Fresh off the announcement of their upcoming album Acquired Immunity, symphonic metal powerhouse Catalyst Crime is once again pushing musical and conceptual boundaries. Singer Zoe Marie Federoff (during her first show of her EU tour in Dordrecht) joined us to share insight into the band’s latest single — the blazing title track Acquired Immunity — and the creative process behind the record. From cinematic arrangements and heavier progressive touches to lyrical reflections on resistance and resilience, Zoe opened up about the personal and historical inspirations behind the music, the influence of her late mother‑in‑law, and the long‑standing collaboration with producer Alexander Krull. With a new tour kicking off across Europe, Catalyst Crime is entering its most ambitious chapter yet.
Welcome to Zoe Fedoroff from Catalyst Crime
Welcome, Zoe, thank you.
It’s good to be here. Thank you.
So let’s start with the news fresh from the press. The album announcement, which is Acquired Immunity. And also the new single. So what can you tell me about this upcoming new album?
Well, we released the title track today, as you know — the single Acquired Immunity — featuring my amazing husband, Ashok, on the guitar solo as well. But this track was a lot of fun because it was born from ideas originally conceived by our guitarist, Kaelen. Then our keyboardist Jonah came in and just made it this epic adventure track. So it’s heavy, it’s fast, it’s adventurous — it’s everything you really want when you hear the idea of cinematic metal.
Recalling the debut album Catalyst Crime
Yeah, I do agree. I was listening while I was coming here on the train — multitasking [laughs] — so I completely agree with you. And also, it does recall some elements of the debut album that was released back in 2021, if I am right.
It’s got, you know, we still took it to, I think, the next level here. Every album should be a revolution of some type. There’s some familiar stuff from our first album — the big, thick orchestral scoring by Jonah Weingarten — but I think we also went in some more different directions: more prog, a little bit more melodeath, like you hear in Acquired Immunity. And there’s a little bit more of that sprinkled throughout the album as well. We kind of wrote a much faster, heavier album in some regards.
The upcoming album Acquired Immunity
Now, the album is called Acquired Immunity. It’s such a strong title, if you allow me the comment. What is it about?
I try not to explain my lyrics in too much depth, but I will say that Acquired Immunity is this concept of — if you get envenomed or poisoned so many times, eventually you develop a resistance to the poison or the venom.
The single Curse Breaker from Catalyst Crime
Yeah, completely agree. And, you know, this single was anticipated by Curse Breaker, which is, I think, one of the most personal lyrics for you…
That one was so special because when I got married, I didn’t have the privilege of ever getting to know my mother-in-law. And every story I ever heard about her from all these people who knew her — especially my husband — just painted her as this extremely brave and charismatic woman. I’m always really inspired by stories of her, and I thought, well, I’m never going to get to meet my mother-in-law, so I’m going to pay homage to her with this song.
Talking about resistance
Yeah, and considering the times we’re getting into, it’s also interesting to speak about resistance, you know?
It is. And for so much of the history of resistance — when it comes to resisting fascism and tyrannical governments — so often you see women on the front lines of resistance.
The backstory of Curse Breaker
Yeah, absolutely.
Because women are overlooked. Women get by unnoticed more because nobody expects that from women, which is interesting to me. More of the backstory, of course, is that my husband’s mother was translating banned literature during the Soviet years in the Czech Republic. She was translating literature into the Czech language that wasn’t allowed by the Soviets.
“History is an open book test that we keep failing somehow”
It was prohibited.
Yes, risking her life for this. So I think that’s the kind of heroism that is relevant in any day and age — but especially today again, unfortunately.
Yeah, it’s curious how all these stories from the past look like, again, pure actuality. It looks like everything is coming back in a way.
History is an open book test that we keep failing somehow.
I do agree.
Yeah, we keep making the same mistakes. We think we’ve learned something — I don’t think we have yet. And I don’t know what it’s going to take for us to learn. You know, I’m a big Star Trek fan. I want the future that Gene Roddenberry imagined for humanity. But there’s so much more that we have to overcome before we get there, and I hope we get there someday.
Completely agree.
Alexander Krull producing the album
So the album was produced by Alexander Krull. I know also he’s Catalyst Crime’s manager. So how was it to sit with him and bring this album to life?
I’ve known Alex for a decade now, and he has an amazing, strong vision for everything he does. He also films most of our music videos, which is just wild. He’s a really intense, creative guy. But more than that, he’s one of the best human beings I’ve ever known in my whole life. Having that level of trust — to work with someone who cares about your vision on the same level as you — means so much to us. Alex is one of my favourite people in the world, and especially in this business, and we just love working with him.
“And we like that because it pushes us”
Yeah, it’s also really inspiring to see how every time he comes with different ideas, you know, even for live shows. So I would be curious to sit with him and just discuss something.
He’s extremely fascinating as a human being. He just has so many different ideas going in so many different directions. And we like that because it pushes us; it motivates us.
Absolutely.
Catalyst Crime together with Leaves Eyes’
So the tour starts today, which is also another challenge! [laughs] It starts today — you’re going to play a little bit in Belgium and a few dates in Germany. After this bunch of tour dates, is Catalyst Crime planning something more?
We’re hoping to do some more dates later on this year, but obviously I can’t announce anything, yet that hasn’t been announced. But yes, we will definitely be out playing again later this year.
Okay. Well, Zoe, that was everything from me. Thank you so much for your time. I hope you enjoyed it.
Of course. Thank you.