FUSE TV - Synth-Rock Outfit Kitten Talk Opening for Paramore & Hating Real-Life Cats

She's only 18, but Chloe Chaidez has already accomplished the pipe dream of many a teenager—opening for Paramore on tour. That accomplishment is even more surprising given that Kitten—the L.A. quartet Chaidez fronts—isn't all that musically similar to the pop-punk juggernaut they're opening for. 

Instead of going the emo route, Kitten's inviting, energetic Cut It Out EP reaches back to the '80s for inspiration, with Chaidez mining the defiant attitude and commanding delivery of New Wave frontwomen like Siouxsie Sioux and the Motels' Martha Davis.

With post-production on their debut album wrapping up, Fuse sat down with Chaidez and chatted about opening for Paramore, covering Prince's "Purple Rain" in concert and why she named her band Kitten despite hating cats.

The Cut It Out EP has a strong '80s vibe. Is that intentional?

I dove heavily into '80s music about three years ago. It was such a special time for pop production. The way the parts were choreographed and the intricacy of the production is so fascinating to me. Also, I think the singers were a lot more ballsy, and that got into my character. Annie Lennox is one of my favorite singers and I like the Motels a lot, too. I do my favorite vocal performances when I’m pretending I’m not myself.

So you put on a character?

Yeah, I think it’s a vocal styling. Because I don’t think I’m the best technical singer, but I get the best performances when I’m thinking, "Okay, this is James Bond meets Duran Duran." Then I think who that person would be while singing the song.

Speaking of influences, you've been covering "Purple Rain" in concert. Are you a big Prince fan?

I am. At first I was like, "Wow, should we really do this?" It's a pretty bold move. But we just do a little tag of it at the end of our song "G#." People like it. It's one of those moments in the sets where it just really shows off our guitar player and I do this whole Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey falsetto thing. It’s a cool moment and I really love Prince.

So you're opening for Paramore, which is huge. How did that come about?

We were on tour with a band called the Pomegranates—shout-out to Pomegranates, they’re really good—and we heard that Paramore wanted us to open for them [on one date]. It was really tough because it was between three dates with Charli XCX—who I also really like—and the shows with Paramore. I was like, "Sh*t what do we do?" We actually ended up doing both shows. Charli is really cool and Hayley and I are pretty close now. And that first show with Paramore was an amazing experience. Those fans are so genuine and just love live music. Ever since that first show we’ve been connected and when they found out we were making a record, they asked us to open for them. It's surreal. I'd go to sleep and think about it every night because it's just so awesome.

Are you a Paramore fan?

I actually wasn’t too familiar with their music but their new record’s good. They have a ton of really great songs on it. Their whole image has changed. They started really young—Hayley’s 24 now—and they took a long break off so they’re really maturing.