Premier: A Look At Indie Pop-Rock Songwriter Cat Dail & Her New Single ‘Red Pill’

Billboard Magazine, Musician Magazine, The Independent Music Awards: these are just a handful of reputable associations that have presented awards to indie pop-rock songwriter Cat Dail.

Dail is an internationally touring singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. She has released five albums on Lucky Magnet Records, her very own recording label she founded.

Dail has been a beacon within the indie rock scene across the country since she first got going in the 90s. Fronting her NYC band, Distant Cousins, she has sweated it out in all the mighty clubs of NYC, including a Friday night residency at the Bitter End, and a number of colleges and clubs from Vermont on down to Virginia, and The Rocky Mountains to The Golden State.

Recently, some of the most talented musicians have joined Dail in her work, and have been featured regularly at SXSW and other festivals, as well as playing for causes she believes in. Her music can be heard on various television shows and stations (CBS Sports, PBS) and in films (independent and feature). In addition to her musical prowess, she has led important community efforts in leadership roles at libraries, food banks and as the original Board Chair of the internationally-acclaimed, female-led Strike Anywhere Theater Ensemble. This ensemble is a progressive, multi-media collaboration, and winner of grants from Poetry Foundation among others.

On top of it all, Dail considers herself lucky to be raising two kids and be able to meet people from all over everywhere.

This NYC and sometimes New Hampshire based rock songstress hasn’t let the
doldrums of 2020 slow her down. In fact, she’s releasing some of her best work yet to
give an otherwise dreary year a much needed rock-inspired punch to the gut, coupled with a most important message.

The new single, “Red Pill,” boasts a star-studded supporting cast, and offers a hard rocking sonic delight with just enough indie pop to create a recollection of your favorite early 2000’s alt radio hits. A steady hitting horn line performed by Grammy winners Clark Gayton (trombone; Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen), Barry Danielian (trumpet; Elton John, Tower of Power) and Craig Dreyer (saxophone; Keith Richards, Wycliffe Gordon) creates a masterful wall of sound that sets the tone for the song.

An equally inviting bass line from tour de force bassist Andy Hess (Black Crowes, John Scofield, Gov’t Mule) and a subtle but driving percussion performance from another Grammy winner in Shawn Pelton (Sheryl Crow, Regina Spektor, Johnny Cash) lays the foundation for Dail’s sensuous but hearty vocal performance. Badass guitar riffs shredded by Scott Sharrard (Allman Brothers) are accompanied by a pristine Rhodes arrangement performed by Ben Stivers (Chris Botti) that makes for a large blanket of sound without pulling from Dail’s velvet vocals.

The song was co-written by Obie-winning film director Tonya Pinkins. The mission was to tell a tale parallel to our current political and civic reality. It insists that the listener ask themselves, “where are we going,” while noting the importance of taking the “red pill” and waking up to the dark reality that our country is virtually awash with white supremacy, rampant misogyny, and a sense of divisiveness and indifference towards the world as a whole.

Importantly, every aspect of “Red Pill” is guided by the creative voices of BIPOC. The
upcoming music video is directed by notable African-American PBS and ESPN
documentarian Gordon Skinner of Reframe Media. The song itself is slated to appear
in the indie film of the same name later this year, which is written & directed by multi award-winning African American director Tonya Pinkins, yes the same Tonya who contributed to the lyrics. The track was produced by Clark Gayton, quarantine-style, who also appears on trombone. “Red Pill” is available on all streaming services as of this publication, July 24th.

Expect more music from Cat Dail, including an album of remixes by genre-defying bassist and producer Stu Brooks throughout the year.