Kalie Shorr
Open book unabridged
2020

I try to listen to a fairly wide variety of music and I always try to give some new girl singers a go to see what they are up to. They're generally far more melodic than a lot of men.

I first came across Kalie Shorr on a blog site that I happened on and she had a new EP out in 2021 with a feature track called 'Amy' about a girl friend of hers who happened to start up with her ex and use a guitar she had on loan from Kalie to write and record a whole album gushing about her new relationship. Kalie apparently saw this as taking a bit of a liberty and that all sort of stopped the friendship a bit. Personal tittle-tattle and dramas aside, that track was just superb. Barbed, witty and a very suitable riposte to the situation. 

Kalie 1
Amy 0

"I loaned you my guitar for a whole entire year, but I never said you could borrow my ex-boyfriend
Do you think I don't have internet and that I'd never hear that kind of cringy album that you made about him.
Do you want the other half of my sandwich, 'cause I know how much you love my leftovers, you love my leftovers.
There's no way in hell you didn't plan this. Did you use me to get closer, you had to get closer.

Amy, I know you hate me - I wish I could find a fuck to give
He didn't love you, and so you blamed me. He wasn't over me, when you were under him, yeah yeah yeah

I gave you all the clothes I didn't want anymore. Did he ever tell you that they looked familiar?
You used to look at us and say, "I want a love like yours". You got what you wanted, how's it feel to be a winner?
Do you want the other half of my credit card debt because he still owes me money, yeah he still owes me money
You wrote a song about how he's just so good in bed, but he learned it from me, yeah, he learned it from me."

Kalie suffered a bit of a backlash for her understandable public retaliation, even though she never named the couple. I guess if you know, you know. I don't know. It's not really my business. She lost some of her close friends over it. But the song was a fabulous little slab of tuneful, commercial power pop with the exact right amount of attitude. Kalie drops the odd F-bomb, so the song would have had to have been bleeped or cleaned up for radio. It's just brilliant. Shouldn't people be able to write about what goes on in their lives, what pisses them off and what turns them on?

The rest of the 'I Got Here By Accident' EP is fabulous too. She has a country-tinged vocal delivery, but not the tired, dreary stereotypical delivery from all of these modern people delivering identikit pop nicknamed country with a steel guitar added behind them to try to fool the gullible.

Having enjoyed the EP so much, I looked around to see what else she had done. I found her 'Open Book' album from the previous year and checked out a couple of tracks on YouTube to see what it was like. What I heard was really really impressive, so I dived in properly.

Yes, she's young and very pretty, but that was not what I was looking for at all when I was looking around for fresh tracks to listen to. Amy could have been recorded by a spotty twenty stone woman with green facial hair and killer breath and I would still have thought it was a fantastic track.

My Voice.
A great way to start the album. A real statement of intent and a summation of what she had been through since starting releasing tracks in 2016. She writes about people trying to shape her into something she wasn't entirely comfortable with, so they could sell her music. The arrangement is great. It builds up and drops down in places and it's about perfect.

I found that the lyrics were excellent throughout the whole album. So much so that I am quoting lyrics from most of the songs.

"Sugar is for suckers, tricks are for kids. Pretended that I liked it, but I never did.
Spoon-fed, candy-coated. Take the f-bombs out of what you wrote.
If you want the radio to play ya, make it sweet like a cherry lifesaver.
But they'll probably never play me 'cause I'm not a boy and guess what I can't change.

The sound of my voice. So get used to the sound of my voice.
'Cause I'm sticking around, even if I ever had a choice. No, I wouldn't change the sound of my voice, oh.

Too rock for country, too country for punk, but who said I had to pick either one.
Tattoos at the Opry. I could cover 'em up but it's not me.
If I stick to the script when I'm talking, sit on some laps then my song'll go top ten.
Nashville's cranking out Chryslers just like it's Detroit, but guess what I can't change. "

Too Much To Say.
Any track that starts with the words 'I've never been worse, thanks for asking....' has to be a winner. It starts with moody guitar and a subtle wailing blues harp. Her voice is at times vulnerable, but right there in the centre of the track, which is fabulously arranged. She double-tracks her voice beautifully in places.

"I've never been worse, thanks for asking. Is it making you nervous, all this honesty?
Oh, I'm sorry if you're a little uncomfortable, but I'm uncomfortable watching you shift in your seat.
How do I look like I've been doing? Week old wine stain on my jeans.
And the last of last night's makeup is barely hanging on just like me.

