Kate Pierson
Radios & Rainbows
(Songvest Records)
Kate Pierson’s first solo record in nine years marks a welcome return by the B-52s cofounder and erstwhile Hudson Valley resident. A showcase for Pierson’s distinctive, soaring vocals—still gloriously powerful at age 76—the album is equal parts dance anthems and politically pointed protest songs, few to none of which attempt to recreate the sound of her former band. Rather, Pierson’s songs reference a panoply of adjacent styles and groups. “Take Me Back to the Party” is more Tom Tom Club than B-52s, while “Everyday is Halloween”—a collaboration with Sia—is fueled by some very Strokes-like guitar lines. “Pillow Queen” and “Wings” are bouncy celebrations of lesbian love and sexual transcendence, the former propelled by a reggae-dub beat, the latter by infectious electropop. “Always Till Now” recalls love at the laundromat in a nod to fellow Athens, Georgia-born icons R.E.M.
With the album’s title track, the seventh of 12 numbers, Pierson takes a left turn towards politics; the song—with echoes of John Lennon and Bob Dylan—pointedly inquires, “How do we tell the truth from the lies?” “Dream On” quotes both Edwin Starr’s “War” and Patti Smith’s “People Have the Power” in a Motown-style setting; “Higher Place” addresses LGBTQ+ rights (“Battles that incite a riot in us / Taking the truth denied to us”). If this makes it all sound heavy, it’s not: overall, Pierson has turned out a great, fun pop album suitable for dancing and thinking.
This article appears in April 2025.
