Cataract - Kingdom
- Released: 2006
- Label: Metal Blade
- Rating:
It seems like it was just a few short years ago that I heard my first metalcore band. Just now I tried to remember which band that was, and I realized that a few short years ago has been more like a decade.
Some would trace metalcore back as far as bands like Biohazard in the early 90s or even bands such as Nuclear Assault in the 80s. There may be some validity to this but that is not what I think of when I think metalcore. I guess looking back I never really heard a first metalcore band. Elements of metalcore began forming here and there in lots of the music I was listening to but got muddied and over shadowed by nu metal. Most of us are still thanking the metal gods that the nu metal craze is all but gone. During that time metalcore was the music that I found to be the light for the future. Not only did you have bands that would throw out Slayer like guitar parts with great heavy riffs and more double kicks than you could shake a stick out but they would also have a crushing breakdown that was like a spin kick to the head for an unsuspecting metal head that wasn’t familiar with the hardcore scene.
Of course here we are in 2006 and like all good things metalcore has become over played and is being referred to by many as nearly as bad of a plague as nu metal ever was. Call me a sucker but I still love the beat downs.
When looking through the list of discs to be reviewed I noticed that the new Cataract disc, Kingdom, was still open for review. Being the fan of metalcore that I am, and having never listened to a complete Cataract disc, I threw my hat in the ring and gave the disc some quality time before sitting down to write this review. After several listens I can say that this Swiss act have put together a disc that keeps the listener interested from beginning to end. What keeps Kingdom from getting better than 3 and a half stars is that while the guys in Cataract have taken the very simple metalcore formula and followed it to a T they have done nothing to set themselves apart from the dozens of other high quality metalcore bands in the heavy music scene today.
The music is very obviously thrash and hardcore influenced and like so many other metalcore bands the solos and slower guitar parts show obvious Slayer influence. Every song has several switch ups and often involve a sing along chorus. To top it off ¾ of the way through just about every track there is a killer break down. Some would ask what the problem is! The formula is certainly a good one and many great CDs have been built on it. The problem is that the formula has been what dozens if not hundreds of bands have based CD after CD on for nearly a decade.
Unoriginality aside, Kingdom definitely has high points. After the fitting intro the disc smashes head on into your ear drums with “War of Culture.” This intense track has great thrash elements in it. Good hooks and solid vocals keep the listener interested from beginning to end. Fans of Unearth, or other European acts such as Heaven Shall Burn or Maroon, would be right at home happily banging their heads and looking for the nearest mosh pit as the break downs begin. The onslaught continues right through “On This Graveyard” and well past the album highlight “Denial Of Life”. Probably what would be considered the single of this album, “Denial Of Life,” throws slow elements into the mix with large sections of the vocals done as a sing along. This track has the most interesting guitar work and a lengthy solo ¾ of the way through the track.
What impressed me about this album is that there is very little filler. Cataract maintain their intensity clear through the album closer “For Their Sins”. The ability to put out a solid album like Kingdom shows that Cataract have had time to build their skills and cut their teeth. I once read a quote from Kerry King where he said that Slayer would never change their sound or experiment with their sound too heavily because if they did then it just wouldn’t be Slayer. Sticking to what you are good at certainly makes sense. The down side for bands like Cataract is that they didn’t invent metalcore and in a scene where so many good bands exist it is important to do something to set yourself apart from the rest of the pack. Originality is definitely one area where this album is lacking.
The bottom line is even if it lacks originality, Kingdom is a well written album that is interesting from beginning to end, which seems to be more than many bands are capable of these days. Like so many European hardcore and metalcore bands Cataract has long been overlooked and remained relatively unknown. Take a chance and pick up a copy. If for no other reason do it because these guys don’t wear girls jeans and have emo hair like so many of their American counterparts and they don’t wear shiny shirts and eye shadow like so many of the European bands do. In this day and age that is definitely worth something.
Jason “CJSIXER” Wenderoth | 06/28/2006