He knows what we want to know

David Kitt is a man of many words. These words, sporadic and sometimes mumbled, can often form a sentence but they are more than just an unconscious stream of thought. With the release of his latest album The Nightsaver last month, he tracks how he and his music style have changed and shifted since his career began.

“I’ve gone back and forth, to the left, to the right, gone to a different country, gone on holidays… It’s pretty close to where it came from and it’s in the sweet stage at the moment. It just keeps coming.” He has a positive take on the new album and says that it is the only one of his that he can still listen to now that it’s finished.

“I’m full of ideas now and my computer is filling up with music. I’m very productive at the moment and want to feel inside the music,” he says. “I’m going through the motions and I’m trying not to get too lost in it. I just have to be a passenger to the music and feel connected.”

Since the release of his first album Small Moments in 2000, a lot has changed with music in Ireland. “I’ve never understood the connection to those singer/songwriters. I’ve always dabbled in everything, not just picking up a guitar. I’ve evolved but I don’t think with people’s taste,” he says, shaking off any comparison to the likes of The Frames and Mark Geary. He notes that he feels more in tune with what bands are doing now than ever before. “I get what the new kids are doing now. I see these 22 year olds and I feel connected to what they’re doing musically and not to the old lads. It feels fresh.”

In 2003, Kitt and his band had the chance to fill in for The White Stripes when they pulled out of the Witnness Festival in Punchestown. They played to over 10,000 people. However, that same year they were playing support to “some guy from You’re A Star” in Cashel and they knew that it just wasn’t working. “Everyday has its highs and lows. There’s always something to bring you back down to earth but very few people need to be brought back down to earth unless you’re Damien Rice or somebody who earns loads of money like that.”

When asked if he could change absolutely anything in the world, Kitt’s answer indicates that he still has a few obstacles to tackle. “There doesn’t seem to be any real imagination in the mainstream. Everything has been dumbed down to the lowest common denominator. Mediocre music by mediocre people. The talent is there. You can see it in advertising and computer games but I’d love to see the pop world be turned on its head.”

With six albums already under his belt and a busy touring schedule, Kitt doesn’t seem to be slowing down at any rate.