Album Review: Catalysis - Betrayer
Reviewed by Dan Barnes
For this, their second full-length, Dundee-quintet, Catalysis wanted to double down on their all-killer-no-filler ethos and continue the momentum of 2022, which saw the band crowned Best Metal Act at the Scottish Alternative Music Awards and garnering a slot on the New Blood Stage at Bloodstock Open Air.
To prove this, Betrayer features not one, but four preceding singles – as though it was Thriller or Hysteria – in the shape of the opening duo of Kingmaker and Gone; the first, and most recent, opens the album with a deep rumble and some machine gun riffing, blending the blistering death-thrash approach with more melodic moments to break up the blasting chaos. A howling solo and the grandiose climax acts of an overture for the record as Gone grabs you by the throat at the outset, delivering a musical assault that is ferocious and, somehow strangely comforting.
The other pair of singles arrive mid-record. Mea Culpa begins with a dark and doomy guitar before announcing itself in a grimy groove; my highlight of Betrayer comes in the form of Gallows, the last of the singles, which revels in a bouncing riff and swirling guitars. The soaring solo does not unsettle the driving beats and the song ends in a huge beatdown. A future live classic for sure, and a musical middle finger to mediocrity to boot.
Among the thrash riffs, the deathy growls and the old school soloing I’m hearing Catalysis channelling their inner Parkway Drive. Gone has a flavour of the Byron Bay juggernauts, as does Mea Culpa, and the influence can be heard hiding in plain sight within Endless’s grooving Power-Metal-adjacent bombast; the huge choral vocal effects of Bottom of the World and in the intro to Panopticon. There are even traces of PWD on the Old-School Death Metal vibes of Overlord.
Vocalist, Col MacGregor alternates between death growls and gruff expressions with feeding his inner Winston McCall to great effect and the dual guitars of Drew Cochrane and Sam Ramson can both groove and soar in equal balance. All held together by drummer, Calum Rennie and his bass partner, Paul Edwards.
The closer, Another Version of the Truth comes out of leftfield with a haunting refrain, and I found myself checking to see whether the band were covering the Nine Inch Nails track. Before that, though, is the pedal to the metal speed demon that is Never Unseen, which rips along with a blatant disregard for public safety.
Considering the release history of Catalysis, having release their debut, Connection Lost, during that pesky pandemic that was all the rage a few years back, and a couple of extended plays, Relicta and Innova in 2021 and 2022 respectively, Betrayer has the feel of a band in full creative control of their material.
Their All-Filler-No-Killer mission statement must be considered as having been achieved and then some, as Betrayer is proof of a glowing future ahead for these lads.
