Kittie Recover From Funeral For Yesterday

There were some unhappy kittens after Kittie's last album.

"The writing was there and the songs were there but sonically it didn't really come out the way we wanted it to," admits Kittie vocalist/guitarist Morgan Lander in reference to their last effort, 2007's Funeral For Yesterday.

A sonic departure from the alternative metal quartet's traditional estrogen-fuelled fury, that album displayed a fine sense of craftsmanship, but failed to impress many, band included.

"With Funeral, we felt like we lost ourselves," she continues. "It strayed off the Kittie path."

Funeral For Yesterday garnered mixed reviews that leant more towards disdain than overall approval, and the album's subtle experimentation with the Kittie sound was bold, but didn't necessarily make it a winner. The lesson was not lost on the band.

In The Black, Kittie's fifth effort, is heralded as both a return to form and heavier overall venture for the 14-year veterans. It finds Lander and crew (drummer Mercedes Lander, guitarist Tara McLeod and bassist Ivy Vujic) encouraged and unified.

"I guess we were inspired to do things differently based on those previous... experiences," she says cautiously.

"This is exactly what we wanted it to be. We set out to make it completely different from Funeral For Yesterday, and I think that was well accomplished.

"We wanted to outdo ourselves; make this album everything the last one wasn't. We were inspired to make this album that much more outlandish [with] more solos, faster, more metal, rawer, and capture what we're all about in the live setting."

Lander figures one small deviation does not ruin a band, anyway. There's bound to be folly in any career, and Kittie found theirs. Yet instead of agonizing over it, they've tackled it head-on.

"Every band with a career as long as ours has a few missteps, but we've re-established ourselves. It'll only get crazier from here.

"It's all a learning experience and nobody's perfect. You have to accept the ups-and-downs, take them in stride, learn and not do 'em again. Sometimes it's important to flex your metal muscles."

Catch the reenergized Kittie here:

You can see Kittie here:

March 3 Toronto, ON @ The Opera House
March 4 Montreal, QC @ Underworld
March 5 Clifton Park, NY @ Northern Lights
March 6 Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom
March 7 Raleigh, NC @ Volume 11 Tavern
March 9 Allentown, PA @ Crocodile Rock Cafe
March 10 Huntington, WV @ V Club
March 11 Louisville, KY @ Phoenix Hill Tavern
March 12 Traverse City, MI @ Streeters Nightclub
March 13 Dayton, OH @ McGuffy's House Of Rock
March 14 Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
March 15 Cresthill, IL @ Bada Brew
March 16 Waterloo, IA @ Spicoli's Grill And Reverb Rock Garden
March 17 Mount Clemens, MI @ The Hayloft
March 19 Columbus, OH @ The Alrosa Villa
March 20 Flint, MI @ The Machine Shop
March 21 Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's Concert Club
March 23 New York, NY @ B.B. King Blues Club & Grill
March 24 Foxboro, MA @ Showcase Live At Patriot Place
March 25 Manchester, NH @ Rocko's Rock Club
March 26 Orono, ME @ 103 Ultra Lounge
March 27 Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Chance Theater