Kirty

Toronto-based singer-songwriter Kirty traces her musical beginnings to her time growing up on hobby farm outside of Orillia, Ontario. Born into a large musical family, from a young age she had a guitar in her hand and was learning country, folk, and rock n’ roll standards. It wasn’t long before she took an interest in writing her own tunes. “My mom taught me how to play guitar when I was 15 and once I had three chords down I would walk around the house improvising lyrics about my siblings,” Kirty remembers. After high school, Kirty enrolled herself in the contemporary music program at Humber College and after graduating, immediately launched into collaborating in projects with other Toronto talents. She put down her first roots by playing residencies at the legendary Cameron House, but before long she found herself on stage at the Mariposa Folk Festival, as well as on the road to the East Coast and back. Road-testing her own material led to a very strong collection of songs, resulting in the recording of her first record thanks to funding from the Ontario Arts Council. The debut album, “All I Really Know”, was recorded in 2012 with producers Josh Van Tassel and John Dinsmore. Kirty immediately found support from CBC radio and other outlets across the country, and very quickly began hearing from fans from all corners of Canada and beyond. As attendance continued to build at her own shows and with her debut record receiving universal acclaim, Kirty’s reach again grew wider in 2014 when she joined as a core member of the Toronto-based indie-rock band Fast Romantics. “Joining Fast Romantics allowed me to grow as a musician, stylistically satisfy another side of myself, and most importantly it’s taught me what it means to be in a band, and work as a unit,” Kirty says. “Working, recording and touring with Fast Romantics is like one big party. All the time. With your best friends.” Despite touring the continent multiple times a year, she continued to write and record her own material, collaborating again with producer Josh Van Tassel and at times also working with John Dinsmore. The result is a sparkling, confident self-titled sophomore effort. In 2016 Kirty was signed to Postwar Records, a label founded by Fast Romantics frontman Matthew Angus. All at once sentimental, self-assured, and reflective, “Kirty” is a lush evolution of the roots-meets-pop sound established on “All I Really Know.” While Kirty still finds herself musing on heartbreak, this time around the storytelling is wrapped in a sunnier musical aesthetic. “When Josh and I began recording the album, within a few songs, the stylistic umbrella became very clear. These were songs written in the summer, for the summer. It’s the kind of album I want people to be listening to when they’re riding their bike, or headed to the beach, or driving. “ With a lead-off single and video being released in August, Kirty will be playing a series of release shows through the summer in Toronto as well as her hometown of Orillia, with select Canadian dates planned throughout the next year. With more videos and singles from her own album to follow, Kirty will also find herself on the road with Fast Romantics, making for a nearly continuous year of promoting her music , on and off the stage. www.kirtymusic.com