K MAK is a unique project from Australian cellist Kathryn McKee – a distillation of classical, alternative and electro-pop music.
Imaginatively combining strings, beats, synths and vocals, K Mak creates vivid, emotive electropop. She draws on her experience playing with superstars Kanye West, Eminem, Archie Roach, Guy Sebastian, Vera Blue and Opera Queensland to delve into matters of the heart with a tongue-in-cheek twist.
Her works have been nominated for a Q Song Award, the International Songwriting Competition and an Independent Music Award, and have been played on stations all over Australia
What’s your story as an artist?
I’m a cello player who went to do some post-graduate cello and got completely distracted by production and composition. I had always been a classical musician who loved pop, electronic and alternative music, and finally I developed the ability to stitch them all together.
What inspired this single?
It’s an expression of love that I had nowhere else to put. Following the love of my life going MIA.
What are some sources of inspiration for your storytelling?
Different angles on love and relationships. ‘Look at Me!’ is about trying to get a boy’s attention, and making a total fool of myself. ‘Be My Lady’ is a fantasy about someone off limits asking you (me!) out… ‘Let’s Do This’ is about my parents facing a terminal diagnosis and ‘Winning!’ is about my ex and an insurance company…
Any funny anecdotes from the time you were recording or writing the album?
The bass parts were recorded in a mental health hospital (long story), and one of the patients kept loudly and passionately informing us that it would never work and that we were completely effed… I’m glad he was wrong!
Tell us about the music video and the idea behind it ?
It’s You – this is my most mainstream video yet, and my most Warner Brothers! You’ve got to love a drone… It pretty much follows the lyrics – seeing someone, feeling something, suppressing it, regretting it, and eventually allowing yourself to feel it again.
Look at Me! – the age old story of dogs trying to get a cat’s attention.
Play With Me – dancers and a red ball feeling out the music in an old water reservoir.
What’s a record that shaped your creativity?
So many. Bjork’s Homogenic.
Radiohead’s Kid A or Amnesiac.
Tori Amos’s Little Earthquakes.
Who is an artist or band you look up to today?
Bjork, Banoffee, FKA Twigs
Any future projects?
Can’t wait to make more music, using some new toys I’ve bought.
I might start with a remix of one of the current songs, then make some newies. I’ve got ideas…
Top 3 dream collaborations?
I’m already living the dream, working with Melbourne producer Ven X.
I also love love love making music with my drummer, Sam Mitchell.
Can I get back to you about the third one?
What does music mean to you?
Frigging everything. It reaches places nothing else can reach, without leaving a trace. It can accompany you almost anywhere. It is physical, intellectual, emotional, social… I don’t know anything else like it.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard you?
A distillation of classical, alternative and electropop music, but I’m open to ideas!
