Hello catty

>> Toronto's Nice Cat rawk out with their bong out

by LORRAINE CARPENTER

It seems Ontario has more than one pack of feisty felines with axes to grind. Without the showy, Goth-metal trappings of London's Kittie, Toronto's Nice Cat serve up heavy doses of riff-rock, or spliff-rock perhaps? Influences such as Clutch, Kyuss and Fu Manchu--with the occasional Led Zep cover to satiate the band's new, Bonham-obsessed drummer Jim--have conjured up that vague category "stoner rock" in many an article.

"I think of us just as heavy rock--you know, loud rock 'n' roll," says the surprisingly soft-spoken vocalist/guitarist Carol. "There are certain bands in that genre that we all like, but the problem with a catchphrase like that is that it gets a lot of second-rate imitations coming out of the woodwork."

Nice Cat themselves emerged from the woodwork in 1997. With little to no musical experience, friends Carol, Caitlin (guitar) and Nicole (bass) worked their way onto the Toronto club circuit in a haze of candy, caffeine and Jaegermeister. Mini-tours of Canada and the States, as well as opening spots in Toronto for Jon Spencer and Rage Against the Machine (at Maple Leaf Gardens, no less), led to a "Best New Group on the Scene" award at the 1999 Toronto Rock Star Awards.

But how can you hear Nice Cat, you ask? A cover of "All Hell Breaks Loose" on Graven Images, a Misfits tribute album on Holland's Freebird Music, has led to an impending international release of their six-track EP. Meanwhile, said EP is available at www.

interlog.com/~vayda and at their upcoming show.

For a band that censors last names to avoid creepy fans ("And I'd rather be on a first-name basis with people"), their frontwoman isn't afraid to invite raucous behaviour.

"We like everyone to rock out with your cock out, sometimes literally, and just have a good time," says Carol, before I warn her to watch what she asks for from Jailhouse crowds. Of course, Nice Cat have done time there before...

"Oh, that's okay by me. Last time some guy stole my drinks and he was being a nuisance trying to get up on-stage. I don't know what his story was but Domenic had to chase him away!"

With Phantom Shifters and Pandora at Jailhouse tonight, Thursday, March 1, 9pm, $5