Kaity Rae – ‘This Time Around’ EP Review

We first featured Kaity Rae on Belles and Gals just two or three weeks ago when we showed a clip of her playing “Before I Knew”. This song was a great introduction for readers of the site to Kaity Rae and the song is also a great introduction to the EP, being the opening track. This is a real catchy number, with lyrics such as ‘Seeing that I can’t be just your standby, because I’d have done anything for you, before I knew’ telling the story of the song. From this opening track you’ll already realise that Kaity has a particularly strong voice, which conveys the emotion of the song well, not always an easy job in an upbeat number such as this one.

The second track is the title song, “This Time Around”. If I tell you the words ‘coulda’ and ‘shoulda’ feature prominently at the start, you’ll have a good idea of the subject of the song. The song opens with a gentle guitar but grows and grows in intensity as the three minutes pass by, the last minute of the song having you reaching for the volume control to crank it up as Kaity’s vocals really impress. “This Time Around” actually comes to something of an abrupt halt, leaving you wanting more – which is never a bad thing.

“Back in My Heart” is possibly the most country pop of the four songs, having a really catchy chorus. Once again, the song starts slowly, the production subdued in the first few bars, before the guitars really come in and the song takes off, this working really effectively. A nice guitar solo lights up the middle of the song and this is one that will certainly be an ear worm for many.

The final track is “All That I Am” and it’s clear that Kaity has saved the best till last – this is simply great. The song is all about taking those chances to ‘fly’ in your life, when others might advise you otherwise, in this case almost certainly talking about Kaity’s move into a musical career. This is the slowest of the four songs and is perfectly positioned at the end of the EP, a song that is graced by a beautiful chorus. With more songs like this, there is no doubt at all that Kaity will fly.

Overall, this is a highly impressive EP, especially when you consider that Kaity Rae is just 19 and it’s only her second release. It’s little wonder that Kaity has caught the eye of the Evening Standard and Music Week magazine and has supported both Sonia Leigh and Sasha McVeigh.
“This Time Around” is produced by John Denzil Dines, was recorded at Cream Room Sound Productions studio and released on Folkstock Records.