But if you've got time for whiskey and if you've got time to smoke. If you've got time to sit here, I get it if you don't.
But don't go asking questions that you don't want answers to. I've got too much to say and I'll tell it all to you.

From heroin to cheating, I've lost a lot of people. I'm not a victim but I didn't bring it on myself.
And I'm an open book with an open ending and, hell, I'm just glad you asked me for yourself.
I've got more unclaimed baggage than an airport lost and found.
If no one picks it up, it just goes round and round and round."

Escape,
A gentle, and quite beautiful track and Kalie starts to tell us about her family. Her sister and her heroin. Her brother and his beer. Her Dad and his blow. She really sounds like she's in pain, recalling it. Her voice sounds small and fragile and broken towards the end. The video is simply heartbreaking.

"Mama always said Jesus was her husband and the only thing she needs
She'd turn up Billy Graham so loud that I couldn't sleep
And my daddy always smelled like smoke but I was sixteen before I knew what kind

When my older sister was in college she met a piece of shit named Phil
She didn't know that heroine always starts with pills
And my brother thinks he's better 'cause his kryptonite comes in a twelve-pack

Everybody's got a place where all their money goes. Everybody's got a high that sweetens up the lows
Getting out of bed is hard if you don't have a reason. Everybody needs an escape, and mine was leaving

I always thought it sounded nice to be proud of your hometown. But mine was never quite the kind tou write country songs about.
And I heard apples don't fall far from family trees so I taught myself to fly.

When I met you, I hadn't really eaten in three days I'm sure I was hungry, but it was love I really craved.
You told me that you saved me and I thanked God you came and helped, but you were just another way of hurting myself."

Messy
A really individually styled piano-led track. Kalie gets personal and ponders how the people around her let her down and ruin her life. The album is called Open Book because she's getting all of her inner angst out.

"Tall, dark, and type A as hell. No problem picking up after yourself.
The aftermath of hurricane me. The wreckage you know that I leave.
Clothes, books, and plates on the shelves. If somebody lived here, well you couldn't tell
The hurt, the hate, the crisis of us swept under an Ikea rug

We would judge everyone else like we were spotless. Didn't see no dirty laundry in the closet
You kept it so neat, just like your whiskey. So how did we end so messy, messy?

Kissed a girl, trashed in a bar. Now everyone knows just how two-faced you are
Playing the victim with all of our friends. Say sorry but do it again.
We would judge everyone else like we were spotless. Didn't see no dirty laundry in the closet
You kept it so neat, just like your whiskey. So how did we end so messy, messy?

Shiny and polished, this house is dishonest. Got so much in common with you
Misrepresentation, the mess you were making blew up in the face of the truth. Play dirty, it's just what you do

We would judge everyone else like we were spotless. Didn't see no dirty laundry in the closet
You kept it so neat, just like your whiskey. So how did we end so messy, messy, messy? "

The One
A gorgeous arrangement, a breathy vocal. Good lyrics. A hard pop song with lovely guitars.

"I was always the one. Throwing my hands up. Running and saying I'm done
Heartbreak red-handed. Holding a smoking gun
Got used to my seat at the table til the tables turned and honestly, this feels worse

You were always supposed to be my seatbelt when we crashed
Answering the questions that I didn't have to ask
I was supposed to be the concrete heart that couldn't crack
And you were supposed to be the one, yeah

I was always the one. Closed off, independent
Never believed in love til you tore my walls
Brick by brick, built me back up. You loved me til I knew who I was
And you proved me wrong. Until you proved me wrong."

FU Forever
If there's a track that screams 'single' on here this is possibly it. It bursts into life with real energy. And her lyrics just scream justified bile at an ex who did her wrong and she lets him have it with both barrels. She gives him the finger big style.

"You never bought me anything. Because I paid for everything
But you got me a random ring with your tax return
You played the victim with all your friends then turned around and slept with them
But I know you closed your eyes and thought about me

Looks like my abandonment issues got the best of me again
'Cause we should have never been together. Now I'm wearing your stupid ring
On my pretty little middle finger. So I can say F U forever, oh yeah

How can you be scared of me when you're the one who put your hands on me
In the bathroom when our friends were in the kitchen
You hated when my dreams came true 'cause they were better as just dreams to you
But what you really hated was yourself

Looks like my abandonment issues got the best of me again
'Cause we should have never been together
Now I'm wearing your stupid ring on my pretty little middle finger
So I can say F U forever, oh yeah

And I believed you whenever you said that you were older and you always knew best
I was the problem, so narcissistic. I was a child, I was a train wreck
But I'm just a mirror reflecting and you're just an asshole projecting."

