The Kut

Raised in Blackpool & disillusioned with school, The Kut found comfort in the coils of punk rock, forming her first band at 14. They would gig in Lancashire & go on to win the local Battle of the Bands – but confusion struck when their drummer was hospitalised with schizophrenia. The Kut turned to psychology for answers & left for London to study it. Inspired by London’s street artists, Maha assumed the tag ‘The Kut’, which would become her stage name.

It was here in London she became fascinated by mixing genres, drumming & breakbeats. Finally finding her line up, now a collective of 7 on rotation, she started selling guitars on Denmark Street post-studies & planned to build a studio, soon forming a bedroom label to release demos.

Tours began and major label interest followed but despite initial excitement, went cold. The Kut returned to psychology and started a PhD seeking precursors of psychosis-related illness. When the debut album did finally finish, it was later than hoped & The Kut had to decide whether to shelve it or trust in herself & her fans Team Razors to release it independently.

After a coffee meeting with Cargo Distribution, she decided to release the record, but with zero budget after self funding the recording, she turned to crowd funding to finance the release. In May 2018 ‘Valley of Thorns’ charted at #7 in the UK Rock Albums Chart & #18 in Independent Albums. An incredible feat, but one that was tainted by the closure of PledgeMusic, who folded with 70% of the funds. Four years on, The Kut, now a PhD Psychology graduate, recently signed a US distribution deal for her and her label roster – an announcement that signalled the release of her second album.

The imminent sophomore album “GRIT” is the musical amalgamation of The Kut journey so far. On record, The Kut leads on vocals & guitar, moonlighting as drummer & bassist on two tracks, alongside her collective of women in music. Its story mirror’s The Kut’s journey and speaks to those channelling self-belief & self-identity. It’s a pep-talk on trusting your instinct & leads through the process of cutting the ropes, as heard in ‘Burn Your Bridges’ & choosing your passion, in ‘Runaways’ & ‘On My Own’. You maybe glimpse a light at end of the tunnel too, in ‘Fun When You’re Winning’ & the gratitude expressed in ‘Satellite’, while the closing punk-rock ‘And 1 More…’ calls in a new dawn. The recording of GRIT was funded by Arts Council England. Its 10 tracks include the hit single ‘ANIMO’, which won three awards (UK Songwriting Contest Best Rock Song, Best Music Video & the International Rock Award) & was debuted at The Kut headline set at Isle of Wight Festival. GRIT releases following The Kut’s first ever UK support dates to UK Number 1 in the Rock Album's Chart.


“Remember the fuss people made about Paramore’s ‘Riot’? They’ll be saying the same thing about ‘Grit’ in a few years too… Expertly executed song-craft… The new queen of punk has arrived”

9/10 Vive Le Rock, Bruce Turnbull

“An Outstanding Album from one of the Most Exciting Current UK Artists”

10/10 Power Play, Andy Houghton

“A Flawless Punk Rock Album. A Piece of Punk Rock Perfection”

5/5 ERB Magazine, Dean Parker

“Your snarly singer-guitarist… Shades of Courtney, Brody and L7”

The Guardian – Editor’s Pick

“Glamorous rock ‘n’ roll with a punk edge”

Clash Magazine

“a neat twist on grunge pop”

Kerrang! Magazine

“awesome riffs and chaotic live shows”

Metal Hammer

“multi-talented girls with a ’90s grunge alt-rock sound”

Metro

“searing live shows and rocking anthems”

Planet Rock

“Punk’s not dead, pass it on”

Classic Rock Magazine