Customer Reviews

Beethoven on Speed

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"I'm only about 200 years ahead of my time! Let's see how fast you can catch up, moron! Wake Up!"

"The Great Kat is the Beethoven of the 21st century!!!"

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the delusional world of The Great Kat. The above quotes are taken from the liner notes of 'Beethoven On Speed'. Rather than partaking in methamphetamine, poor old Ludwig Van would be sticking pencils in his ears to ensure he remained deaf if he'd ever heard this. Put simply, The Great Kat can play fast, but that is basically her only saving grace.

The Great Kat was trained at the famed Julliard music school in New York, as a violinist. Who knows how she got there if her violin playing is anywhere near as awful as her songwriting.

This is basically a novelty album. What you get are high speed Thrash (or "Hyperspeed", as Kat would like to call it) versions of a number of well known classical pieces, interspersed with some random guitar noises and pointless shouting which pass for original songs. There are two versions of Beethoven's fifth symphony, perhaps the most famous few notes in all of classical music. The first is fast, which is why it is called "Beethoven On Speed", the second is slower with a bit more crunch, hence the title "Beethoven Mosh". It is probably note-perfect, but sounds wrong. It is not a song that lends itself to the electric guitar.

However, Kat did manage to pick a few winners here. Chopin's "Funeral March (Piano Sonata in Bb Minor)" is probably the best of the lot. The main theme of the song is retained quite faithfully, augmented by a pipe organ and multi tracked solos. Paganini's "24th Caprice" is also given fairly respectful treatment. Kat also has a go at Rimsky-Korsakoff's "Flight Of The Bumblebee". It might be fast, but it's a mess. It sounds like it has been sped in the studio. Manowar's "Sting Of The Bumblebee" is far superior.

Elsewhere, Kat actually pulls out the violins, both acoustic and electric, attempts to write a guitar concerto, and generally messes about trying to be offensive. There are about two and a half good riffs outside the classical remakes, and the songwriting and vocals are so bad they should never have been recorded. The liner notes are full of great screeds of stupidity, including a Great Kat I.Q. test. The humour is not humorous.

If this STILL sounds appealing to you, do yourself a favour and trust me on this; the rest of the album makes an evening listening to Westlife sound inviting.

Great Kat (Katherine Thomas) has on occasions been brutally slaughtered by critics, because of her very high thoughts of herself. I think this is unfair. (But people with low self-esteem tend to get irritated at people who think well of themselves.)
Beethoven On Speed is actually a good album, regardless of whether Kat is the Beethoven of the 20th century or not. Her guitar skills are good even if somewhat overrated, not only by herself. Although as fast as Yngwie Malmsteen and Vinnie Moore, she doesn't hit the notes quite as accurately.
But nevermind, this is a fun (but short - 30 mins) record. And you have to give Kat some credit for doing something original. Where most metal guitarists just seem to be clones of others, she's actually doing her own thing. Classical pieces at hyper-speed!

it's kind of fun to listen to this. Guaranteed to starch the eyebrows of classical music buffs. But when she opens her mouth....

this is one Kat that you wished stayed in the bag. I really give it 2 1/2 stars because of her wretched singing. Thank the devil a lot of the songs are instrumentals. Her web page cracks me up. It's so 80s.

Never Before have classical pieces been played note for note at Blast beat tempo . This is at "Brutal Truth " Speed . Kat Slays

The Great Kat is a crazy dominatrix who just happens to also be a classically trained musician and one hell of a shredder! She is possibly the best guitarist in the world, and its such a shame her work isn't noticed by more people.

She really needs to stop singing though as well as writing her own songs, as she's terrible at these things.

However when it comes to doing insane variations on classical masterpieces she truly shines.

The Great Kat is, for my money, the best female guitarist alive. She has survived in a niche dominated by theatrical egomaniacs, and plays the testosterone game with the best of them - the fact that she is a complete freak should surprise no one. Besides being a shredder of the first order, Kat gets my respect just for being a true one-of-a-kind. Hey, maybe there is a sweet Juliard honors graduate under all of that blood, leather, and foul language?

Nahhh.

Oh yeah, she is a hot bikini babe who plays really good guitar, really fast. What's not to like?

I purchased this album when it was new and was impressed.The guitarist is amazing,the rest of the band needs alot of work.If your a musician you can appreciate the talent involved here,just don't expect your friends to agree with you.I would have to recommend you hear this one before you buy it.Beethoven's Mosh is by far the best track on the album,and it flat out rocks.

She is an awesome shredder but her singing leaves alot to be desired....not what i expected when everyone was comparing her to Yngwie.

I respect the Great Kat. She is incredibly fast and obviously knows the guitar inside and out.

But recently in a "Guitar Player" magazine, she was whining because she hasn't gotten recognized and was also boasting how she is the greatest guitar player ever, but is "held-back" because she is female...

Well, like I said, I respect her playing, it's amazing...As far as being the best guitarist...well, that's a whole different matter. In my opinion, a guitarist is someone who CREATES their own unique sound/tone/emotion/riffs. Ritchie Blackmore and Smoke On The Water...Jimmy Page and his infamous intro to Stairyway to Heaven...B.B. King and his signature vibrato...people like this and what they bring to the guitar-table is what makes them guitar greats.

Alright, Great Kat, you can play at mind boggling speeds, but everything you play is old classical stuff. In short, you are a classical cover band. Do you think Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, AC/DC, or any other original-material band would be so legendary if they were a cover band?

I don't think so.

The Great Kat IS music personified. She's the world's most beautiful woman, playing the world's greatest instrument, playing the world's best music. You cannot go wrong with this. She is the master of "Hyperspeed". Hyperspeed begins where speed metal leaves off. She can play faster than Vai, Satriani, and Yngwie combined. She could do a G3 show by herself and leave everyone in the dust.

The fact that The Great Kat is not a household name only prooves how truly idiotic the world's populace is. The Great Kat (Katharine Thomas as she's known to true fans) is much like the starving artist of yesteryear. It's a shame she'll be long dead before people "Wake UP!" and discover that the world's greatest musician and composer died literally unknown.

The Great Kat destroys all in her way and one listen to this CD will prove that your current rock n roll guitar hero is little more than a drooling derelict compared to her. Beethoven's Mosh is one of the greatest pieces of work ever recorded.

Worship The Great Kat or Die!!!