Kittie’s new album “I’ve Failed You” is officially released as of today, August 30th, 2011. I’ve decided to take a moment in all my infinite metal wisdom to blog a review for the new album. The first thing you’re going to say is that I’m not going to be fair since Morgan is my best friend, so I will write a favorable review. Well you’re right, of course I am. That being said though, I am normally not a fan of the genre of metal and I really prefer Morgan’s clean vocals over her growling vocals and there seems to be less clean vocals on this album than any of the other Kittie albums so those two things are at least factors here. Not necessarily negatives or positives, but just factors.
Also, it’s worth noting that most of the time people can listen to music and speculate what the lyrics are referring to and they can be subjective to an individual. For the most part though, due to my friendship with Morgan, I pretty much know exactly what she is writing about in each song. Again, that being said though, I do find many of Morgan’s lyrics relatable. And for the sake of this blog, I will write in speculations. I heard bits and pieces of the album separately but it’s so different when you hear it together. Not many bands still tell stories throughout the album from beginning to end instead of just banding singles together but it seems like Kittie still holds true to that.
Anyways, lets get to the album…
I am not familiar with a great deal of metal but as I foreshadowed before, this album might be their most heavy. At least for me. At the same time though, the heavier sound and more growling vocals doesn’t really hurt the melodic tones of the songs themselves, which is something that I appreciate. I don’t know anything about playing guitar and I haven’t played drums since high school but I don’t need to be a movie director to know when I’m watching a good or bad movie and I don’t need to play an instrument to be able to tell when something is well written and well played. A lot of the music sounds sharp and intricate. I don’t even know if that’s the way to describe music, but it’s what I got for you. The album is also dark in a sense that the lyrics are sad and sometimes morbid. Still, Morgan finds a way to make them charming. It also has a parental advisory even though I think there is only one word used once during two songs that can’t be said on network television. The album is pretty scary sometimes so maybe it got the advisory for being too gory like a horror movie or something.
The first song is the title track; “I’ve Failed You” and sets the tone and starts the story of the album. The song tells the story of self destruction which is a theme throughout. Something that was once so perfect to you but you not being able to live up to your side of the perfections and it being glaring and apparent to everyone including yourself that you cannot. The music is a good companion to the lyrics, because of the dramatic change in tempo, almost like a realization when you are failing.
Track two is called “We Are The Lamb” and it’s a song of sacrifice. At least on the surface it is. The undertones of it however seem to lead towards senseless or needless sacrifice. As if the sacrifice was a waste or good in idea but poor in execution. The music is pretty hard for this song. Again, I don’t know much about metal but to me, this song sounds pretty metal.
The next song on the album is “Whisper Of Death.” FINALLY! Some clean vocals. The clean vocals however are just a slight consolation because this song kind of scares me. It’s a song about death or dying and not only that, but also being the cause or reason to it. Like you had the control over something but you let it die. It’s morbid and beautiful at the same time.
“What Have I Done” is the fourth track on the album and it’s a self sabotaging look at loss. Repeated loss and destruction at ones own hands. The first time I heard it, it was my favorite song on the album. It’s such a unique look at being in control of a situation but not being able to control your actions. The music that goes with it is pretty haunting and fit’s the mood of the song perfectly.
“Empires (Part 1)” is next and it’s an instrumental. It reminds me of when Morgan plays her acoustic guitar over Skype and forgets that she’s on Skype and just gets lost doing what she loves to do.
Naturally “Empires (Part 2)” is next up. This continues the album’s theme of self destruction. This song is filled with brilliant metaphors of something being held so strong and powerful in someone’s life that it’s like an Empire but then even the Empire of someone’s life can crumble. Again the music here is so strong like an Empire but breaks down much like the suggestions in the song and you can almost know the story here without the words.
Track seven is titled “Come Undone” and to my dismay it is not a cover of Duran Duran’s “Come Undone” but it’s another scary metal song instead. It might also be the most positive song on the album. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a cheerful song but the way the lyrics leave a mystery to the unknown could be seen as a anticipation for something better. Like you’ve hit your worst and it can only get better from here.
The next track is called “Already Dead” and as you guessed from the title, it’s another tragic song. This might be my favorite song musically. I don’t know the names of stuff but I know there is a term for what the guitars are doing here where they harmonize with each other and it sounds awesome here. The song tells the story of the surface of something being the last thing that falls apart. Something might be infected and dying on the inside while the structure is fighting to keep it together but that is mostly a losing fight.
My favorite song on the album is track nine and called “Never Come Home.” It’s also probably the least metal song on the album. Funny how that worked out. Again, I love Morgan’s clean vocals. She has such a beautiful voice. I’d like to think this song is somewhat about going insane. Like if your home is the place where you put all your trust and is everything you know but you destroy it so badly that it’s unrecognizable to you anymore. What you have known for so long will never be the same again and was destroyed by your own hands by you putting your trust in things that aren’t your foundation.
Track ten is “Ugly” and it’s angry. It’s still sad like most of the album but it’s from an angry point of view. It could also be looked at as another song of sabotage. When you feel so awful that you want others to feel it, you sacrifice relationships and what is good to inflict your angry or sadness on others.
The final track on the album is called “Time Never Heals.” As the saying goes, “time heals all wounds” but that isn’t always the case and this song points that out. Some things you just hold onto forever and even though it may get easier in time, it never fully heals and will always be apart of you. Sometimes you need to hold onto things because it helps you realize who you are inside.
Despite not being stylistically my cup of tea, I really appreciate the way the album tells a complete story. It’s cinematic in the way it keeps up the theme that is a rarity for most bands these days. It’s creative and artistic and as a performance artist myself, I really appreciate how emotionally engaging it is. It connects with you and keeps you locked in from start to finish. It’s worth giving a listen, especially if you like metal music, but even if you don‘t, you can completely lose yourself in it. It’s sad and scary and melodic and beautiful. Now I’m going to go listen to some Jimmy Eat World or Weezer.
- Joey
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