April 23, 2004 |
Caught in limbo between gay club culture and the
frequently straight, male-dominated rock scene (both under and overground),
it's doubly difficult for queer punk and indie musicians to find an
audience. That's where the Queercore Blitz comes in. Fittingly, Davies
vs. Dresch includes queerpunk godmother Donna Dresch (Team Dresch
and Chainsaw Records, the first label for Sleater-Kinney), Desert
City Soundtrack drummer Caitlin Love, and guitarist Kristina Davies
(Tara Jane O'Neil). The ones to watch on the bill are Kitty Kill,
a mix of Throwing Muses, Scrawl, and at times, our very own Ken. Also:
Triple Creme, Gina Young + Bent, and the lone boys on the bill Dead
Betties (9 p.m. Sat., April 24, Pontiac Grille, 304 South St., 212-925-4053,
$10, www.queercoreblitz.com).
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The most compelling act of the evening followed:
local trio The Kitty Kill delivered their signature brand of straight-up,
no-nonsense, power-chord-melody-and-backbeat-driven punk rock. Lead
singer Sandrine Merhy drew us in with her focus and calm, and with
the competent muscle of Jenn Dagger (bass) and Jen Chouinard (drums)
the music carried us to that special place where only good, disciplined,
hearty punk rock can go. Read the whole
thing... |
April 22, 2004 |
Team Players
by M.J. Fine
The Queercore Blitz tour unites like-minded punks.
If you’re willing and able to travel, queer music showcases aren’t
hard to find.
Read the Whole Thing
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April 20, 2004 |
But one can have too much of this kind of thing -- the poise, the
prickle -- and it took Boston's the Kitty Kill, and in particular
Sandrine Merhy's strong, dark, regretful voice, to remind us about
emotions, hooks, etc.
Read
the whole thing |
April 17, 2004 |
10 bands to watch out for
THE KITTY KILL. Weaned on Fugazi and Elastica, and sporting spiky
punk songs that transcend the same-sex-friendly "queercore"
genre, the Kitty Kill have lit up stages as small as a postage stamp
and as big as Times Square. Lately, they’ve been doing much more
of the latter, so better catch ’em before the Sleater-Kinney
comparisons make them as big as they ought to be. Read
the whole article
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April 16, 2004
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Life-long musician and recent promoter Jacobson-Leong
knew her share of bands that ID as queer. But it wasn't until last
summer when she wondered in her Park Slope apartment the key question:
"Wouldn't it be great to have an event where all stripes of queer
could be represented by great musicians?"
Read the whole article.
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April 16, 2004 |
Issue Date: April 16 - 22, 2004
IS QUEER IDENTITY STILL NECESSARY? The Kitty Kill think so: they signed
on to play not only Queercore Blitz East but also this year's Boston
Youth Pride.
Read
the whole thing |
About the Kitty Angels Benefit |
Merhy knows her band's name is a tad ironic for
the occasion. "People always ask us if we hate cats; and we say
no; the cat is on the kill: It's a mean cat!" she says with an
exasperated laugh. "All three of us are animal lovers. My drummer
h as three cats. It's definately something that is close to our hearts."
by Jonathan Perry read the whole article
|
Boston Phoenix interview 6-13-03 |
The Kitty Kill are three ladies from Boston playing
their brand of no-frills, poppy rock. Melodic guitar lines and harmonized
vocals keep your toes tapping. I can see this on K Records or some
other Pacific Northwest label. (KM)
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Spring 2003 |
Boston- It's famous for the mainstream rock band of the same name,
Celtics basketball, irish pride , cheers, a distinct dialect, and
now The Kitty Kill. Though boston might not be synonymous with a burgeoning
female punk scene, The Kitty Kill - a trio that just released the
10-track 'Domesticated' - is making its way. The first thing 'Domesticated'
throws down is an eye-catching tounge-in-cheek album cover that features
the musicians in Donna Reed dresses and aprons. Together they're ready
to iron hubby's work shirts, clean house and save dinner from another
disasterous meatloaf! Push play though and it's a different story.
The Kitty Kill is made up of three energetic talents who are more
inclined to writing pop-punk tracks than pushing brooms.
Domesticated opens with "I Can't See" a high-octaine three
and 1/2 minute but asking "Hey, what the hell was i supposed
to do whe neverything came crashing down on my head?" Who doesn't
relate to that? 'Taken' a slower, meloncholy song highlights Sandrine
Merhy and Jenn Dagger's vocal ranges. 'Just A Lie' marks the beginning
of the faster-pcaed songs to come, but the topics and tones are heavy
in the breakup department. Though sunshine and lemonade lyrics don't
lace 'Domesticated', positive messages prevail, like the mantra "If
things don't always go your way it's ok/don't give up just yet"
in "One Day"
-Erica Gallagher.
