‘Total Mojo Renewal’: KT Tunstall on New Album ‘KIN’

The early 2000s saw Scottish pop-rock artist KT Tunstall’s debut album, “Eye to the Telescope,” go platinum on both sides of the pond. Twelve years on, she’s back with a renewed sense of self. Before gracing the stage of Boston’s Royale nightclub, KT sat down with us to talk about her recently-released album “KIN,” finding personal fulfilment, and her long-lasting friendship with former Spice Girl Mel C.

The Harvard Crimson: How does it feel to be touring again?

KT Tunstall: It feels amazing. I loved the last record, but it was very down-tempo. I was touring these beautiful sit-down theatres solo. I was wearing a suit—it was a very classy affair—but ultimately I got completely burnt out; even if an audience are really enjoying themselves it’s very difficult to be reciprocal with the energy when they’re sitting. So it was so amazing going out this May to start doing the summer festivals with “KIN.” We were playing little sweatboxes for 250 to 300 people: You could have wrung my jeans out when I came off stage because I was absolutely drenched, but at the same time completely energized and fired up. I felt so full of fulfilment and joy, which was a completely different feeling after playing the theatre show where I didn’t sweat or jump around as much. People say to me after these recent gigs, “How do you do it? How do you have the energy?” Personally, I feel more energized when I come off than before I’ve gone on. I’ve been through a lot of self-reflection over the past few years, and I’ve come to think the meaning of life is joy. That’s what you should be looking for in your life. Seeing how the fans are responding so strongly to content and the subject matter of these songs has just been extraordinary.

THC: This new record is a departure from the past three releases.

KTT: For sure. It’s up there with the first record in terms of being a very upbeat pop-rock, big chorus album. In some ways it does feel like I’ve taken three records to write my second album. It’s a really great feeling of going full circle, coming around back to making music because I love it, without the pressure of a record label or what the fans want or what will get played on the radio. There is definitely a relationship with that first album, but at the same time I’ve come around to “KIN” as a very different person. There’s a total mojo renewal that I didn’t have before. So in my mind, it’s a much better place to be making music from.

THC: Was it a conscious decision to come back to the first album’s vibe?

KTT: No, not at all. I was planning to take a five-to 10-year hiatus from making records: I was burnt out, I didn’t really want to do it, I wasn’t attracted to making other records or writing or touring. My dad had passed away, my marriage had broken up, and life was totally upside-down in London, so I sold everything I owned and moved to California. I was expecting to take a long time out from my solo career, but after about a year of driving around listening to the likes of Joni Mitchell and Neil Young, I started writing these really big pop-rock choruses. At first I was resistant, but really you’ve just got to respect the fact that your inspiration has come. The material was so strong that I would have been really foolish not to follow up.

THC: And you’re living full time in the LA area now?

KTT: I’m an official resident of Venice Beach! I lived the first half of my life in Britain having to wear thermal underwear in the middle of May and never leaving the house without a cardigan, and now, finally, I’ve been rewarded in the second half of my life where I can go and eat my breakfast outside every morning surrounded by palm trees. I love it.

THC: Does your Scottish heritage still influence you?

KTT: There’s something so precious about knowing somewhere. It’s like having a really old friend who knows you: It’s a very easy relationship. I love knowing the bends in the road, the trees and the landmarks. A lot of it is about the Scottish landscape for me. It’s very special.

THC: The new album was released on Sept. 9. What’s the story behind the name “KIN”?

KTT: The whole album is about coming through a lot of difficult challenges and actually being in a better place at the end of it—using music to become wiser, more compassionate. You learn through that process who the people you really want in your life are, and I realized that the people I really love and who really love me are kin.

THC: I watched the video for “Hard Girls” earlier today. How did you get Mel C involved in the project?

KTT: Oh man. It was one of the most fun videos I’ve ever filmed. Mel and I met at my agent’s birthday party about 10 years ago while we were on the dance floor busting some moves. She’s an extraordinary person—I don’t know how she’s kept her head through the absolute insanity of being a Spice Girl and the unbelievable success they had. She’s just a lovely person and such a good laugh, so she was such an obvious choice when it came to casting for the video. I was so pleased that she was up for doing it.

THC: Speaking of collaborations, you have a track with [English singer-songwriter] James Bay on the new record. How did that come about?

KTT: It was such a stroke of luck! We met at a New Year’s Eve gig and he was so sweet—he was telling me that he’d been to a bunch of my shows before he was famous. It’s just crazy to think that there was an unknown James Bay watching my gigs!

THC: And finally, you’ve played here in Boston before—does anything about the city stand out?

KTT: Oh, totally—one of my favorite memories of Boston is walking down the street, looking up, and seeing a hawk flying right down the middle of the street. It then picked up a pigeon and took it right up to the top of a building. It turned out it was a vermin control program in which they were bringing big birds of prey into the city to eat all of the pigeons. It was one of the most awesome things I’ve ever seen—I thought I was in Jurassic Park.

KT Tunstall’s new album, “KIN,” is out now.