Release Date: Out Now
Released By: EMG/Universal
Genre: Hard Rock / Heavy Metal
Links: facebook
Line Up:
Roy Cathey – Vocals
icky jim – Guitar
Franko – Bass
Darius Rose – Drums
Track Listing:
1.0 The Gift
2.0 Erase Me
3.0 Better Way
4.0 One More Day
5.0 Dirty Money
6.0 Confessions of Man
7.0 Broken Mirror
8.0 Burn
9.0 Wake Up
10.0 Memories of You
If you know me, you likely know that anything that resembles radio friendly hard rock is something that I simply don’t enjoy. Outside a handful of bands that I “lump” into that category, very few of them actually play that style, they’re just sonically on the periphery of it. And by that I mean they don’t sound like every band that crops up on those stations every five minutes. Whether its better songs, better guitar work, or better singer, those bands stand out to me from the rest and are the exception to my rule. The Fifth is a band that has some similarities to that style, but on every count knocks it out of the park.
Little did I know that when I started talking to Roy Cathey on Facebook on the Metal Sludge page of all places, that he was the singer for the band Cold Sweat in the early 90’s with guitarist Marc Ferarri of Keel fame. Had that album come out a year or two earlier when I was a walking talking encyclopedia of everything hard rock and metal I guarantee that his name would never have slipped my memory. I absolutely loved the Break Out album, but it came out at a time when I had just started college and was starting to delve into other styles of music so my passion for knowing everything about a band got sidelined if for no other reason there was no way I could retain all this information about so many bands. When I did put two and two together it was a pretty big “duh” moment for me, but it still didn’t change the fact that I liked talking to him and respected his take on music. I was especially entranced by his audition he sent to Jake E Lee of Red Dragon Cartel for the singer position. Roy did a spot on version of “High Wire” that should’ve gotten him hired immediately, but for whatever reason he wasn’t and turned his focus back to his own band The Fifth, out of the Fayetteville area of NC.
When I saw on his Facebook page that they were getting ready to release the limited edition album Confessions of Man, I knew immediately I had to have it. Since it was a limited run and all priced the same I was one of the lucky 10 to get a signed copy in gold ink. I had no real idea what to expect from the album, but I had enough faith in Roy’s ability that even if it was a compilation of his favorite polka songs it would still be a great listen. What I got instead was an album that swirls around radio friendly hard rock, but is way heavier than anything Saving Abel or Three Days Grace could ever hope to record, with a collection of songs that run the gamut of hard rockers like “Burn” and “Wake Up” to haunting ballads like “Memories For You” and “One More Day” to darker groove songs like “The Gift” and “Dirty Money.” Cathey’s voice is the strongest part musically for me. Going for a deeper, soulful sound than he did with his Cold Sweat days the emotion of the songs is born. He has this ability to give every word its own feeling and meaning. Guitarist Icky Jim is a riff machine, as well as giving some superb solo’s that are perfect for the songs. With bassist Franko and drummer Darius Rose added in, you have a tight band that defies labels on so many levels.
I’m glad that any friendship I have with Roy wasn’t predicated on fanboy love of his past work. I’m also glad that The Fifth isn’t an attempt at reclamation of past glories. This is an excellent album that may or may not be available still as of this writing. If it is I highly recommend getting a copy while you still can. I also hope this is only the beginning of a long life for this band. Confessions of Man is an excellent album that has all the markings of being a hit.
Written by: Chris Martin
Ratings: Chris 9/10
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