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January 2003
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Since I heard the first song, I can’t
stop sharing my rave reviews about the kitty kill. Being from the East
Coast myself I am surprised I hadn’t heard of them up until now.
These chicks know how to rock! They have a good mix of soft songs and
heavier ones-all of which exemplify the power and strength of relationships.
These kitties know can purr and also aren’t afraid to stick out
their claws when they are wronged. The lyrics are poetic and revealing.
Everyone can relate to these feelings of confusion and bitterness mixed
with those oh so familliar feelings of attachment. The band twists these
feelings into a beautiful swirl of original music that is sweet and
pure. I love this cd! Definitely check it out! |
January 9, 2003 |
January 9, 2003 (Calendar Section) If you like Sleater-Kinney (and it
seems like just about everyone does these days) you'll love this homegrown
three-girl punk-pop band. While similar to SK in tone, to mistake the
two is to commit a riot grrrl sin, so dust off your Dr. Martins and
studded belt and pay close attention. |
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December 2002 Northeast Performer
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It's hard to categorize The Kitty Kill. They are too melodic and
song oriented to be listed in the punk section. Some prefer to throw
the term "power-pop" around, but this does not resemble
conventional pop music, no matter how much power is applied to it.
The all-girl lineup of The Kitty Kill will inevitably draw comparisons
to other all-female bands such as Hole, Sleater-Kinney, and Josie
and the Pussycats. There are a few differences, however: they are
better than Hole and haven't killed anyone that we know of; they are
more sonically accessible than Sleater-Kinney; and they carry no subliminal
messages of consumerism like Josie and Pussycats. They don't want
to seduce you, nor do they want to beat you up. They are here to play
rock music, dammit, and that's what they do. The Kitty Kill is definitely
an organic rock band through and through. They don't even try to make
any crazy noises with their instruments, they just play. These tunes
don't barge into the room and sock you on the head with a sack of
rock, but rather inject you with some weird type of rock serum, which
enters the veins and courses around. “I Can't See,” while
not poppy in the bubble gum sense of the word, is so damned catchy
it sticks with the listener long after the disc has ceased spinning.
Soundwise, this record reflects the stripped down aspects of the band
itself. Jenn Dagger's bass is not very prominent in these recordings,
which is probably more a product of the mix more than anything else.
Jen Chouinard lays down a solid beat throughout all of these songs,
never relying merely on “bah-bah-bam” rhythms or fills.
Sandrine Merhy's guitar performance fits the songs perfectly, acting
more as a rhythm instrument than a lead instrument, while her vocals
seem to be a bit toned down throughout the disc. At first listen,
she sounds kind of tired and fairly apathetic about the whole affair,
but as the record runs on the intent behind these songs becomes more
apparent. (self-released)
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11-7-02
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Just back in town from playing Homo a GoGo
in Olympia and LadyFest South in Atlanta, Boston's own sweet 'n' vicious
tough grrrls the Kitty Kill have just self-released domesticated, a
very fine album (their second) of catchy rough-edged punk pop. They'll
be opening for the Butchies when they play at Brown University next
week, but in the meantime, they've got their own record release to celebrate,
and they'll do that tonight at 9 at Jacque's, 79 Broadway in Bay Village. |
November 2002
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After the Boston-based trio took the stage Friday, October
11, it was clear that not only were they the audience favorite among
the groups that played that evening, but if they had been on the Echo
Lounge's main stage they would've had no trouble rocking the house.
Read the whole thing.... by Cheryl Coward |
April 2002
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Boston's The Kitty Kill does this music thing right. Each
member of this 3 piece all female band holds their own to create a strong,
solid band that ROCKS--The Kitty Kill way. Read the whole thing...
At first listen I had a tough time forgiving the Kitty Kill for not
being Sleater Kinney.
I love SK and they obviously love SK too. But, The Kitty Kill are also
not, as I first
suspected, a poppy rip-off old-style angry-girl rock - just great music
with unapologetic riffs.
I was happy to have "Secrets," a feisty and bitter melody,
running through my head for days.
The fierce "It's all Over" is similarly addictive, and the
sweet, sad ballad, "Answers" is a lovely
surprise - tucked in amid the driving beats of Plastic, It's a beautiful
track that further proves
the Kitty Kill are intelligent musicians worthy of the pop jones. -H.G. |
Fall 2001 |
Perhaps one of the most difficult things for me to do
is review an album I really love. I never feel like I can conjure up
the right words to express just how awesome I think the album is. Comprised
of ex-members from Uncool Niece and Chelsea On Fire, this trio from
the Boston area has the ability to make you drop everything and rock
out right there, wherever you are. The lyrics are honest and unapologetic.
I also love the instruments on this release. There are lots of heavy
bass lines, feisty drumming and a sassy lead guitar. |
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