Interview- Mr. Kitty (It's Okay To Cry)

Dallas based Forrest Carney, a.k.a. Mr.Kitty, takes inspirations from the likes of Joy Division, The Cure, Depeche Mode, Crystal Castles, Pictureplane, and Grimes into his creative weaves, as well as the craft of brewing colourful narratives developed through his invention as a visual artist. Mr. Kitty's latest album Life is out now on Engraved Ritual.The music is the perfect blend of retro and progressive. Life does a great job of paying homage to its inspirations while not ignoring it's own vast potential. Check out what Mr. Kitty has to say about his new album and more!

Phill – Thank you so much for giving Grave Concerns Ezine this interview, can you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?

Mr.Kitty - My name is Forrest and I make music that will hurt your heart.

Phill – Mr.Kitty is a fun and funky name, why did you choose it?

Mr.Kitty - I saw a picture of a cat wearing a hat and a bowtie and thought it looked like a distinguished gentleman.

Phill – You recently were asked to remove your cover of Yes No by Crystal Castles from sites like YouTube by their management, were you given a reason for this?

Mr.Kitty - A lot of people were asking when Crystal Castles were going to record their version of Mr.Kitty's "Yes No".

Read the Grave Concerns E-zine review of Life here!

Phill – You recently released your last studio album Life through Engraved Ritual, what has the response been to life so far?

Mr.Kitty - Everything has been positive so far. A much bigger response than I could ever imagine.

Phill – Why did you choose Engraved Ritual?

Mr.Kitty - I had never really done any label work, so I gave it a shot. I also really like industrial music.

Phill – You recently used Indiegogo the crowd funding platform to help fund Life and also a tour, how did this go for you?

Mr.Kitty - I was able to get all of the merch that I needed to order and more. Although, I think I need a bit more to tour.

Phill – Your music has changed over time and you have veered away in some aspects from your synthpop roots, why did have you done this?

Mr.Kitty - All artists should do something fresh. I don't think that anybody wants to hear the same album released multiple times.

Phill – The artwork for Life is really cool, who did it and what does it symbolise for you?

Mr.Kitty - The artwork is a graphic I created while I was recording the album ETERNITY. It is actually a picture of me in the black cloak with a cat head photoshopped on. It's how I see myself.

Phill – You recently moved, how did the move go as moving can be very stressful and did this have any knock on affect to your music?

Mr.Kitty - I had to do most of the packing and moving by myself, so I was drained for about a month. It doesn't help at all and it takes away all of your motivation to do anything.

Phill – You released Emotional/Physical on cassette, why did you choose to release a cassette tape in a world of digital downloads?

Mr.Kitty - Obscure formats are cool. That release was meant for a cassette.

Phill – What was the first album you owned on cassette?

Mr.Kitty - "Meredith Brooks - Blurring the Edges"

Phill – What's the one piece of music that stands out for you from your childhood?

Mr.Kitty - "Lovesong" by The Cure. My family went through some hard times and I remember my mom always playing that song in the car. It's a comforting song.

Phill – What is your fondest memory of growing up?

Mr.Kitty - Finding myself.

Phill – We really do live in a digital age and thanks to the likes of the internet the world has become a very much smaller place.  What do you feel are the plus points and the bad points of the world we live in today?

Mr.Kitty - Everything is amazing right now and everyone is too upset to realize that.

Phill – Thank you so much for giving Grave Concerns this interview, is there anything you would like to add?

Mr.Kitty - It's okay to cry.

Take a listen to: Mr. Kitty's "London"