shane)

This song was like a jigsaw puzzle. I had the Trinidad James hook from a session I did with him years ago and had this Strawberries concept with Linnea Sodahl - a songwriter from Sweden. I am obsessed with Elley Duhé, and when I got the chance to work with her on stuff for her project I played her the instrumental with the Trinidad James hook to see if she was into it - which she was. Elley is amazing - she absolutely killed it. Amazing voice and an amazing songwriter. I was working with Kodie around the same time so sent her the track in case she wanted to jump on it as well and she recorded her part in Atlanta and sent it to me. I’m a big fan of Kodie and I love her part. Everyone was so cool about being involved with this and I’m so grateful. I love having voices that compliment each other on a track and I think in this case they really do. The main synth was a sample I cut up and replayed in Logic’s ESX24.

Love Hurts (feat. Tara Carosielli)

Tara and I were working together a lot in London - I helped her put her debut EP together, and also co-wrote & produced her track Leave You Lonely. She’s so incredibly talented. I think this song is pretty self-explanatory! Love fucking hurts. But it’s also the best and worth the risk of the heartbreak. But this song is about the heartbreak!

Blue (feat. Shy Girls)

Shy Girls is the only feature artist on my EP that I didn’t work with in the same room! We live in the same neighbourhood but have never met! I love his voice and my management sent him the instrumental. I had zero notes to send back because I love what he did over it so much. It’s perfect.

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