Coming off of SALSTHON, the Salesianum student body has been introduced to many great musical acts within our community, but perhaps the fastest-rising group did not even (fully) take the stage. Meet Mrs. Kitching, a hard/alternative rock band composed of Mike Barkasy, ‘21; Jack Alberta, ‘22; and Chris Tremble. They have taken Sallies by storm with their popular hit, “Narrow,” and are looking to expand on the success with their upcoming album.

“We met in middle school,” Barkasy began, “and started playing in the band room of our teacher, Mr. Kitching. We just started playing together, had similar tastes, and decided to play together outside school.” Jack later said he met Chris in band and Mike in detention. Jack remembered, “[Releasing music] was definitely a joke when it first started. We were playing covers at parties for a while and then we decided we wanted to make our own music the summer before my eighth grade year.”

After releasing “Narrow,” the band has been encouraged to continue making their first album. “I think my favorite moment was recording and then going to the hospital,” Jack said, laughing. “The day I recorded drums I went to the hospital and was diagnosed with diabetes that exact day. So that was a good time.” When asked about the timetable for the release, Barkasy said, “We are shooting for the end of May. We aren’t afraid to take our time though because we want to make sure there’s a show and promotion to go with it. We are going to take our time but we are going to get it out as soon as possible because we want to get all the feedback we can.” They also remarked that they are looking to expand their genres, including making a piano ballad and other music they have grown to love and appreciate over their years as a band.

Overall, the band just wants to remain true to its roots. These rockin’ artists know that they wouldn’t be anywhere without their fans, and they are genuinely appreciative of all the support they have received from all sorts of people. “We are just so thankful for our community,” Barkasy said. “My favorite part is hearing teachers and students going through the hallways and singing ‘Woah, woah!’ That just makes us go, ‘Yes!’”

You can stream “Narrow” on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/track/6NtchNHnDKcmtyXiQgFER3?si=spHdxNS2RCK3HF0Gmx76Wg, Apple Music at https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/narrow/1454859446?i=1454859456 or on SoundCloud at https://soundcloud.com/mrs-kitching/narrow. You can also check out Mrs. Kitching’s other music on any of these platforms.