Wishy Discuss the Buzz Orbiting ‘Planet Popstar’
Indianapolis indie poppers Wishy are building on the success of their debut with an EP and more new songs on the way. They chat with PopMatters about it.
Planet Popstar Wishy Winspear 25 April 2025 
Triple Seven Wishy Winspear 16 August 2024
It’s been a rapid rise for Indianapolis-based Wishy, and the sky appears to be the limit. Their 2023 EP Paradise was followed by last year’s full-length debut Triple Seven, which received universal acclaim, including landing on the best of 2024 lists of GQ, The New York Times, and Alt Press. There is no sign of slowing down. They have just released the Planet Popstar EP and completed a run of dates with Momma, another group that blend 1990s influences and contemporary sounds to craft pop songs that take residence in your head. It was a perfect fit for them.
“We have only toured three times, and two of those weren’t headlining tours. Unless you have a new release, it’s usually about trying to get a good opening spot. We were so excited to get the Momma dates, because we knew them already,” explains singer/guitarist Kevin Krauter.
The near-universal acclaim for Triple Seven hasn’t gone to their heads, though. “I’m happy that people are enjoying it. When I started making music, it was hard to attract an audience. Now that people are listening, I do feel a little naked. I struggle with being in the spotlight a little,” guitarist/singer Nina Pitchkites says. Krauter adds, “I tend to think more about the opportunities we are getting. Being able to play with great bands here and going to Europe have been exciting. Also, of course, it does feel good to read nice words about something we worked really hard on.”
Despite flying under the radar, Indianapolis has a thriving music scene that supports a wide range of genres. Krauter has been a fixture in the music scene for a while. He was previously in Hoops, who created a buzz in the 2010s and were signed to Fat Possum Records. He was writing songs for Wishy for a while before he brought in Pitchkites. Krauter was friends with her sister in high school, but they didn’t start making music together until after college. The band are rounded out by Dimitri Morris on guitar, Mitch Collins on bass, and Conner Host on drums.
Wishy is their highest-profile work, but both have other active projects. Pitchkites also records as Pushop, and she’s working on new music for that as well. Krauter and his partner have an ambient music project called Prayer Warriors. “Mark Tester runs a label in Indy called Medium Sound that focuses on ambient and experimental music, and we are going to put out a tape on there,” Krauter shares.
“There is a rich history of electronic and ambient music in Indianapolis. It’s great to be part of that scene, too.” Tester also owns State Street Pub, the premier local bar, where anyone can book a show easily. “That place is a home to the people in the scene here,” Pitchkites adds. “It’s great just to show up, see people, and discover whoever is playing.”
Triple Seven is one of those records that you can put on and nearly everyone will enjoy. While many bands are mining shoegaze right now, Krauter’s and Pitchkites’ talent for weaving their diverse listening habits into Wishy’s song set them apart. Their ear for pop makes their songs instantly accessible and memorable. There is a lot of sharing of music that occurs within the group.
“Nina turned me on to Parsley Sound, and I became obsessed with them. I also love Fishmans and Bibio, and ‘Planet Popstar’ is heavily influenced by Jimmy Eat World,” he shares. For Pitchkites, she draws inspiration from a diverse array of artists, including Shania Twain, Courtney Love, Liz Phair, and Magnetic Fields. “I grew up listening to a lot of pop music, and I still find inspiration everywhere. In particular, I just love the synthesizer sounds on the Magnetic Fields’ records,” she shares.
Most of the songs on Planet Popstar originated from the Triple Seven sessions, and Wishyd aimed to do these songs justice while also stretching out a bit. “We had a backlog of songs from the Triple Seven sessions. We decided to have a little more fun with the production this time. It’s a little lower stakes, we can be more experimental and lean into the poppier side,” Krauter explains.
He continues, “On the EP, we felt like we could fuck around, adding things that give the songs the attention they deserve. Our producer is always down to experiment. An example of that is the changing pitches on ‘Fly’. We were thinking about how to give these songs more flair. On “Chaser”, we sped it up from its original version and leaned into the poppy feel. It first sounded like an alt-country song. And ‘Portal’ has a different sound than most of our catalog, so it was fun to push that even further.”
So far, Krauter and Pitchkites have been the two primary songwriters, but that is changing as the group works on new material. “We just had a writing bootcamp to write for a few hours a day for a few days. Next time, the songs will have more input from the rest of the band. Nina and Steve wrote “Fly” on the new EP. In general, whoever sings the most on the song is who wrote it, but Mitch has been bringing in baselines that turn into songs, and Dimitri has been more involved in the songwriting, too,” Krauter says.
As for what’s next, Wishy will be playing at Riot Fest in September and working on the follow-up to Triple Seven this year. “Playing Riot Fest is really big for us,” Pitchkites says. As for the next Wishy record, “The new songs are about expanding the vibe of Triple Seven. I wouldn’t say Planet Popstar is indicative of the direction of what’s next. We have been locking in as a band more and more, and I’m really excited about recording these songs,” Krauter says.