Big-selling London metal band Kittie is suing its U.S. record label for $900,000 US.

Kittie and its producer, Garth Richardson, filed suit yesterday in New York against the band's record company, Artemis Records, citing numerous counts of breach of contract, a statement from the band said.

The band is seeking $900,000 from Artemis, Kittie's management representative said.

The suit names Sheridan Square Entertainment, LLC -- parent company of Artemis Records, the label to which Kittie is signed -- as defendant.

Details about the suit were released by Kittie's publicist. They have yet to be proven in court.

David Lander of London, father of Kittie's guitarist/ singer Morgan Lander and drummer Mercedes Lander, says the band is also seeking more than $120,000 US for Richardson. The Juno-nominated producer and son of legendary Canadian record producer Jack Richardson has worked on Kittie's recordings.

The band and producer made the decision to file the lawsuit after their auditing company, McGladrey & Pullen, reported that the band was owed about $900,000 US in royalties and other compensation "in accordance with the current contract's prescribed accounting methods," the band's statement said.

Additionally, the audit revealed Richardson was owed more than $120,000, said the statement.

"The band is very disappointed that this process has to take place," David Lander of K.M.A. Entertainment, Kittie's management company, said in the statement. "This suit should not come as a surprise to Artemis, as Garth and Kittie have been demanding that monies owed be rectified since the audit's completion."

A representative from Artemis Records could not be reached for comment yesterday. Its newly opened Canadian office could not be reached.

Kittie has sold hundreds of thousands of copies in the United States and toured extensively, appearing on some of the top metal rock shows.

Kittie's debut album, Spit, sold more than 600,000 copies in the U.S. and more than 40,000 in Canada.

Its later recordings, including Oracle, have not sold as well.

But as the band changed personnel in the summer of 2001, leaving the Lander sisters as the sole members from its London club lineup of the late 1990s, Artemis chairperson Danny Goldberg was supportive.

"In our experience in working with the band, as their label, they have always been completely driven by Morgan and Mercedes," Goldberg said in 2001.

Kittie is recording demos at a Canadian studio, David Lander said. Its contract with Artemis calls for two more recordings, he said.