Cats in Space - 'Atlantis' Released 27 November 2020

There’s a slightly tougher edge to the first proper track, “Spaceship Superstar” and I swear there’s a hint of Saxon in the underlying guitar riff and bass work. “Revolution” is also a heavy-hitter with contemporary protest song lyrics and just for a few seconds it goes a bit Judas Priest, honest. The lead single “I Fell Out of Love With Rock ‘n’ Roll” is a fabulous take down of rock music from grunge onwards and pretty much explains why they favour the retro sound and I’m sure many of you will empathise. Fantastic harmonies are a Cat trademark and this song features some really powerful lady backing vocals that are just a shot away from those on “Gimme Shelter”. T Rex get a mention in the lyrics but really The Cats are anything but dinosaurs as there’s a freshness and inventiveness to their material and frankly, they’re the only ones doing it this way today.

As always, guitarist/producer Greg Hart has conjured up a series of grandiose mini operas – the kind of music that was John Miles’ first love. “Marionettes” is one such piece. Lyrically, it covers some of the same ground as “Five Minute Celebrities” from the first album but this time in a Mott/Supertramp kind of way. Title track “Atlantis” is another theatrical tour de force and that’s where new singer Damien Edwards fits right in as until now he was best known for his work in musical theatre, including Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds, and he’s also performed with Space Elevator. He’s certainly got the range and flamboyance to deliver Hart’s epic visions and it does no harm having Mike Moran and his orchestra underpinning at key moments.

There’s some lightweight and fun stuff too. “Sunday Best” is high-camp and if I heard correctly it might be the only song ever to name check Robin Trower? “Listen To The Radio” is a jaunty take on the “Radio Gaga” theme and is very classy and enjoyable. “Queen Of The Neverland” is riffy and pompy – maybe a bit Styx-ish which is never a bad thing obviously. “Can’t Wait Till Tomorrow” starts off briefly like classic-era Whitesnake but becomes a gossamer acoustic flimsy with a bit of Moog and Harmonica drifting in. “Seasons Change” does indeed reflect the variety of the year, Vivaldi style. Needless to say, it’s well played and I particularly like the guitar work, especially a wee snippet of “Summer Breeze” style fuzz at an appropriate moment.

It’s all wrapped up in the Cat’s trademark high quality cover art and comes in nice packages including coloured vinyl. This is splendid stuff and if you’ve enjoyed any of their repertoire to date then I definitely recommend that you dive in and ride this wave all the way home from the record store.

Ps I’m really proud of my own restraint for managing to review a whole Atlantis / Cats album without making any ‘wet pussy’ references. Oops!