Cathedral Bio

When man created heavy metal he wanted it to be hard, loud, upfront, but also fun. Music is, after all, a release from the everyday same old same old, and was meant to be enjoyed rather than endured. When Cathedral write a song, they incorporate all the elements that heavy music should possess, with a healthy dose of irony into the bargain. Cathedral are not however, a joke band - nearer the mark, they enjoy the irony of having a sense of humour in a day and age when many bands tend to take things far to seriously.



Vocalist Lee Dorrian views the band's image less critically: 'People try and analyse things to much. All we do is follow our instincts, we write the songs in a very intense short period of time and as a result the songs are very instinctive to us, so people should accept them for what they are without trying to label them.' - 'Supernatural Birth Machine' is filled to the brim with the now trademark Cathedral sound - heavier than hell riffing from Garry Jennings, the doom-groove rhythm section of not-so-new boys Leo Smee and Brian Dixon, and the unique vocals of the ever charismatic Lee Dorrian. If anything, the sound on this album is even heavier then its predecessor 'The Carnival Bizarre', unashamed in its approach and confident in the knowledge that without pandering to trends, Cathedral can still make a relevant racket. 'Stained Glass Horizon', 'Fireball Demon' and the mighty 'Birth Machine 2000' hammer the point home in a ferocious display of precise songwriting.



Certainly Dorrian is enthusiastic about the album: 'Life's about progression, and you're only selling yourself out if you don't try and improve on what's gone before. We could have stayed with the same style forever, but there's no challenge in that. Having said that, there was no conscious writing direction, having such a frantic burst of writing didn't leave us with a lot of time to plan too much, but that forces you to concentrate much harder on getting the best in the time you have.'



As ever, the influence on Cathedral is obvious, but the band have long since undoubtedly developed their own sound. Those expecting a blasting start will be surprised by the laidback intro of 'Cybertron 71/Eternal Countdown', but from then on Cathedral never let up. 'Cyclops Revolution' pummels the listener with a doom-laden attack and a surprisingly throaty vocal take from Dorrian , whilst 'Suicide Asteroid' even hints at a more stoner rock feel, accompanied of course by the bitter sweet Cathedral anguish factor. The vocalist refuses to be drawn to much on lyrical themes, but rejects the view that Cathedral are a 'happy vibe' band. 'I actually think this album is a lot more moody than 'Carnival...' The lyrics have a lot of double meanings if you listen closely, it's still quite depressive, though just not as obvious as we made them on earlier records. Some songs relate to sci-fi which we're all into, but I try and make a bit more obscure and ironic.'



Cathedral have many things in their favour - adventurous songwriting, a charismatic frontman in Lee Dorrian, a solid live reputation but most important of all individuality. A Cathedral song is instantly recognisable, whether its a slower, brooding number like 'Nightmare Castle', or the more upbeat 'Urko's Conquest' - and standing out from the crowd in this day and age is a rare thing indeed. Despite being labelled as mad or simply over the top, Dorrian remains undeterred: 'I suppose you could see Cathedral as an eccentric band, but surely that's just a reflection of the world around us - there's a lot of mad, weird stuff going on. Basically we do what we do and do it in our own way, and to be given the 'mad' label is almost insulting, because it fails to cover so much of what Cathedral is about. Surely its not a crime to express ourselves?"



The riffs and vocals contained on 'Supernatural Birth Machine' are undeniably true Cathedral, and those who care to listen closely enough will note that the band haven't lost their sense of irony either - maybe it's time you got in on the dark sense of Cathedral humour.