KITTY you have released the official music video for the title track of the band’s long-awaited new studio album, “Fire”. KITTY‘s first LP in over 13 years was made available on June 21 via Sumerian Records.
KITTY vocalist/guitarist Morgan Lander comments: “We’ve gone from 0 to 100 within the last few years and it’s almost unfathomable that the culmination of all of our work, sacrifice, pain and triumph has finally come to fruition with the release of our seventh studio album, ‘Fire’. We burn with more determination, focus and drive than ever, and hope that these elements resonate with every word, and can be heard in every note of this album. ‘Fire’ is for you!”
When “Fire” was first announced this past May, Morgan said in a statement: “10 years ago, if someone would have told us that we would be releasing new KITTY music in 2024, we’d have dismissed them right away. It feels like something deeper than fate that’s brought us together again, allowing us to create something fearless and magical for you. We’ve worked incredibly hard over the past year, and surrounded ourselves with the ultimate dream team to make this album a reality. We cannot wait for you to lose yourselves in the passion and strength of ‘Fire’“
“Fire” track listing
01. Fire
02. I Still Wear This Crown
03. Falter
04. Vultures
05. We Are Shadows
06. Wound
07. One Foot In The Grave
08. Are You Entertained
09. Grime
10. Eyes Wide Open
In April, KITTY announced an exclusive run of North American headline dates. The long-awaited shows will see the band perform in five cities across the US and Canada this July and August, giving fans a very special and rare chance to see the band play a full headline set that will include their recently released singles “We Are Shadows” and “Eyes Wide Open” as well as classic hits and some deep cuts not played live since the band’s early days.
Last November, it was revealed that KITTY was working on a new studio LP with producer Nick Raskulinecz at Nashville’s Sienna Studios.
Raskulineczwho moved to Nashville from Los Angeles around 16 years ago, had previously worked with such acts as RUSH, ALICE IN CHAINS, KORN, RISE AGAINST, HALESTORM, EVANESCENCE, SKID ROW and the DEFTONES.
Regarding the overwhelmingly positive response to KITTY‘s live shows and music since the band’s return in 2022, lander told metal hammer: “I just think that the world is ready for us now. A lot of the things that we were doing 25 years ago were still… I don’t want to say controversial, but they seemed so new. It definitely has a lot to do with a shift in thinking and acceptance and representation in the years since the very first time that KITTY came out. Sometimes it just takes the world a bit of time to catch up and appreciate those things.”
In March, Morgan told The MetalSucks Podcast about KITTY‘s plans for the rest of 2024: “To be honest with you, this all just feels brand new again. I know that we’re veterans of the music industry and whatnot, but we’ve sort of stepped into a new age and a new era of music releasing and record labels and things like that. So I think the goal is just to just enjoy — for us, for sure — enjoy the process and just — I don’t know — put some smiles on people’s faces, really. All of the things that come along with releasing new music and an album, like new merch and shows, headlining stuff, album-release stuff, all of that is definitely coming down the pike. just to sort of enjoy the ride. All of those tangible things will come. It all feels so new and exciting again. So, yeah, we’re just here to enjoy the ride.
Asked how she views all the platforms, with social media and music streaming services, now compared to how it was when KITTY last released new music nearly a decade and a half ago, Morgan said: “Well, I feel like in 2011 [when ‘I’ve Failed You’ came out] and 2009 [when ‘In The Black’ was released]those last two albums, I actually really don’t know that Spotify and music and streaming platforms were catching on. And so it was this weird sort of interim period where they may have existed but nobody cared and people were definitely still buying tangible CDs. And, yeah, so now we’re in this new era of streaming, and I really feel like music is more accessible than ever and I think more people are listening than ever before, because things are just so easy to find; everything you need is on a streaming platform. And so I definitely think that it does have its benefits. I mean, as far as being an artist and on the serving-the-artist side of things, it doesn’t pay great, but I feel like the audience is greater than ever before. Way back, when we were active, I guess you could say the first time, the industry was definitely a different beast. And this time around, I feel like a lot of people, since we put out our last albums, we have discovered the band, a lot of young people as well. And so because streaming [is so widely available], they’ve had this ability to discover and listen to our old catalog and continue to keep those songs popular and alive. And ultimately, it’s that sort of simmering growth that’s allowed us to have this opportunity that we have today. So, I don’t think that it’s a bad thing. I’m excited for the weirdness of the future.”
In an interview with Knotfest‘s “She’s With The Band” podcast, KITTY drummer Mercedes Lander and Morgan spoke about the musical direction of the long-awaited follow-up to “I’ve Failed You”. Mercedes said: “I’m gonna say that we are just really stuck to write 1,200 percent bangers. I think that’s just where we’re at now. We want people to feel good. We want people to feel what we’re feeling. I feel like bangers, that’s what we’re good at.”
Asked by host Tori Kravitz about the possibility of KITTY combining some of the old-school sound from the band’s early days and mixing it up with a fresh approach, Morgan said: “I think marrying some of the ideas, ’cause I don’t think we’re ever going to put our JNCOs [jeans] on again. But, yeah, the idea of marrying some of those ideas — like who we are now with the ideas of who maybe we used to be and kind of being able to meet somewhere in the middle, but in a way that will just create something brand new again. I’m excited for it to be unleashed upon the world.”
KITTY played his first concert in five years in September 2022 at the Blue Ridge Rock Festival at the Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia.
Joining Morgan and Mercedes in KITTY‘s current lineup guitarist Tara McLeod and bassist Ivana “Ivy” Vujic.
Prior to Blue Ridge, KITTY had not performed since their reunion show at London Music Hall in the band’s native London, Ontario in 2017, celebrating the group’s documentary “Kittie: Origins/Evolutions”.
Vujic joined KITTY in 2008 and appeared on the band’s fifth studio CD, 2009’s “In The Black”. She also wrote and recorded bass for KITTY‘s sixth album, 2011’s “I’ve Failed You”.
despues de KITTY completed the touring cycle for “I’ve Failed You” album, the band entered a long period of inactivity during which Morgan focused on a marketing job for a chain of fitness clubs while Mercedes worked in real estate and more recently at a software company. The group also began work on a career-spanning documentary, “Origins/Evolutions”which finally saw the light of day in 2018 via Lightyear Entertainment in North America.
“I’ve Failed You” sold 3,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 178 on The Billboard 200 chart.
Photo credit: Jim Louvau
