Conor Fynes 'Intuition' - Kathaarsys (5/10)

In progressive metal, the idea of melding jazz into the heavy metal genre has been something that has been dabbled with by many, but few seem to go the extra mile by truly fusing it into their mission statement as a musical entity. Bands like Athiest and Meshuggah represented the first earnest experimentations with jazz in extreme metal, and from then on, a wide variety of metal bands (progressive and otherwise) have made their own attempts at it. From Spain come an extreme metal trio that call themselves Kathaarsys. Certainly one such group that takes the style of jazz to heart, they give a promising vision of guitar-driven jazz and a variety of extreme styles with their fourth studio album, 'Intuition'. Unfortunately however, while the jazz contributions are exciting and professional, the heavier parts of this album feel quite weak in comparison.

Immediately beginning with some rapidfire jazz soloing and a fitting rhythm section, it takes a few minutes into the album for Kathaarsys to even admit they are a metal band. This is all good however, due to the fact that the band is highly skilled with the jazz style. However, the praise starts to wear thinner once the band starts playing the heavier material. Going from smoothly produced free jazz to a very noisy, garage-style of playing sounds incredibly bipolar of the band. In the heavier metal sections, it feels as if the band isn't quite sure what they want to be. Black metal, thrash and speed metal are clustered together as one, but the scattered style feels moreso disorganized than it is eclectic.

The musicianship of the band members is commendable with their jazz work, but horrible production puts a black mark on what may be considered otherwise decent metal chops. Another issue with the performance on the album is that of the vocals themselves. While the growls and snarls of Kathaarsys' extreme metal side are nothing beyond might be expected, the clean vocals- while indeed showing promise- feel very out of place. Sounding like a much less technically proficient version of Rhapsody Of Fire's Fabio Leone (and a host of other power metal singers), the singing is lackluster at best, and is devoid of any particularly interesting or beautiful melodies.

While 'Intuition' has not been any particularly inspiring experience, Kathaarsys shows some good promise here as a jazz ensemble, although their heavier material does leave something to be desired.