Of course the lyrics stopped it from being a single. A shitkicker at alive shows, no doubt.

Alice In Wonderland
This one appears to be about getting lost in alcohol abuse. Maybe drug abuse. The arrangement is again just great and Kalie's vocals are fabulous.

"Hey Alice, how's Wonderland? Is it magic or not exactly how you planned?
I can only imagine the new ways he's learned to break a heart

Hey Alice, I know it's not my place and you're not asking, but I need to say it anyway
'Cause I'm wishing I knew what I do now from the start. It sounded beautiful at first, didn't it?

But before you know it every bottle says drink me
Before you know it, yeah You're gonna start shrinking
He'll make you feel small And there's so far to fall
When you're loving a madman. So, hey Alice, how is Wonderland?

Hey Alice, I know you'll want to stay the first time it happens
'Cause damn it, you love him anywa,y you rationalize second chances.
Isn't everyone here a little damaged?"

Eighteen
Intense. Bitter. To the point. A great thoughtful arrangement. A fabulous chorus.

"Which one did you fuck harder my best friend or my self esteem?
Remember when you got drunk and said you were the only one dumb enough to love me
I don't want to live just following your script. The actress is too young and the director is a narcissist

This isn't normal, this isn't okay, but I didn't know any better, so I thought it'd be better to stay
Almost beautiful, the things that you taught me.
I think I really loved you, I think you really loved that I was eighteen

You bought me beer because you were too old to go to prom with me
I threw up in the bathroom, my friends made memories
And yeah, you looked real cool to a girl still in high school
You don't have to chase anything that you can fool

This isn't normal, this isn't okay, but I didn't know any better, so I thought it'd be better to stay
Almost beautiful, the things that you taught me.
I think I really loved you, I think you really loved that I was eighteen

I see you out with younger versions of me while I'm trying to find who I used to be
I'm terrified that you and I will always be chasing eighteen

This isn't normal, this isn't okay, but I didn't know any better, so I thought it'd be better to stay
Almost beautiful, the things that you taught me
I think I really loved you, I think you really loved that I was eighteen."

Big Houses
Reminiscenses about a long-gone childhood, days out with mother, looking at the nice houses they'd pass on the way to somewhere else, dreaming about living somewhere a bit nicer. Maybe in one of those houses. A stunning song. One of the best country songs I've ever heard, without it getting mawkish or cliched in any way.

"When I was young, my mom and I would drive out on the west side of town
Where the streets are nicer. Sun shines brighter, I still don't know how
And we'd go real slow, roll down the windows, yeah

The family on the corner always sat on their front porch swing
I could tell by their shiny cars and smiles. They don't worry about a thing
And I'd make up names, picture us in those picture frames and we'd go

Driving after church on Sunday taking the long way
Trying to get the hell out of our part of town
Where the grass ain't green and the rent's dirt cheap
All we had was her and me, but for an hour
We could dream about it living in big houses. Living in big houses

I bet around December they go find a Christmas tree
It's the biggest one on the whole lot and I bet on Christmas Eve
Their mom says a different kind of prayer 'cause everyone they love is there
Oh, but mine would take me

Driving after church on Sunday taking the long way
Trying to get the hell out of our part of town
Where the grass ain't green and the rent's dirt cheap
All we had was her and me, but for an hour
We could dream about it living in big houses. Living in big houses

When every kid in class was making cards for Father's Day in June
I made one for her 'cause my Wonder Woman was my Superman too
She'd make me feel like we're flying when we'd go

Driving after church on Sunday taking the long way
Trying to get the hell out of our part of town
Where the grass ain't green and the rent's dirt cheap
All we had was her and me, but for an hour
We could dream about it living in big houses. Living in big houses, living in big houses "

Out Of It
You want dramatic? You got it. A sparse arrangement, but it's beautifully done. Someone else messed up, dragging her down with them and it seems to be a bit much. .A bit of a weight to cope with.

