Cata9tales A Chameleon’s Dream | Music Profiles

Band: Cata9tales
Location: Virginia
Styles: Hypecore, Alternative Hip-Hop, Electronica, Funk, Alternative
Similar to: Beastie Boys, Beck, Radiohead, Eminem, Red Hot Chili Peppers
CD: A Chameleon’s Dream

Accolades:
Featured performer at the Mid-Atlantic Music Conference, Charlotte, NC 2012
Ranked #1 regionally on Reverbnation
Toured extensively throughout Southeast region
Top artist/story on officiallypluggedin.com
Music featured in theatrical wrestling documentary “The Booker”
Recently signed to Monarchy Records first artist signed to label

Members/Instruments: Berkley Priest (vocals),  Kreator (beats)
*the live band incorporates more musicians (guitar, bass, drums, keys), but the only official members are Berkley Priest and Kreator.  They are responsible for writing and recording all of the material.

Production: Recorded and Produced by Cata9tales, Mastered by Jason Carter at Wavelength Studios, Portland, OR

Cata9tales could only exist right now, in this moment, at this pinnacle of pop culture; where the lines blur, the mold breaks, and the rules crumble into dust.  Keeping one foot in hip-hop while dancing all over the musical map, Cata9tales have crafted a truly fresh sound. The band have developed an intensely loyal following, having toured extensively throughout the Southeast and ranking #1 on Reverbnation regionally.

Cata9tales is the brainchild of frontman Berkley Priest, an enigmatic performer with a strong style and flow that defies categorization. Less a rapper than a rocker who rhymes, Priest draws influence from David Bowie, Iggy Pop, and David Lee Roth. A veteran of the rock and psychedelic scenes, Cata9tales is the first time that Priest has ventured into hip-hop territory. Lyrically, Priest employs colorful turns of phrase and vocal inflections that make him entirely unique within a saturated scene. His performances border on the possessed, tapping into an energy that only a performer that has spent years in the rock trenches can.

Kreator (Kenny Perkins) is a musical journeyman who can play nearly any instrument and has an ear for composition and song structure that makes him an anomaly in the hip hop world. Refusing to settle or take short cuts, it is Kreator’s perfectionism and ear for turning the absurd into musical gold that gives Cata9tales its soul and punch.

Something happens when these two musicians, uniquely talented in their own right, get together to form Cata9tales. The live band finds the duo working with  drummer Ben Pinkston and guitarist Jeremy Luedtke, as well as a rotating cast of characters that guarantees that no two shows will ever be the same.  Priest leads the charge with his whirling dervish performances, including additional percussion and samples. Kreator (who formerly DJ’ed the proceedings) now plays bass live while triggering samples with his feet and stepping over to scratch on the turntables.

Their first release, the old-school influenced, cathartic “Kick the Bad Love” announced their arrival. Their follow-up EP “A Chameleon’s Dream,” released just 6 months later, shows a band that was unwilling to be pigeonholed, as the flows, song structure and sonic experimentalism reached new levels. Since then the band has signed to Monarchy Records and are hard at work in the studio recording what will be their “official” debut, “Hello Maybe Everything.”

The beats and lyrics weave in and out, taking sharp left turns, coloring madly outside of the lines. From the mid-Atlantic something wicked ? and wonderful ? this way comes.

Tracklisting:    1. Kaboombox
2. Open Letter to Generation Adderall
3. Keep the Diamond, I?m Rhyming Now
4. What a Day (Shooting Stars)
5. The Gang?s All Here (Interlude)
6. Ghettotron
7. Ultralife
8. Phoenix Weather
9. Stronger Than Me (Amy’s Song)
10. A Chameleon?s Dream

Websites:
www.cata9tales.com
www.twitter.com/cata9tales
www.facebook.com/cata9tales
www.youtube.com/cata9tales
www.bandcamp.com/cata9tales