The Swedish Alternative Metal/Rock band We Are The Catalyst is back with their fifth full-length album ‘Friction’ to be released November 29th! Formed in 2012 and hailing from Sweden, the genre-defying rock band We Are The Catalyst embodies this rebellious spirit. They're on a mission to ignite change, pushing people to rewrite their own rules and live life on their own terms. It's about choosing freedom, embracing an alternative lifestyle, and daring to live the way you want.
“Some people are just wired to break the mold, refusing to settle for the ordinary or follow the usual path. The "normal" life just doesn’t cut it.” Says Cat Fey, vocalist of We Are The Catalyst.
Since the start, We Are The Catalyst have racked up tens of millions of streams and views, sold thousands of tracks, and rocked stages at clubs and festivals across Europe and Asia. All on their own terms.
“In the past few years we have realized we are probably going to be independent for the rest of our career, - well, at least if we don´t get a crazy-amazing offer in the future! We just value our freedom and way of working with the music so much. There´s nobody to tell us what we can and can´t do, and we can decide on the right course of action ourselves in any given situation. I think that is a very valuable. And maybe we won´t get to be as big as if we were willing to take a fairly standard contract with a renowned label, but that´s actually fine. We know some labels are amazing, but we value our freedom more and are willing to work hard for ourselves in the end. And naming the album "Friction" was an easy decision, both in terms of what we see going on in the world around us, and the way that our decisions as people and band not willing to fit in, going our own way, causes "Friction".
Says Cat Fey about the decision not to sign with a label for ‘Friction’, running their own label and being independent.
Having recently started working with German booking agent Dr Music Booking, the band is preparing to hit the roads in 2025 in support of the new album.
“We just felt very good about Torsten and Miriam at Dr Music when we first had a meeting with them to discuss a cooperation, and felt like they really understood what we are about, and have a very professional approach to booking, so can´t wait to get started on that! We are so much looking forward to getting back to touring as we haven´t played any shows since 2019! As for so many bands the pandemic got in the way, and after that me and Kenny got another daughter, so it´s been hard trying to do shows, but now we are more than ready to get back to it, and can´t wait to meet our listeners in the flesh!” Says Cat Fey.
The new album ‘Friction’ is a modern rock album flirting with sci-fi soundscapes, dramatic movie soundtracks combined with the ferocity of Rock and the catchy-ness of Pop music.
The band is certainly doing things their own way. Currently releasing a new track every third week, with the intent to keep on doing so for the foreseeable future.
“We just figured ‘why not’? When we got the idea of writing and releasing songs that often. We have our own studio, we love writing songs and an album every two years can only fit so many songs, so why not release as often as we feel like and also release albums? We have hundreds of songs just lying around because you´re not “supposed” to release music that often. And why? Because it´s not how you do things? Who cares? I think it´s important to find your own path, even if that means you might fail in the end. I could never do things the way someone else wants just because it´s “The right way”.
So we just decided that we would be releasing as many singles as we wanted, and then we´d put some of them on the album. And also keep releasing new songs every third week if we can! So far it´s been great for us in terms of developing our skills as song-writers, getting motivated and just having fun, trying out different sounds and experimenting. And our fans also seem to enjoy it of course!”
Says Kenny Boufadene, guitarist of WATC.
Review:
Tension is the intro and builds up slowly with some electronics and Cat Fey whispering. The song has a spooky vibe, fits the upcoming Halloween vibe.
Antihero is a typical female fronted electro metal track with rambling guitars and hard hitting drums.
Demons sounds softer, has a more melodic and sweeter sound compared to the previous track. All in all a very catchy tune with a melancholic touch!
Hollow is a sweet hard rocker with a catchy chorus.
My Dreams Are Killing Me starts softly, but rocks once all the instruments jump into the game, later on you’ll get some breaks and some time to catch some breath.
Roots starts softly but explodes pretty fast and remind me with the words: I stand my ground of an another song (Within Temptation minded, thus very positive).
Into Darkness sounds sweet, but has also some heavy growls and is guided by the best electronic sound and dito guitar and drum sound! This song has clearly potential as a single!
The Awakening is a rocker with a sweet sound. Fans will for sure adore it!
Dark Times is a strange and dark interlude, with some kind of Halloween vibe.
Parasite mixes metal with deep house and creates thus a very unique sound. I like this mix, just as the harsh screaming (a bit like Arch Enemy).
Ashes starts with some dub step, more electronics and a global sound that comes close to a false rock minded ballad. It’s a beautiful seduction, just like what the lyrics tell us.
Northern Lights brings us a higher tempo, but has a very sweet global touch. The more you listen to it the closer it gets to a ballad.
Neon Shadow mixes pop and rock just like they mix electronics with guitars. The tempo is a bit low and the title describes also the global sound. Good work!
In a Vacuum is a real ballad, the right end for this great album with a lot of variety in the sound and unveiling the many vocal possibilities (Cat Fey really does a great job here). It’s clear she has a great band behind her, on top of that!
Well it was nice reviewing this Swedish band. Cool think is that they contacted us, also as they do it all by themselves. We can only have tons of respect for that! Next thing on my list is checking them out on stage and may have a short meet and greet (one day). Cheers to We Are The Catalyst!
Official channels:
https://www.wearethecatalystofficial.com
https://www.facebook.com/watcofficial
http://www.youtube.com/watcofficial
https://www.tiktok.com/@wearethecatalystofficial
https://www.instagram.com/wearethecatalyst/
https://www.twitter.com/officialwatc