"Probably 'cause you're almost twenty-eight and your younger sister just got engaged
Probably 'cause you're alone again and you're coming down and you're in your head

I know you need some sort of pick me up and you know that I always pick up
When you're out of it I'm the one that pulls you back to earth
When you're out of it and it's last call I'm always your first
You come knocking on closed doors when you're lonely or you're bored
But next time you're out of it. Leave me out of it

I know what you're real last name is. You drink tequila but you really hate it
Your mom and dad put you through hell. You tell your secrets 'til you scare yourself

It's a big dramatic entrance and you leave . Now I'm the girl I said I'd never be
When you're out of it I'm the one that pulls you back to earth
When you're out of it and it's last call I'm always your first
You come knocking on closed doors when you're lonely or you're bored
But next time you're out of it. Leave me out of it. Leave me out of it

Oh you're so good when you want to be. Almost there, one day you're gonna be
But almost can't hold me

When you're out of it I'm the one that pulls you back to earth
When you're out of it and it's last call I'm always your first
You come knocking on closed doors when you're lonely or you're bored
But next time you're out of it. Leave me out of it. Leave me out of it."

Gatsby
Kalie goes uptempo with what seems to be an upbeat and cheerful sounding track, until you listen to the lyrics..It's practically a cry for help. Hopefully Kalie is writing from the viewpoint of other people, rather than saying what a drunken mess her own life has been...

"I don't really like dating assholes but I do it 'cause I have a weird relationship with my dad
Can I really say I pay my own bills if all my credit cards are maxed

I'm funny when I drink and I'm drunk, like, all the time
'Cause everything's a joke, even my own

Life's a party and that's why I'm never at home
I'll do anything not to be alone. I feel great, why do you ask?
Spill champagne and raise my glass. Pity party like I'm Gatsby
But people like me 'cause I'm happy

I hate doing my dishes so I drink from the battle and I save some time
It's only February and it's been the longest year of my life

I'm funny when I'm sad and I'd sad, like, all the time
'Cause everything's a joke, een my own

Life's a party and that's why I'm never at home
I'll do anything not to be alone. I feel great, why do you ask?
Spill champagne and raise my glass. Pity party like I'm Gatsby
But people like me 'cause I'm happy. I'm happy

Is that all there is to a broken heart? Lean Cuisines in my shopping cart
A million friends that I don't know with a front-row seat to my shit show
My life's a party and that's why I'm never at home. I'll do anything not to be alone

My life's a party and that's why I'm never at home
I'll do anything not to be alone. I feel great, why do you ask?
Spill champagne and raise my glass. Pity party like I'm Gatsby
But people like me 'cause I'm happy

When I get up, I get down - I take my meds and I hit the town
When I get up, I get down - I take my meds and I hit the town
When I get up, I get down - I take my meds and I hit the town
And I pity party like I'm Gatsby. But people like me 'cause I'm happy."

Thank God You're A Man
This song seems to examine Kalie's feelings about a woman's power over men.. The song maybe sounds a little like she's written it for someone like Stevie Nicks. It would suit several of the big acts. The guitars interweave wonderfully throughout and the whole album is beautifully recorded.

"Don't look into these opal eyes if you don't want to be hypnotized
Be careful when you taste my kiss. You'll get addicted
There's a million ways I can make you thank God that you're a man
Make you thank God that you're a man

I don't need to speak when we dance 'cause I do all my talking with my hands
Did you know you never stood a chance. Locking in my trance?

There's a million ways I can, oh Make you thank God that you're a man, oh
Make you thank God that you're a man, oh
You'll wonder where you end and I begin when I'm under and all on your skin
I'll make you thank God that you're a man

If you're the kinda man, kinda man who can handle a woman like me
Then you're the kind of man, kind of man. Who can put his hands all over me

There's a million ways I can, oh Make you thank God that you're a man, oh
Make you thank God that you're a man, oh
You'll wonder where you end and I begin. Once I'm under and all on your skin
I'll make you thank God that you're a man. I'll make you thank God that you're a man."

Lying To Myself
Just when you think Kalie must be running low on tunes, out pops this one. Her voice is young and fragile, really tuneful. A masterly piece of songwriting.

"I'm a little out of touch with reality. It's never been that nice to me
I like the pictures I paint the best.
You always seemed more down to Earth - I was a little hesitant at first.
But after that night in LA, well, you know the rest
But it's not hard to feel that good when you're drunk in Hollywood
So new to me, but you understood and I helped you up on that pedestal
Damn, you looked incredible. Guess coming down's inevitable

Am I out of my mind, was this all in my head?
Am I making it up, am I not making sense?
Were you leading me on, now I'm too sad to tell
Were you lying to me or was I lying to myself?

