Dave Stewart was one half of Eurythmics, new wave pioneers and one of the essential British pop acts of the mid-1980s.
Their synthpop and, later, pop rock sound produced memorable singles like Here Comes the Rain Again, Love Is a Stranger and, most famously, Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), a track that’s a certified classic wherever you play it to this day.
All of this meant our interest was piqued when we learnt that a new Los Angeles pop duo features Dave’s daughter Kaya Stewart on vocals. Kiss Bang, featuring Max Mercier alongside Kaya, released their debut single Horrors of Your Hometown on Friday:
It’s a modern pop rock track with a bombastic riffing hook and rich vocals from Kaya, and a touch of theatre to boot, repping a sound with some resemblances to fellow LA band Kitten.
Kiss Bang isn’t Kaya Stewart’s first foray into music. A little-known album bearing her name was released in 2016, when she was 16, on Warner. A second album, If Things Go South, followed in 2022. Max Mercier’s history includes a track with India Theriot last year.
At this point Kiss Bang’s sound is a little bit raw, even if well-polished, but anyone raised in the environment of one of the 80s’ great pop writers and producers has to have plenty of potential.
Will that be the case? We won’t have to wait long to hear more, as their debut EP Horrors of Your Hometown is released on March 15th.
