Top 2011 Tracks
29. Katy B - Broken Record
I was very excited to listen to Katy B’s debut for the first time. I had heard her feature in “Perfect Stranger” in collaboration with dubstep supergroup Magnetic Man and took big notice of her vocals. She was able to showcase maturity, coolness and sultriness at the same time without breaking a sweat. So, when I first heard “Broken Record”, I was simply blown away because it was more than I even expected.
“Broken Record” showcases Katy’s vocals as an anguished lover, somewhat balladry. The subtlety of her delivery suits perfectly over the energetic track as the smooth beats allow sections of the song develop the iteration of Katy’s confused pleas. By the end of it, the evolving energy builds up frantically as Katy repeats over and over how her longing is just like a broken record. How her desire of not being left alone has trapped her inside this tense emotion of lack of acknowledgment.
I’ve played “Broken Record” a countless amount of times, and now I can’t remember what listening to this song for the first time made me feel. Maybe it was the rewarding feeling of being able to get such intensity from someone who had, through the record, exposed herself as a fancy club goer. So I put it on repeat.
