They rock as hard as any band in the industry today, but things always seem to change with Kittie. The all-female metal band from Canada has been on the scene for almost a decade, and they’ve had four different line-ups with each of their four albums. Kittie began thrashing guitars and slamming drums under the bright lights of stardom in 1999, but not every member they took on in the beginning has been part of the spotlight since then.
The band began formation in 1996 with lead singer and guitarist Morgan Lander, her sister and drummer Mercedes Lander, guitarist Fallon Bowman, and bassist Tanya Candler. Tanya departed in 1999 because she wanted to finish high school.
After Tanya’s departure, Kittie brought in bassist Talena Atfield. In late 1999 Kittie released their debut album SPiT with Talena and Fallon (Talena is featured with the rest of the band on the cover of SPiT), launching the band into the mainstream of heavy metal. The album was certified Gold.
Fallon parted ways with Kittie in 2001 because she wanted to go in a different musical direction, and Jeff Phillips was brought in as a back-up guitarist for live shows. Fallon would go on to create her own industrial/techno band, Amphibious Assault.
While Kittie toured and worked on their new album, Talena had no idea her time in the band was slowly running out as well. In 2002, after the release of their sophomore effort Oracle, Talena was replaced by bassist Jennifer Arroyo. Talena would later join Fallon in Amphibious Assault.
What are Kittie fans thinking at this point? The band is on their third bassist and they don’t have a permanent second guitarist anymore. The band was very successful regardless of these small factors, but fans were surely getting used to member changes. After bringing in Jennifer, some fans may have thought Kittie was set and ready to rock the world again. They would soon find out that they were wrong.
But for a while, it was pure chemistry. Jennifer remained with the band for three years, helping them record their third album Until The End at Longview Farm Studios in 2004. Shortly after the album was released Kittie would introduce a new second guitarist, Lisa Marx. Although Lisa did not contribute to the making of Until The End, she joined in time to be featured in the “Into the Darkness” music video.
Between 2005 and 2007 Morgan and Mercedes dealt with issues concerning their label, Artemis Records. Conflicts in the relationship led to Kittie’s split with Artemis and subsequent formation of their own label, X of Infamy Records. This new label in 2006 brought with it two more additions to the line-up; bassist Trish Doan replacing Jennifer and guitarist Tara McLeod replacing Lisa.
Tara and Trish would contribute to Kittie’s fourth album, Funeral For Yesterday in 2007. The band toured in South America that same year, visiting Santiago, Chile and São Paulo, Brazil along the way. In March 2008, after missing several shows and being diagnosed with an eating disorder, Trish was replaced with Ivy Vujic. Ivy will make Kittie’s fifth bassist.
This is where Kittie stands now. December 12, 2008 the band played a tribute show to Dave Lander, Morgan and Mercedes’ father and the band’s manager, who died of a heart attack. Kittie is once again in the studio and touring, and fans like me will be on the lookout for them soon. More changes may come in the next few years, but Kittie will rock hard until heavy metal is done.
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