Novelty Daughter
Novelty Daughter - U Want What I Want
PREMIERE: Novelty Daughter - Day of Inner Fervor (Kuh Lida Remix)
Kelly Kirwan
Ah, remixes—the grownup game of telephone played between musicians. What begins as a single earworm splinters off into various re-imagined versions, and gradually the original artist gets new clout with a new audience. For instance, Novelty Daughter, whose hypnotic, vaguely disco-themed track "Day of Inner Fervor" (released last year) was given a darker twist by electronic artist Kuh Lida (aka Myles Emmons). The original version was a quirky blend of high, lilting vocals, syncopated rhythms, and the occasional dash of salsa and jazz. It was textured and slightly trippy—a track wedged somewhere between modern day indie pop and Studio 54.
Kuh Lida's remix, on the other hand, takes us on a slight detour into experimental ambiance. He's drawn to distortion, warping Faith Harding’s vocals (if only for a moment), and pressing the boundaries of beats and percussion. Essentially, Kuh Lida took Novelty Daughter's brainchild, turned the amp all the way up, and added an abrasive touch. Switch out Studio 54 for an industrial warehouse on the outskirts of Chicago (Kuh Lida's current home city), and you've found this single's new home.
"Day of Inner Fervor" has always had a strange allure, a quality exacerbated by Kuh Lida's unexpected layering. Faith Harding's voice is soft and unique, as if it were tinged with an accent that piques your interest without being easily placed. Pair that with Kuh Lida's five-track mind, and you have beats that skitter dangerously close to a crash, before leveling back into a steady groove. It’s magnetic, and a testament to how a song can shift shapes if it’s got a good base and a keen ear to work with.
Novelty Daughter - Impatiens
