By: AvNatten

Posted: Apr 9, 2007

There has not been a dull moment in the almost 10 year life span of Ontario, Canada's Kittie. The band was formed by sisters Morgan and Mercedes Lander while they were still in high school and soon after they released their first album which consisted of Pantera inspired nu-metal entitled "Spit". The girls have come a long way since then and have encountered many problems along the way. Throughout all the line-up and directional changes, the only thing that has stayed consistent is the Lander sisters, who keep trying to take their musical visions one step further.
 
"Funeral For Yesterday" is the bands fourth full length album and yet again does not sound like anything else the band has recorded. It is true that musicians grow and evolve as time goes by, but four albums with four different sounds is a bit much. Perhaps it is the revolving door of guitarists and bassists that the band has suffered through, whatever may be the case, the band needs to find their style to really come together as a band and build upon that foundation.
 
Leading up to the release of "Funeral For Yesterday" the band had a nasty split with their former record label, Artemis, and are still involved in legal battles regarding that. But it did give the Lander's a chance to create their own record label which they call X Of Infamy. But that too did not come easy. The original name for their label was Kiss Of Infamy which would have been a great name but Gene Simmons of Kiss didn't think so and threatened to sue if the name was not changed.
 
On to the music, the ladies have definitely grown as musicians and become more advanced at their instruments. Don’t get me wrong, there are no amazing guitar leads or anything of that nature on this disc but it is nice to hear them play more than open chords and single string riffs. The most notable on "Funeral For Yesterday" is Mercedes Lander's drumming skills. She can really pack the punch that is needed to test the durability of your speakers. Morgan once again fills her duties of vocals and guitar with new members Trish Doan on bass and Tara McLeod on guitar to round out the line-up.
 
A big change on this disc is the absence of Morgan's growling vocals on over half the album. This may turn off the fans who do not like her 'clean' voice and I was quite surprised by the decision as well, but then again alternating between growling and clean vocals has been done so much that its a nice change to hear them offer something different. Although Morgan's voice often sounds nasal she does have some shining moments and its good to hear some harmonies.
 
"Funeral For Yesterday" is without a doubt the crowning achievement thus far for this incarnation of the band. 'Witch Hunt' is the hardest hitting track on the disc and the lyrics are about exactly what the title suggests. The lyrics on every song are far more advances and heartfelt than those on their previous releases.
 
Older fans of Kittie should beware for the ever changing Kittie sound has gone in a more metalcore direction this time around. They make it work for them and add their own flair to the sound but there is still something missing in the originality department. Cats have nine lives and this being album number four it makes you wonder if this is the sound they will stick with or shed another life and move on in a different direction.

Rating: 7/10

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