What A Relief

On October 25th, 2024, the frontwoman of Muna, Katie Gavin, released her debut solo album entitled What A Relief. Spanning 12 tracks, including three standout singles and a surprise feature, this 39-minute record invites listeners on an intimate journey. Each track takes listeners to a different place, and they are all crafted with evident care and emotion, showcasing Gavin’s distinctive artistry and vulnerability. Gavin cuts right to her own heart with her lyrics, melodies, harmonies and instrumentals; she puts everything out on the line for listeners to take with them, hold close to them and relate to. 

What A Relief explores Gavin’s troublesome past with family, peer relationships and self-identity. Contrary to Muna’s typical style, What A Relief, leans much more country, and it features a country twang that makes you feel like Gavin is singing to you and only you, which makes all these songs hit that much closer to the soul. Turn on any song from this album, and close your eyes; it will feel as though it is just you, her and a guitar in a room. It takes an incredible amount of power and a beautiful voice to achieve that effect, and that’s exactly what Katie Gavin does. 

Let’s start by taking a look at “Casual Drug Use,” the album's second, and in our professional opinion best, single. This song stands out among the rest because it is catchy and incredibly relatable. It tackles what it is like to struggle in friendships and relationships and want to put in more effort but not being able to. “Some days you do your best; some days you do what gets you out of bed.” This is a sentiment anyone can relate to, no matter what your level of struggle is, we all have days where we just have to do what we can to get ourselves out of bed. At the same time, Gavin is simultaneously diving into what it’s like to have bad habits that you really want to abandon, but just can’t seem to force yourself to. Whether that habit be a person or a thing, Gavin gets what it is like to just not be able to quit. “And I thought maybe I'll change tomorrow but if I don't, I feel like it's a little unnerving how fast I fall back into fixing my issues with casual drug use.” This line is incredibly raw and real, the acknowledgment of the fact that she should change, but also knowing that she probably will not. It is yet another line that anyone can relate to. We all have things that we have to change, shift or stop to make our lives better that we just don’t stop doing, but it seems that only Gavin has mustered the courage to share that with the world. 

We can continue on to look at the track “Keep Walking,” which guides listeners through the difficult realization that we are not always the victim and that we do have faults in certain situations in which we thought only we were hurt. “Oh, what a relief to know that some of this was my fault; I am not a victim after all,” Gavin sings, with a refreshing frankness that might make this mindset seem effortless—though it is anything but no matter how much we all would like to pretend, we are not perfect in every situation. Regardless of how you spin it, we have all hurt someone and been hurt by someone, those states of being are not mutually exclusive. Yet again, Gavin is brave enough to admit fault and take the blame so openly. “You were not the villain after all; I'm at peace with you, and if I ever see you on the street, I'll just keep walking.” You do not have to live your life avoiding those you have done wrong, and villanzing those who did you wrong. At some point, you have to accept and move forward. 

This feeling of being seen does not stop at “Casual Drug Use” or “Keep Walking,” as it spans the entire collection of songs. Gavin seems to somehow know exactly what we all feel. She puts her heart and truth on her sleeve for everyone to see in What A Relief. Katie Gavin doesn’t just share music; she offers pieces of herself, unfiltered and beautifully imperfect. The album’s introspective lyrics, paired with its stripped-down country sound, make it feel as though Gavin is confiding in each listener personally. Her willingness to confront hard truths—about relationships, identity and the complicated process of healing—transforms What A Relief into more than an album. It is an invitation to embrace our own vulnerabilities and imperfections. With this debut, Gavin cements herself not only as a powerful vocalist but as a fearless storyteller, making What A Relief an unforgettable listen for anyone ready to connect deeply with her journey.

Stream What A Relief and tag us in your favorite songs on our socials @theedgemag!