You were born Katherine Thomas. Classical piano studies at age 7. Violin studies at age 9. Juilliard School scholarship at age 15. Classical violin soloist at Carnegie Recital Hall after graduation. And then... what on earth happened? The Great Kat: After graduating from the Juilliard School and performing my Solo Violin debut at Carnegie Recital Hall as Winner of the Artists International Competition on Violin, I realized that classical music was dead and killed by non-virtuoso idiot composers like Cage, Schoenberg and Glass! The Great Kat is the reincarnation of Beethoven, a Juilliard grad violin virtuoso turned blood-dripping guitar shredder-metal messiah-high-priestess-of-guitar-shred. I decided that I had to resurrect classical music and bring it to the moron masses! I searched all forms of Popular music and discovered HEAVY METAL: the most powerful, vicious form of popular music, which mixed best with Classical Music. I incorporated note-for-note violin solos & Classical motives in heavy metal and invented "SHRED/CLASSICAL" - unique and complex music which combines blistering guitar and violin shredding, with actual authentic classical music scores (Wagner, Beethoven, Vivaldi, Bach, etc.) and speed metal band! THE GREAT KAT WAS BORN! 2-As someone not well versed in the shredding community - part of the "moron masses" as you've described - I'll be honest... my first impression of you when I visited your website was, well, you're a nutcase. But you're actually a talented musician who has found a very interesting musical niche - classical music meets speed metal. So why dress up in the dominatrix outfits, crazy hair and makeup? The Great Kat: If it takes dressing up in leather dominatrix outfits and whipping your flaccid asses to wake up the masses to the genius and brilliance of Shred/Classical Music, then that's what The Great Kat guitar dominatrix will do. Now on your knees, Patrick!!!
3-I watched your DVD and learned three things immediately: 1) It is not for the faint of heart, 2) It is not your mother's Guitar Shredding DVD, and 3) Your video "Castration" is NOT to be watched while eating a large plate of gnocchi and red sauce. (I say this from experience.) How would you sum up your DVD music videos, and what do you hope your fans take away from watching them? The Great Kat: The Great Kat “EXTREME GUITAR SHRED” DVD features: - Pure genius classical masterpieces mixed with tons of phenomenal guitar and violin
virtuosity. The Great Kat wants all Kat fans and slaves to get energized with the power and fast, amazing complexity of classical genius mixed with theatrical insanity an brutal metal! This is the new entertainment of the twenty-first century - get used to it!
4-Will do. But hey, in 2003 you were named among the Top 10 Fastest Shredders of All Time by Guitar One magazine. Educate me - when did "shredding" begin, and how angry were you to be ranked behind a guy named Buckethead? The Great Kat: Guitar "Shredding" is playing as many notes as possible per second - cleanly and with articulation. The Great Kat is the world’s fastest female guitar shredder and the only guitar an violin shredder, taking authentic, note-for-note classical scores of Beethoven, Paganini, Vivaldi and reorchestrating and rearranging them for guitar, violin, orchestra and band! 5-How do you prepare for a concert gig? Any backstage rituals? The Great Kat: Backstage, it’s pure insanity! Get the hell out of The Great Kat's way!!! 6-Buzz List readers sent in a number of questions for you, a few of them were even written without typos. One I received multiple times was, "Why is your mouth always open in all your photos?" The Great Kat: The Great Kat is SCREAMING, “Wake up with The Great Kat’s brilliant, complex, engergizing, high velocity, mind-boggling, finger-blistering, extreme virtuoso 'Shred/Classical' music!” Note to self: Stop saying "Cheese" and try screaming Kat's message during upcoming family reunion group photo. Grandma will love it. 7-Describe for us your perfect date. The Great Kat: The “Perfect Kat Date”: 1 - The Victim licks The Great Kat’s spiked heels 8-Ozzy Osbourne once bit the head off a bat in concert. I'll be honest - my guess is you would eat the whole damn thing. Thoughts? The Great Kat: Who cares!!! The Great Kat is revolutionizing classical music! 9-What bands do you listen to these days? I'm guessing Franz Ferdinand and Keane ain't among them. The Great Kat: The Great Kat listens to The Great Kat - the new musical messiah, reincarnation of Beethoven and God all rolled into one ball of fire and shredding genius!
10-Your thoughts on American Idol? Any advice for young shredders out there? The Great Kat: There should be a "SHREDDER IDOL" Show, with The Great Kat as the new Simon Cowell! The Great Kat’s Advice to young shredders: WORK YOUR BUTTS OFF and BE COMPETITIVE! And, might I add, save your dimes. Fake blood ain't as cheap as it used to be. Visit The Great Kat Website at: http://www.greatkat.com Patrick Holland was not harmed during this interview, but is right now playing ABBA tunes and being rocked to sleep by his mother. He interviewed Crazy Legs Conti in October 2004.
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