Never Again | ||||
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EP by | ||||
Released | February 7, 2006 | |||
Recorded | 2005 [1] | |||
Studio | Mole (London, Ontario) | |||
Genre | Heavy metal | |||
Length | 9:44 13:24 (iTunes) | |||
Label | Rock Ridge Music | |||
Producer | Kittie | |||
Kittie chronology | ||||
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Never Again is the third extended play by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released exclusively on digital storefronts on February 7, 2006, through Rock Ridge Music. Recorded at Mole Studios in London, Ontario, The EP contains four demos of "Never Again", "This Too Shall Pass", "Breathe", and "Everything That Could Have Been" (iTunes exclusive), which were later re-recorded for Kittie's fourth album Funeral For Yesterday (2007). [2] The band supported its release with the Never Again Tour across America for two months, which allowing the band to develop their songs before recording them in the summer of 2006.
[Never Again] is pretty much about overcoming the obstacles in life. ... these past few years have been very tumultuous for [Kittie], having people in the band leave and having problems with our old record label [Artemis]. All this has affected me and I'm not going to let it take me down. So the EP has that theme.
—Morgan Lander [3]
Following the release of their third album Until the End (2004), Kittie parted ways with bassist Jennifer Arroyo and guitarist Lisa Marx due to financial issues, before leaving their record label Artemis Records the following month. [4] [5] After briefly contemplating changing careers, Kittie vocalist and guitarist Morgan Lander and drummer Mercedes Lander decided to keep pursuing music and began writing songs together once or twice a week as a form of emotional release. [6] [7] Morgan found that the lack of record label deadlines and schedules allowed her and Mercedes to work on new material at a leisurely pace, [8] as well as record demos and critique their songs more than they had been able to before. [9]
At the end of April 2005, Morgan and Mercedes began recording demos at Mole Studios, a basement recording studio in their hometown of London, Ontario. [10] [11] They worked in the studio on weekends, recording five to six songs. [12] Kittie self-produced the recordings themselves, with Mole Studios owner Ryner providing engineering support. [13] The EP was written and completed before guitarist Tara McLeod and bassist Trish Doan joined Kittie, [14] in August 2005. [15] McLeod was brought in to record some leads and guitar solos—the latter a first in Kittie's discography—on some of its songs. [1] [14]
On November 10, 2005, Kittie announced that they had signed to Rock Ridge Music to release a new EP exclusively on digital storefronts. [16] Morgan said that they knew several employees at Rock Ridge as ex-Artemis Records employees, "so we knew they were legit". [17] On December 20, 2005, the band announced that they would be releasing the Never Again EP . [18] Morgan said that Kittie’s decision to forgo releasing the EP on physical media was more down to convenience and time, as they wanted their fanbase to know that the band were "still writing, still kicking ass and not on Artemis". [19] From January 1, 2006, the band released one 45-second sample from the EP on their MySpace page every two weeks, up until the day of its release. [18] [20] Released on February 7, 2006, the EP debuted at number 20 on the iTunes Top Rock Downloads Chart. [21] The EP was also streamed in its entirety on AOL Music's listening party page for a week after its release. [22]
On February 4, 2006, Kittie played at WRIF's Pre-Super Bowl Bash at TNT's in Detroit, Michigan. [23] From March 31 to June 17, 2006, the band embarked on its first tour in over a year, the Never Again tour, across the United States. [24] [25] Across its dates, the band were supported by The Agony Scene, Bloodlined Calligraphy, Burning Armada, Byzantine, Calico System, Dead to Fall, Donnybrook, Drop Dead Gorgeous, Five Bolt Main, Jacknife, Job for a Cowboy, Naos Project, On Broken Wings, Seemless, Twelve Tribes and The Warriors. [24] [26] The band's setlists during the tour featured a mix of material from their previous three albums and Never Again along with two songs not featured on the EP, [15] "Summer Dies" and "Slow Motion". [27] Morgan felt that playing the new songs live allowed them to develop, and felt they had "a different energy" after the tour compared to when they were first recorded. [2] The band finished writing and arranging their songs after the tour, [28] and began recording Funeral for Yesterday with producer Jack Ponti in July 2006. [29]
