Hat or Belt is the musical moniker of Canterbury-based songwriter/music-maker Keith, whose surname’s letters are all contained in ‘Hat or Belt’.

The songs of Hat or Belt blend reflective lyrics, catchy riffs and hummable tunes to create a distinctive indie pop/rock flavour, with a dash of quirkiness, idiosyncrasy and melancholy, all served up in an English spoken-sung vocal.  

The songs have attracted descriptions such as “quirky”, “catchy”, “hooky”, “poignant” and “touching”, with listeners comparing them to the likes of Cockney Rebel, Howard Jones, Lightning Seeds, Madness, New Musik, Pet Shop Boys, Prefab Sprout, Squeeze, Two Door Cinema Club and Velvet Underground. 

Unattended, Hat or Belt songs would be simmering on the hob. Stir in the missing ingredient: a top studio with top engineers, producers and invited musicians, and watch the songs come to the boil. What better venue than a converted lightship in London’s Docklands: Lightship 95, with diesel tank turned control room, and engine room turned live room, all still bobbing with the tide, making each recording journey an uplifting experience.

Hat or Belt has pushed the boat out, recording a whole album of songs at Lightship 95. The album will disembark later in 2026 after more singles have been released.  The first single to wash ashore was “Everything’s Changing”. Listen here and watch the retro-style video here.  The second single was “You Never Know”. Listen here and watch video here. The third single was “Christie” - listen here and watch video here. The current single is “Up” - listen here.