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Never Again (Kittie EP)

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Never Again
EP by
Kittie
ReleasedFebruary 7, 2006 (2006-02-07)
Recorded2005[1]
StudioMole (London, Ontario)
GenreHeavy metal
Length9:44
13:24 (iTunes)
LabelRock Ridge Music
ProducerKittie
Kittie chronology
Until the End
(2004) 		Never Again
(2006) 		Funeral for Yesterday
(2007)

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 allowed the band to develop their songs before recording them in the summer of 2006.

Background and recording

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See also: Funeral for Yesterday § Background

[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]

Release and promotion

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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]

Critical reception

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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]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Morgan and Mercedes Lander.[14]

Standard release
No.TitleLength
1."Never Again"3:32
2."This Too Shall Pass"3:05
3."Breathe"3:07
Total length:9:44
iTunes exclusive bonus track
No.TitleLength
4."Everything That Could Have Been"3:40
Total length:13:24

Personnel

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Kittie

  • Morgan Lander – vocals, guitar
  • Mercedes Lander – drums
  • Tara McLeod – guitar leads and solos[14]

Production[13]

  • Kittie – production
  • Ryner – engineering

References

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  1. ^ a b Begai 2006.
  2. ^ a b Begai 2007, p. 32.
  3. ^ Czerwinski 2006.
  4. ^ Blabbermouth (March 23, 2005). "Kittie Frontwoman Says Guitarist And Bassist Have Both Left The Band". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on October 19, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  5. ^ Blabbermouth (March 31, 2005). "Kittie 'Released' From Artemis Records". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  6. ^ Harris, Chris; Wiederhorn, Jon (November 17, 2006). "Metal File: Kittie, Cradle Of Filth, Meshuggah & More News That Rules". MTV News. Archived from the original on September 11, 2007. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  7. ^ Pierce, Ken (August 11, 2007). "Interviews: Kittie (Morgan and Mercedes Lander, Tara Mcleod)". Piercing Metal. Archived from the original on August 23, 2007. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  8. ^ HeavyMetalResource 2006, 0:10–1:18.
  9. ^ HeavyMetalResource 2006, 4:56–5:46.
  10. ^ Anon. (April 23, 2005). "Kittie to Record Demos". kittierocks.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2005. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
  11. ^ Blabbermouth (May 11, 2005). "Kittie Frontwoman: 'We Have Not Broken Up'". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on May 8, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
  12. ^ HeavyMetalResource 2006, 4:04–4:33.
  13. ^ a b HeavyMetalResource 2006, 5:53–6:01.
  14. ^ a b c d Bowar, Chad (n.d.). "Kittie Interview - A Conversation With Vocalist Morgan Lander". heavymetal.about.com. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 27, 2006. Retrieved June 24, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  15. ^ a b Suehs, Bob (May 11, 2006). "Kittie (entire band) - Interview". Rock N Roll Experience. Archived from the original on April 13, 2023. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  16. ^ Blabbermouth (November 10, 2005). "Kittie To Release Downloadable EP Via Rock Ridge Music". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  17. ^ Ortiz 2006, p. 2, 0:29–1:14.
  18. ^ a b Blabbermouth (December 20, 2005). "Kittie To Release 'Never Again' EP In February". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  19. ^ Aberback 2006.
  20. ^ Never Again previews:
  21. ^ BraveWords. "Kittie - Never Again EP #20 On iTunes Rock Downloads". bravewords.com. Archived from the original on July 25, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  22. ^ Blabbermouth (January 24, 2006). "Kittie To Team Up With AOL Music For Listening Party". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  23. ^ Blabbermouth (January 9, 2006). "Kittie To Play WRIF's Pre-Superbowl Bash In Detroit". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  24. ^ a b Blabbermouth (February 14, 2006). "Kittie to Embark on First Tour in Over a Year". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on July 25, 2024. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  25. ^ BraveWords (May 3, 2006). "Kittie - New Never Again Dates Confirmed". bravewords.com. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  26. ^ Paul, Aubin (February 1, 2006). "Tours: The Warriors announce April tour with Calico System, Kittie". Punknews.org. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  27. ^ Wrobel 2006.
  28. ^ Bowar, Chad (n.d.). "Kittie Interview - A Conversation With Vocalist Morgan Lander". heavymetal.about.com. p. 2. Archived from the original on July 5, 2006. Retrieved June 24, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  29. ^ Blabbermouth (June 25, 2006). "Kittie To Enter Studio In July". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  30. ^ Never Again by Decibel
  31. ^ Roberts, Michael (April 6, 2006). "Kittie". Westword. Archived from the original on May 15, 2024. Retrieved June 15, 2024.

Print sources

Audiovisual (AV) sources

Further reading

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