Never Again received generally positive reviews from critics. Andrew Parks of Decibel gave the EP an 8 out of 10, saying it "props 2006 as a promising year for the quartet". [30] Westword described it as Kittie's "most commercial recording thus far, [and] a hard, heavy and hooky combination of singing and caterwauling". [31]
All tracks are written by Morgan and Mercedes Lander. [14]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Never Again" | 3:32 |
2. | "This Too Shall Pass" | 3:05 |
3. | "Breathe" | 3:07 |
Total length: | 9:44 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
4. | "Everything That Could Have Been" | 3:40 |
Total length: | 13:24 |
Kittie
Production [13]
Kittie is a Canadian heavy metal band from London, Ontario, formed in 1996 by lead guitarist Fallon Bowman and the Lander sisters, drummer Mercedes and lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist Morgan. Tanya Candler completed the band's early line-up on bass. The Lander sisters have remained the band's sole constant members. Collectively, their material released via independent record labels has sold over two million copies worldwide.
Fallon Bowman is a Canadian guitarist and singer best known for her involvement with the metal band Kittie. Since departing Kittie in 2001, Bowman has worked with Pigface and as a solo artist under the name Amphibious Assault, as well as under her own name.
Carcass are an English extreme metal band from Liverpool, formed in 1985. The band have gone through several line-up changes, leaving guitarist Bill Steer and bassist-vocalist Jeff Walker as the only constant members. They broke up in 1996, but reformed in 2007 without original drummer Ken Owen, for health reasons. To date, the band have released seven studio albums, two compilation albums, four EPs, two demo albums, one video album, and six music videos.
Until the End is the third studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on July 26, 2004, through Artemis Records. It was their only album with bassist Jennifer Arroyo, who joined the band in March 2002. The album was recorded in March 2004 with producer Steve Thompson at Long View Farm Studios in North Brookfield, Massachusetts. Musically, it continued Kittie's transition away from their early nu metal sound, whilst placing a heavier emphasis on melody than on their previous two albums. Kittie wrote the album while they were engaged in a lawsuit with Artemis, and its lyrics and artwork reflect the band's feelings of frustration and uncertainty during that period. After recording concluded, Kittie recruited guitarist Lisa Marx for a tour in support of the album.
Lisa Marx is an American guitarist and classically trained pianist from California.
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Spit is the debut studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, originally released on November 13, 1999, through Ng Records. Kittie were formed in 1996, and signed a four-album deal with Ng following their performances at the Canadian Music Week festival in March 1999. Recorded over nine days in May 1999 with producer Garth Richardson at EMAC Studios in London, Ontario, Spit is a nu metal album that incorporates various elements from several heavy metal subgenres, and its lyrical themes include sexism, hatred, ignorance, betrayal, bullying and life experiences. The album is Kittie's only release with their original line-up, featuring bassist Tanya Candler and guitarist Fallon Bowman; Candler was replaced by Talena Atfield, who appears on the cover of all subsequent reissues of the album.
Safe is the second EP by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on November 19, 2002, through Artemis Records. It features a remix of the song "Safe" from the band's second album Oracle (2001) by Sascha Konietzko and Bill Rieflin, and five live tracks recorded at the House of Blues in Anaheim, California, on August 12, 2002. It is dedicated "In Loving Memory of Dave Williams". The EP sold 25,000 units in the United States. It received very little promotion, only appearing on 2 major rock/heavy metal magazines.
