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Kittie's "Funeral for Yesterday" set for release Feb 20th
ABOUT THIS ALBUM
ARTIST: Kittie
TITLE: Funeral for Yesterday
RELEASE DATE: 2007/02/20
TRACKLIST01. Funeral for Yesterday
02. Breathe
03. Everything That Could Have Been
04. Slow Motion
05. Will to Live
06. Never Again
07. Sweet Destruction Interlude
08. Summer Dies
09. Flower of Flesh and Blood
10. Around Your Heart
11. This Too Shall Pass
12. Last Goodbye
13. Witch Hunt
14. The Change
NEWS/REVIEWSMTV:
When London, Ontario, metal vixens Kittie titled their 2004 album Until the End, they had no idea how close they were to actually breaking up.
Eight months after its release, the band was without a label, and guitarist Lisa Marx and bassist Jennifer Arroyo subsequently quit because they were unable to pay their bills. They were the fourth and fifth musicians to leave the Kittie clan since the group's 1996 formation, and for six months, the future of the band was in limbo.
"It looked a little bleak when it was only [drummer] Mercedes [Lander] and I," frontwoman Morgan Lander admitted. "We're not the White Stripes. We can't get away with just guitar and drums. So we thought about leaving the band and getting an education or getting jobs. There was a lot of sadness and tears, but there was also a lot of creativity. And we ultimately decided that this is where our hearts lie and we couldn't do anything else."
Once they decided to persevere, the Lander sisters hired unsung local guitarist Tara McLeod and bassist Trish Doan, and spent 18 months writing over a dozen viciously melodic songs inspired by the stress and uncertainty they had endured with their former lineup. Funeral for Yesterday, which comes out February 20 on their own Kiss of Infamy Records (distributed through EMI), delivers on the promise Kittie first made 10 years ago, but never exactly kept. Gone are the rough edges and musical redundancies of former efforts, replaced by a new professionalism and a desire to put the past aside and move on.
"In order to have rebirth, you must have death," Morgan explained. "So, all of the songs are about the demise of the former band, the resurrection of something new. It's really about letting go of what's already gone and putting everything negative or unfortunate to rest."
Funeral for Yesterday was written and recorded without a deadline, and the extra time gave Kittie the opportunity to hone their arrangements and musicianship. It didn't hurt that the new members' skill levels dwarfed those of their predecessors. McLeod is equally capable of playing rapid Metallica-style chugs and textural Evanescence-esque washes — and she can also solo. And Doan's bass lines are tight and tasteful, straying just enough from the root rhythm to retain their own personality.
"They're both amazingly talented girls," Lander said. "And they're totally down to earth. Also, they've never experienced anything like this, so they have this naive excitement that Mercedes and I used to have. They're just thrilled to be here. They don't care about money or politics or the music business."
The new level of artistry and enthusiasm motivated Lander, whose vocals on Funeral for Yesterday are spiteful and soaring — simultaneously seductive and harsh. In addition, the minor-key backup harmonies are as sinister as those of Alice in Chains. And when she wants to, Lander can still spew death-metal vocal venom, as on "Never Again" and "Last Goodbye."
"On the last few albums we've had this strange divide where one song would be all full-out scary screaming metal and then we'd have a hard rock-ish ballad song," she said. "This time I wanted to blend the two styles together where you have the music of something really thrashy and heavy, but there's melody overtop."
Despite the obvious improvements, Kittie still face an uncertain future. Much has happened in metal since Until the End was released, and it's unclear if the band's former fanbase will still be there. It's also not yet known how well their label will be able to promote Funeral for Yesterday. Still, Lander looks to the days ahead with more enthusiasm than trepidation.
"Taking your future into your hands is very scary, but it's also really empowering," she said. "Yes, we've been out of the loop for a while, but I think the entire ordeal was a learning experience that allowed us to find ourselves. And now we're ready to come back with a vengeance."
COMMENTSIt looks like this album has just leaked.
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