St. Kio, the recording project of LA-based multi-instrumentalist, artist and producer Nicole Bandoquillo, looks to challenge conventions in more ways than one. Stylistically the St. Kio sound bends genre norms, combining shoegaze, pop and post-punk sensibilities into something at once affirming and transportive. But more than mere artistic invention, this style has a tangible purpose too, Bandoquillo attempting to break new ground as a way of carving out a space for those people too often marginalised within music scenes—be they of femme, BIPOC, and/or queer communities.
With a debut EP coming at the end of June via Future Gods, St. Kio has shared brand new single, ‘Infinity Mirror’. The song conjures a world nocturnal and neon-lit, balancing lush textures and soaring energy to create something both reflective and forward-facing. Because while this is a song about the way in which past events come to shape our lives, St. Kio is interested in more than returning to times now gone. Instead, she considers the past only in search of ways to progress more successfully, and come to embrace our identities for what they are. “I wrote this song during a period of heartbreak, loneliness, and isolation,” as Bandoquillo explains. “It inspired me to shift from self-pity to self-reflection, focusing on how I could improve and move forward.”
