Cataract
Killing The Eternal

December 2010
Released: 2010, Metal Blade Records
Rating: 4.0/5
Reviewer: Demonator

What's in a name? Quite a bit apparently, seeing as how I would happily wager that Cataract may have been "down with the kids" to a far greater degree had they decided on a more infectious moniker when they first cranked up their instruments some twelve years ago.



As it is, the strength of their back catalogue makes for a decidedly telling case in their favor and KILLING THE ETERNAL - the fifth time they've dropped a full length joint in the studio - is every bit as sharp as the last time we heard from this Swiss metalcore quintet. Fear not the presence of saccharin sweet choruses and predictable chug-a-thons fouling up your loudspeakers; Cataract stomp, snarl and shout their way through thirteen best-in-class examples of what their genre should sound like with little mind paid to trends. Their delivery is seamlessly tight and of particular note is Fedi Carminitana's hefty bark. On the likes of "Never" and "Hollow Steps", his voice packs the punch of another drum kit thanks to his knack for dynamic patterning and phrasing. Collectively the band prove on "The Faith You Have Misused" that they have come along loads as songwriters too, injecting just enough melody to provide keep proceedings interesting and apace all at the same time.



It's straightforward affair, alright. In fact, with KILLING THE ETERNAL, you'll know what you're going to get pretty much from the word go, but when it's quality like that on offer, it's a predictability most won't struggle to live with.