The album, which primarily exhibited a nu metal sound, sold at least 600,000 copies in the United States and was certified gold by the RIAA.

[7] Kittie was formed in September 1996[8] when drummer Mercedes Lander and guitarist Fallon Bowman met in a gymnastics class.

She acknowledged a change in influence from their early days, stating, "Then we listened to bands like Nirvana, Silverchair, and Alice in Chains.

[29] In August 2001, Artemis Records announced that Kittie would continue as a three-piece (Bowman was not named in the statement) and that the band's guitar tech, Jeff Phillips, would fill in as a touring guitarist.

[36][37] In April 2003, Kittie and Garth Richardson sued Artemis over unpaid royalties of $900,000 and eleven breaches of contract by the label; the dispute was settled out of court in March 2004.

[38][39][40] In 2004, the group added guitarist Lisa Marx, and Jeff Phillips went to work full-time on his side project, Thine Eyes Bleed.

Morgan cited financial difficulties, which they attributed to Artemis Records' poor promotion of their releases, as the reasons for both members' departures.

[49] Also in 2006, vocalist Morgan Lander provided vocals on the song "It Turns to Rust", from the album In the Arms of Devastation, by the Canadian death metal band Kataklysm.

[53] Doan left Kittie following the tour due to her struggles with anorexia athletica-nervosa, which she developed during the recording of Funeral for Yesterday.

This tour included dates in Scotland, England, France, Switzerland, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

In a January 27, 2010 interview, Morgan Lander revealed that the band was in talks to film a video for the track "Die My Darling".

[64] In March 2010, Kittie embarked on another North American tour with God Forbid, Periphery and Gwen Stacy as support.

From May through June 2010, Kittie took part in the Happy Daze tour headlined by Insane Clown Posse and featuring Coolio, Kottonmouth Kings and Necro.

[65] Kittie participated in the 2010 Thrash and Burn tour through July and August which also featured Asking Alexandria, Born of Osiris, Evergreen Terrace, Stick to Your Guns, Chelsea Grin, Through the Eyes of the Dead, Impending Doom, Periphery and Greeley Estates.

[69] In 2011, Mercedes Lander joined the all-female band the Alcohollys featuring former Kittie bassist Tanya Candler.

[71] The band would enter a period of inactivity following the performance, citing rising costs associated with touring and writing new music.

[72][73] Morgan later noted declining turnouts at the band's shows as a factor,[74] with her and Mercedes both feeling that Kittie had "overstayed [their] welcome" by the time I've Failed You was released.

On March 28, 2014, Kittie launched an Indiegogo campaign celebrating the impending 20th anniversary of the band, with a DVD documentary featuring past and present members and a tell all book.

Morgan, Mercedes and McLeod recorded the cover in a single day in December 2014 at Beach Road Studios with producer Siegfried Meier.

[79] In October 2016, it was announced that drummer/vocalist Mercedes Lander had started a new sludge/doom metal band called the White Swan that released the single "Illuminate".

The concert marked the launch of their 20-year anniversary documentary,[85] and featured the return of Candler, Bowman, Phillips, Arroyo and Vujic to perform songs from their respective eras.

[89] Several months later, it was announced that Lander had joined the melodic death metal band, Karkaos, as their new lead singer.

In October 2020, Mercedes Lander stated that it was unlikely that Kittie would reunite to perform again without a significant financial offer and the ability to include all of the band's former members.

[5] After seeing the band perform at the When We Were Young festival, Kittie were signed to Sumerian Records by label head Ash Avildsen and began working on new material in January 2023.

[94] On November 19, 2023, the band confirmed that they were recording a new album with producer Nick Rasculinecz at Sienna Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.

[95] On February 13, 2024, Kittie premiered their first new song in 13 years, "Eyes Wide Open", on Sirius XM's Liquid Metal channel.

[96] The following day, the band formally released the song as a single with a music video and announced that they had signed to Sumerian Records.

[128] When asked about their influences in an interview with Metal Maidens in 1999, the members of Kittie cited Nile, Today Is the Day, Placebo, Far, Weezer, Orgy, Fear Factory, Hole, Tura Satana, Human Waste Project, Babes in Toyland, Misfits, Blondie, and Nasum as influences.

[30] In interviews, Morgan has cited Marilyn Manson, Korn,[130] Metallica, Cannibal Corpse, Nile, Carcass, At the Gates, Acid Bath, and Testament as influences on the band.