Kate Sykes is in two worlds but owns both.

Tucked into Kate Sykes's Instagram bio is the line, "Gruntry Western." It's more than tongue-in-cheek wordplay; it's the opening hook to her story. Her voice carries twang, but it's honeyed with grit. Sykes's sound moves from grungy rock to psychedelic across her catalog, with her storytelling remaining the throughline. She exists in two worlds, drawing from Jane's Addiction and Alice in Chains as readily as she does from Waylon Jennings. She carries reverence for both sides...