''Kerli'' is the debut self-titled EP by

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n singer-songwriter

Kerli Kerli Kõiv (; born 7 February 1987), better known mononymously as Kerli, is an Estonian singer and songwriter. Born in Elva, Kerli entered multiple singing competitions before being signed to Island Records in 2006 by LA Reid. In 2007, she rel ...

. It was released on 16 October 2007, 17 through

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

. After being signed to Island in 2006, Kerli began producing her debut album '' Love Is Dead'' and released the EP as a teaser for the album. The music from the EP is influenced by genres such as

electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

, and

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

while its lyrical topics include individuality and rebellion. From the three-song release, which contains the cover of

Bauhaus The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 200 ...

' "

She's in Parties "She's in Parties" is a song by English gothic rock band Bauhaus. It was released in April 1983 as a single and an extended version appeared on the group's fourth studio album, ''Burning from the Inside'', in 7" and 12" format on the Beggars Ba ...

", " Walking on Air" and "Love Is Dead" were later included in ''Love Is Dead'' (2008). ''Kerli'' received a positive review for its musical diversity.

Background and composition

In June 2006, following two failed contracts with

Universal Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an i ...

and

Stolen Transmission Stolen Transmission was an American independent record label founded in 2005 by Sarah Lewitinn and Rob Stevenson. They have released albums from well-known artists such as Innerpartysystem, Monty Are I, and Schoolyard Heroes. History The label ...

Estonian singer-songwriter Kerli signed a record deal with

after auditioning to

L.A. Reid Antonio Marquis "L.A." Reid (born June 7, 1956) is an American record executive, A&R representative, and record producer. He is the founder and served as co-chairman of Hitco Entertainment. He also previously served as the chairman and CEO of Ep ...

and began the development of her then upcoming debut album '' Love Is Dead'', whose producers include David Maurice and

Lester Mendez Lester Mendez is a multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning record producer, songwriter and composer. His production/writing credits include a multitude of successful hits with Shakira, Jewel, Nelly Furtado, Jessica Simpson, Enrique Iglesias, and ot ...

. She released her self-titled debut extended play (EP) as a digital download on 16 October 2007 as a teaser for ''Love Is Dead''; a promotional CD containing the songs was also released. Lyrically, the songs included talk about individuality and rebellion. " Walking on Air" is a semi-autobiographical track which portrays "a little girl wishing to use her talents to find a better life" and has synth rhythms in its production. "Love Is Dead" talks about a lost love, with lyrics like "All I want, all I want is right here / But love don't live here anymore". Kerli has described the song as "hard and dark enough, yet beautiful and light." "

" is a

cover with "industrial, chugging guitars and augmented strings", compared to the original version. Both "Walking on Air" and "Love Is Dead" were later included in ''Love Is Dead'' (2008).

Track listing

Personnel

– lead vocals *

– producer *

Neal Pogue Neal H Pogue is an American producer, audio engineer and mixer originally from Roselle, New Jersey, and based in Los Angeles. Pogue is a multi-time Grammy Award winner, having first won for his engineering and mixing work on Outkast's ''Speake ...

– mixing * David Maurice – mixing

References

{{Authority control 2007 debut EPs Kerli albums