Not a lot of modern heavy metal catches my ears, but Catalysis did when they released their Self Titled EP last year.  After an impressive debut, I’ve been keeping tabs on the band and voila they are promoting a new release!  “Connection Lost” is out tomorrow July 24th and it’s quite a step up.  The songwriting as a whole is better, lyrically too not just musically.  There’s soaring guitar solos and some well placed guitar duals (you can never have enough harmonies!) that are much more flavorful than most metal bands.

The theme is pretty obvious influenced by the mental and social disconnection of society through social media, cell phones and computers.  They went with a great topic that is very obvious and very concerning these days and not another cliche metal album about partying and having sex.  I think the lyrics are definitely one of the stronger points of “Connection Lost” something I think Catalaysis clearly improved by spending more time on.  An album with meaning is a lost art these days and the guys definitely put time into it’s lyrical elements for sure. Oh, and Mendel (ex Aborted) handled the production for this album like their EP as well.  If you have a big name in metal like that working with you that says a lot about your band I would say.

The one big difference between their EP and “Connection Lost” is the speed.  Sure, they didn’t lose it at all as it’s still pretty quick at points but they were focused on a lot of groove.  That also enabled the vocals to stand out more and not be lost in the music.  I definitely think an even groovier style and a little bit less speed helped Catalysis on their upcoming release “Connection Lost”.  It’s a remarkable improvement from my first listen to them last year and think they will keep improving as the years go by.  The guitar riffs are a bit more complex and thought out as proven by their song structure.  The vocals naturally fit and aren’t forced, it’s a definite rager for any metalhead to sink their teeth into.

The album is set to release tomorrow July 24th.  If this review magically convinced you, you can check out the album stream below which recently dropped.  Go support the band and buy yourself a copy if you can.