I picked out all my favorite things you said, then like a delusional architect
I built you up like a house of cards .
Guess I really loved the idea of you, but the real problem is neither of you
Can hold me when it falls apart, yeah
You liked it up on that pedestal 'cause damn you looked incredible, but coming down's inevitable

Am I out of my mind, was this all in my head
Am I making it up, am I not making sense
Were you leading me on, now I'm too sad to tell
Were you lying to me or was I lying to myself? (ooh)

What if I trusted my intuition the way that I trusted you? (ooh-ooh)
Did you ever even need me the way that I wanted you?
Am I out of my mind, was this all in my head?
Am I making it up, am I not making sense?
Am I out of my mind, was this all in my head?
Am I making it up, am I not making sense?
Were you leading me on, now I'm too sad to tell
Were you lying to me or was I lying to myself? Lying to myself
Lying to myself."

Vices
Again, Kalie sings about the vices and their effects. A trippy sounding song in parts. An insistent melody on the choruses.

"I started drinking whiskey straight to look cool but now it's all that gets me drunk
I used to bum a smoke when I was drinking. Now I keep a pack and smoke 'em whenever I want
And now I don't even notice when I get a hangover 'cause I'm never sober long enough
I'll probably do it twice if I try it once

I stopped listening to the little voice inside my head
The angel fell right off my shoulder and the devil's payin' rent
Maker's is my therapist, my best friend's a cigarette
I've been taking advice from my vices

I keep waking up next to my ex because he knows my body
And his new girlfriend, well she doesn't know and hell, I wish I was sorry
I've been in the back of too many cabs, coming home at four a.m
Kissing goodbye to someone I know I'll never see again

I stopped listening to the little voice inside my head
The angel fell right off my shoulder and the devil's payin' rent
Maker's is my therapist, my best friend's a cigarette
I've been taking advice from my vices

I owe one to Jim Beam 'cause I don't remember my dreams
And my American Spirits for spending five minutes with me
Here's to that blue-eyed escape I kissed in LA
I'll never forget it like I forgot his name

I stopped listening to the little voice inside my head
The angel fell right off my shoulder and the devil's payin' rent
Maker's is my therapist, my best friend's a cigarette
I've been taking advice from my vices, my vices."

Angry Butterfly
Distorted, moody guitars set the mood brilliantly for the final song on the album. It's one where the quality means you might maybe start to speculate on who Kalie's influences are. She's always said who they are and she's obviously picked up on how to get a really well constructed and memorable song together. These songs are all damn good and really well played. They're all uniquely her, though.

"Wrapped up in plastic, asleep in a straitjacket
Solitary's where I learned to dream
Took the chains that held me back and I stretched them like elastic
Snuck a chainsaw into quarantine

I'm waking up an angry butterfly. Constellations in my eyes and darkness in my veins
I've seen too much to censor myself now I found beauty in a breakdown
And when I clawed my way out I was changed, I was changed

I'm a stumbling contradiction, it is what it isn't
A ballerina wearing combat boots
Societal resistance, emotional crucifixion
Going through hell gave me one hell of an attitude

I'm waking up an angry butterfly. Constellations in my eyes
And darkness in my veins. I've seen too much to censor myself now
I found beauty in a breakdown and when I clawed my way out I was changed, I was changed
I'm too tired to lie. And I'm too loud to hide

I'm waking up an angry butterfly. Constellations in my eyes and darkness in my veins
I've seen too much to censor myself now I found beauty in a breakdown
And when I clawed my way out I was changed, I was changed
I was changed when I clawed my way out I was changed. "

A playlist on Youtube shows her playing a creditable live show with her band to promote and showcase this album and is well worth looking at.

This album's about five years old now. I play it a lot. It's a rare thing for me to find an album where I believe every single word on it. A lot of it is really touching, some of it heartbreaking and while Kalie Shorr won't want anyone to feel sorry for the tragedies and upsets in her life, I can't help but empathise.  She communicates her sorrow and her inner strength beautifully. She wrote most of the songs with other people, but everything comes across as her and uniquely personal. I'm really grateful to have found this album.

Despite the quality of her work, Kalie found herself being dropped by her record company and she took to video blogging to keep herself in the public eye. I found her blogs to be honest and interesting and (apart from her tendency to drop the odd f-bomb on tracks) I am not sure why her record company and her previous management let her down so badly.

Variety feature here

Kalie Shorr has some new music on its way and I am looking forward to hearing it.
Here's one of her first new efforts - Unkiss.