There’s a youthful nostalgia to Mistakes, the euphoric latest single from Perth singer-songwriter Kurt Carrera.
Coasting on pristine pop production but infused with an R&B flair, the track sees Kurt Carrera ruminate on modern romance with incisive finesse, while never losing sight of the free-spirited fun that comes with young love.
Mistakes opens with choral vocal riffs and applauding hand percussion, the early markers of what becomes an endlessly catchy tune.
The infectious feel is helped along by whirring and video game-like synth effects, which remain a throughline for the track and veer it towards the more electronic reaches of R&B.
Clearly at home in the sound, the Filipino-Australian musician vocals saunter onto the bouncy, trap-like production with an effortless ease; with his lyrics darting acrobatically around subtle hi-hats and 808 beats.
At any given point on Mistakes, Carrera is toeing the line between sugary pop confection and more rhythmic swagger, without feeling like a mish-mash of genres.
Within the latter sound, Carrera delivers poppy refrains and earworm melodies, with the assist of backing harmonies and his polished vocal timbre.
From a call-and-response bridge to the “na na na” ad lib that’ll be hummed for days, Carrera deploys pop structures to make Mistakes infinitely replayable.
At the same time, the artist is able to defy the cliched trappings of pop with his commitment to groovier R&B elements, from his shifting cadence to the bedroom-ready lyricism.
Here, Carrera reflects on the messiness of a situationship, ignoring his own intentions with a muse and instead committing the mistake of continuing the relationship. “We all make mistakes,” he croons on the catchy hook, “so be mine tonight.”
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All of it makes for the kind of radio-ready delights you might find on an early Bruno Mars record, and the feat is especially impressive given Carrera’s relative greenness in the scene.
Mistakes adds to a growing list of achievements for the Perth musician, who performed as part of the AFL Quarter-time show and has shared the stage with the likes of Gabe Bondoc, Supathick, and End of Fashion.
Listen to Kurt Carrera’s new single Mistakes below.
