Katagory V - A new breed of rebellion 3/5
Reviewed: 3-4-05
Tracklist:
1. Sands of time
2. Turn to grey
3. No response
4. A new breed of rebellion
5. A peaceful act of terrorism
6. Your dreams
7. Chrono-logic
8. In dark night
9. One last time
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Sadly, it wasn't until after this 2nd release from Katagory V that I learned the band was from my home state of Utah. So as quickly as possible, I grabbed both their debut 'Present day' and this 2nd CD 'A new breed of rebellion'. I was impressed right from the start with their debut. It has a sound that takes me back to the early Queensryche and early Savatage days (how can they go wrong?), and vocalist Lynn Allers has a great voice, easily competitive with any other U.S. metal band. His voice is clear, soaring, and he can even hit the extreme high notes (think Halford) on occasion. Thankfully though, his clear voice is dominant, as I'm not a big fan of the Halford and Primal Fear vocal style. Their debut is great, very catchy, plenty heavy, and has a solid production. A progressive power metal CD that should appeal to most U.S. metal fans.
With this 2nd CD 'A new breed of rebellion', there are a few minor changes. For one, unfortunately, the production isn't at the same quality level as their debut. It's not a huge difference though, and doesn't take away from the great songwriting that is present, but still will be noticed by those who have their debut. There also may be more of a song variety with this 2nd CD, and I find it to be a good thing, as 'A new breed of rebellion' is a very memorable CD, containing some nice slower moments with pleasing choruses.
Track 1 "Sands of time" is a good start, but the slightly let down production shows immediately. The outstanding tracks 2 "Turn to grey" and track 3 "No response" show off some cool guitar work though, and I forget about the production with these songs. The slow (that eventually picks up) and lengthy track 4 "A new breed of rebellion" also works for me, as there are plenty of CDs in my collection that are full of non-stop speed. Track 5 "A peaceful act of terrorism" is good, but the interesting track 6 "Your dreams" with its many changes in tempo is great, probably one of my favorites. Track 7 "Chrono-logic" and track 8 "In dark night" don't really work for me however, lacking the memorability and strong choruses that are heard with their better songs. But the slow track 9 "One last time" is a fine finish, and definitely leaves an impression.
It would have been good for the band to have obtained the same production quality that their debut has, but in the end, it doesn't take away from the memorable songs that fill the majority of this CD. Fans of progressive power metal bands like Shadowkeep, Jacobs Dream, maybe a less crunchy Hollow, or the earlier Queensryche and Savatage periods, will find that this band will fit in quite well. The 2nd CDs of Shadowkeep and Jacobs Dream are excellent in my mind though, and I'm not sure Katagory V is at that level yet. But I know I'm a fan that is really looking forward to their 3rd CD.
CLINT
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