It’s finally Fall and the time of the year when I search for new music to enjoy on my jogs through the leaves and the cool breeze. I came across an interesting New Jersey indie pop artist called Bitter’s Kiss. You may wonder why on Earth would I even consider listening to an artist titled Bitter’s Kiss, but Chloe Baker truly makes me think, even with her title Bitter’s Kiss she has a way of expressing herself and demonstrating her great talents. Baker is young and her thought-provoking music will surely take her far because every work from her is in-your-face raw as she explores the artist’s soul.
When listening to her music, you can feel the melancholy of suburban life and hardship people face mentally and emotionally in everyday life. In Chloe Baker’s Bitter’s Kiss project she shows us it’s okay to express our fragile humanity. Her songs are memorable and really touch listeners from the soul.
Listening to her music, it really gives room for self-reflection. Often at times one begins questioning what would the younger version of me ask my current self. Is this the life you dreamed about when you were young? It’s moving to even have the courage to address ones self about such questions. On the album Bitter’s Kiss, we go through a journey with Chloe Baker to answer the questions we fear to answer to ourselves, but she is confident in the hope for a better tomorrow and hopes asking those questions will help us all look in the mirror and ask ourselves before we ask of others. Important principles matter and it’s relevant with the times as Pope Francis visits the United States for the first time with a powerful message for the people to act now on creating a better tomorrow.
Watching “The Rope” music video, which is on the album Bitter’s Kiss, we were instantly glue to the screen as we see a woman in a white dress with long blondish, brown hair looking away from the camera. What is she doing? That’s the first question we have going into the music video. In fact, the white dress is beautiful with lovely detailing. As she turns her head to the camera, we see a perfectly made up face, reminds us of a porcelain doll. But it’s not the face which has us in awe by the end of the video. It’s the hard questions like ‘Are you thankful for the pain?’ How many of us thank God for the pain? How many of us question the soul behind the face? Questioning faith and religion is scary for most of us. Sometimes it does hurt to smile. Chloe Baker puts it all out there for us to think upon in the new video “The Rope” and it makes us love the artists even more. There is something refreshing about a young woman saying meaningful, powerful statements from the soul. Don’t take our word for it, watch her new video “The Rope” ( radio mix) below:
Cannot see the video? You can stream the song The Rope on Soundcloud.
The Rope is Baker’s way of examining her feelings about the suicide of a distant cousin from a very religious background and her thoughts on the importance of staying true to one’s identity, finding something personally significant about one’s life to make life feel meaningful. Another memorable track from the album is the song “Too Far Too Fast”. It’s a reaction to watching her older sister go off to college and reflecting on how quickly time passes. When people can look beyond the sadness of the world, it’s truly moving and Baker brings us there. She gives us hope.
You can have a listen to the entire “Bitter’s Kiss” album here. If you love Regina Spektor, Sixpence, None the Richer, Nellie McKay, Sarah McLaghlan, or Carole King, you’ll enjoy this album. To learn more about Chloe Baker, follow Bitter’s Kiss on Facebook and visit the website.
About Chloe Baker of Bitter’s Kiss
Chloe Baker grew up in a home filled with music, with a father who maintained a studio, a guitar collection and a band, and has been active in musical theater for years. Baker has been serious about writing for about a year and her father helps her record and produce music. For her, songwriting is her living diary and a way for her to ask the hard questions.