Oracle is the second studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on November 12, 2001, through Artemis Records. Produced by Garth Richardson and co-produced by vocalist and guitarist Morgan Lander, the album saw Kittie transition towards an extreme metal and death metal-based sound, moving on from the nu metal sound of Spit (1999). The album was recorded as a trio, following the departure of co-founding member and guitarist Fallon Bowman weeks before recording was due to commence; Jeff Phillips was subsequently brought in as an additional guitarist for the band's live performances in support of the album. Oracle was Kittie's only album with bassist Talena Atfield, who left the band four months after its release.
Those Once Loyal is the eighth and final studio album by British death metal band Bolt Thrower, released on 11 November 2005 by Metal Blade Records. Recorded with producer Andy Faulkner at Sable Rose Studios in Coventry, England, it was the first Bolt Thrower album since Mercenary (1998) to feature vocalist Karl Willetts, who rejoined the band in November 2004.
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Funeral for Yesterday is the fourth studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on February 20, 2007. It was the only album released through the band's own record label, X of Infamy Records, and Merovingian Music (MRV). The album was produced by Jack Ponti, and was recorded at RetroMedia Sound Studios in Red Bank, New Jersey, between July and August 2006. Loosely themed around the band's demise and rebirth following a period of turmoil, the album saw Kittie transition towards a more melodic and accessible sound while retaining some of their heavier sensibilities, and was also noted for its greater focus on clean singing than on the band's previous releases. It was the first Kittie album with guitarist Tara McLeod, and only with bassist Trish Doan.
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The discography of Kittie, a Canadian heavy metal band, consists of seven studio albums, one compilation album, one video album, four extended plays, seventeen singles and eighteen music videos.
In the Black is the fifth studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on September 15, 2009, through E1 Music. It was the band's first album with bassist Ivy Jenkins, who joined the band in 2007. Recording sessions for the album were held with producer Siegfried Meier at Beach Road Studios in Goderich, Ontario, in November and December 2008. Featuring a raw, stripped-down sound and elements of black metal, metalcore and melodic death metal, Kittie intended the album to be an "antithesis" to the previous album Funeral for Yesterday (2007), having been disappointed with its production and style.
Paperdoll is the second extended play by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on December 12, 2000, through Ng and Artemis Records. As of November 2003, it has sold 100,000 copies in the United States.
I've Failed You is the sixth studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on August 30, 2011, through eOne Music. The album builds on the sound of their previous album In the Black (2009) and features more personal and introspective lyrics, drawing from various events of turmoil that vocalist and guitarist Morgan Lander experienced in the two years following the aforementioned album's release. It was produced by Siegfried Meier and was primarily recorded at Beach Road Studios in London, Ontario; Ivy Jenkins' bass tracks were recorded separately in the United States, as immigration difficulties prevented her from travelling to Canada.
Trisha Jaimee Doan was a Korean-Canadian musician, photographer and television producer, best known for her tenure as the bass guitarist for the Canadian heavy metal band Kittie.
Kittie: Origins/Evolutions is a 2017 documentary film produced and directed by Rob McCallum. It follows the history of the Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, from their formation in 1996 and through their first six studio albums, from Spit (1999) to I've Failed You (2011). The film also includes interviews with the current, and most of the past, members of the band, interspersed with archival footage. Its production was funded by a successful Indiegogo campaign, which reached its goal within 8 hours, and ultimately raised more than $40,000. The film was dedicated to the memory of bassist Trish Doan, who died prior to the film's completion in February 2017.
Fire is the seventh studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Kittie, released on June 21, 2024, through Sumerian Records. It is the band's first album in almost 13 years following the release of I've Failed You (2011), in between which time they were largely on an indefinite hiatus due to rising costs associated with touring and making music, a lack of public interest, and the death of bassist Trish Doan in 2017. After receiving several offers to play shows in late 2021, Kittie ended their hiatus in January 2022, with bassist Ivy Vujic returning to their lineup after a decade-long absence. Following their performances at the When We Were Young festival in October 2022, the band were signed to Sumerian and began working on new material.
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