Kittie drummer Mercedes Lander is back with a new musical project called The White Swan, where she is joined by guitarist Shane Jeffers (also of Blodmoon Collective) and bassist Kira Longeuay. The group has been active since 2016 and have gone into a more psychedelic, atmospheric post-metal inspired sound as opposed to Kittie’s earlier alternative metal work.
This new trio are set to release the new Nocturnal Transmission EP on September 18 via War Crime Recordings, which is currently available here. The group are also back with a new cover of “Tell It To The Sky” from Tracy Bonham’s 1996 studio album The Burdens of Being Upright.
The band’s atmospheric metal take is prominent from the outset, as their take on “Tell It To The Sky” opens up with ethereal metal guitar chords, before it goes into gritty metal progressions. The group’s rhythms and Lander’s vocal performance take inspiration from nu-metal with polished vocals that blend in well with this atmospheric tone.
“I’ve always thought that ‘Tell It To The Sky’ was a fantastically well written song,” Lander told the Brooklyn Vegan. “Always try to really think outside the box when it comes to choosing covers and I tend to pick songs that you wouldn’t expect a band like The White Swan would cover.”
The band hail from London in Ontario, Canada and have released a total of four projects since 2016. The group has yet to release a full fledged album, but continue to release EPs on a consistent basis.