What is it about indie pop that makes for such a winning vessel for the introspection and self-deprecation of songwriters? Perhaps it’s just that hooky guitars and catchy choruses are the spoonful of sugar that allows the lyrics of, say, Courtney Barnett or Liz Stokes of The Beths to go down ultra-smooth. Maybe it’s just because it’s one of the more evergreen flavors of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” indie music, one that can still excel without reinventing the wheel. This question comes to mind a lot when listening to Part of the Problem, Baby, the addictive sophomore record by ex-Tigercat Laura Kovic and her band, Fortitude Valley. For 34 minutes, the British four-piece churns out hit after hit, belter after belter, each one doing an immaculate job of softening…

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