It’s almost inconceivable that it’s only five years since the arrival of CMAT, as she approaches
the release of her third album, EURO-COUNTRY. This BRITs / Mercury / Ivors-nominated
acronymic star feels like she’s been part of the culture forever - and what has endeared fans
to her heart-sore tunes and humour is CMAT's ability to combine contradictory themes and
moods: wide-eye drama with self-deprecation.
Country music has always been a lynchpin for CMAT, but this is country in an augmented,
reimagined way. Mixed with classic indie and affirmative soul-pop, it resists the music
industry’s desire to pigeonhole artists as one genre.
Not only is there a palpable tonal shift, EURO-COUNTRY also feels like a huge step-up
creatively. There is a sense of determination, of urgency, of ‘gather round and listen up’.
From re-evaluating where you come from (geographically, metaphorically) and the impact
of economics on a small country, to the attention that comes with increased fame (not all of
it good) and being a woman in the music industry.
