TORONTO — Toronto’s emerging shoegaze outfit AloneKitty is preparing to release Sad Not Sad, an album born from loss, upheaval, and rebirth. The record’s lead single, “Stay The Same,” captures both the turbulence and resilience that shaped the band’s sound — a dense, emotional mix of melodic chaos and cathartic honesty.
The album, slated for release on October 24, 2025, marks a turning point for the group’s founder and frontperson, who rebuilt their life after a period of personal and professional collapse. “After a period of intense personal upheaval—losing a job, a long-term relationship, and nearly everything that felt like home—AloneKitty was, yeah, alone,” the band recounts. “Untethered, with one lone familiar thing to hold onto. That thread became a lifeline. Then it became a record.”
From Breakdown to Breakthrough
AloneKitty began as a solitary project — a creative outlet amid chaos. Writing songs became a way to process change and rediscover purpose. “Writing songs became a way to navigate from a before into an after. It wasn’t neat, it wasn’t clean, it never is. But it was honest. Like it or not,” the artist explains.
The rawness of that process runs through Sad Not Sad, particularly on “Stay The Same,” where layers of distortion and melody convey both confusion and catharsis. Performing the material has proven just as emotionally charged. “I kind of think I lost my mind by playing these in front of other people as I feel re-traumatized or upset by what’s at the core of some of these.”
Despite the name, AloneKitty is no longer a solo act. The project now includes Stefan on drums and Mike on bass, providing a foundation that lets the music expand outward. “I never worry about them…which is great because I do everything else,” says the band’s founder.
Sound Built Brick by Brick
If the story behind Sad Not Sad is one of rebuilding, the sound reflects that process literally — brick by brick, layer over layer, track on top of track. AloneKitty’s recording process embraces imperfection, leaning into instinct rather than precision. “Twelve songs in two days,” they recall. “Live. Two or maybe three takes of the beds for some of the songs at most.”
The sessions took place at Canterbury Music Company in Toronto, tracked live through a vintage 1976 NEVE console, revered for its warmth and depth. The goal was to capture performance over perfection — “no grid, no polish, just feel.”
The result is a towering wall of sound built on tension and release, where emotion isn’t buried beneath noise but forced out of hiding. The guitars, often five or six layers deep, rise and fall like shifting weather. Hooks emerge and fade again, creating an immersive dynamic that evokes classic shoegaze and post-punk influences such as My Bloody Valentine, Ride, and Hüsker Dü.
A Team of Sonic Architects
Sad Not Sad was produced by Josh Korody of the band Beliefs, mixed by Luke Schindler (known for work with Alexisonfire and Broken Social Scene), and mastered by Simon Scott of Slowdive — one of the genre’s founding figures.
Each collaborator brings a distinct sensibility to the project. “Every time I opened a new song, it became my favorite,” says Schindler. “It’s something I’d have in my rotation.”
Scott’s involvement lends a symbolic weight to the record’s creation. “Alonekitty’s music is great and I’m playing the songs over and over,” he said — high praise from one of shoegaze’s original architects.
Reclaiming Noise as Healing
Across its twelve tracks, Sad Not Sad blends vulnerability with volume. Songs like “She Lets You Down Again” shimmer with jangling guitars and melodic melancholy, while “2Tired2” brings a heavier, more engulfing sound that leans into the genre’s trademark textures.
Each song functions as both a personal reckoning and an act of renewal. “Engines make the loudest noise right as you flip the ignition. Animals roar their mightiest when their peace is broken,” the press statement reads — a fitting metaphor for the record’s central theme: transformation through sound.
Rather than masking emotional pain behind distortion, AloneKitty channels it into propulsion. “It’s a melodic wall of sound that doesn’t hide emotion, but forces it out of hiding,” they explain. “Hooks break through like the sun, then vanish again.”
Rebirth Through Collaboration
With a full rhythm section now in place and production from some of Canada’s top indie engineers, AloneKitty has evolved from a solitary expression into a collective resurgence. What began as an act of survival has grown into a project of reinvention — for both its creator and its sound.
“Sometimes starting over, leaving comfort, stumbling forward is the biggest noise we can make,” they reflect. “Because that’s exactly what happened.”
When Sad Not Sad drops on October 24, it will stand not just as a record of personal resilience but as a testament to the enduring power of creative reinvention.
