Album Notes

In 2001, in the suburbs of Princeton, New Jersey, Akira Shishido asked Justin Corbalis and Adam Schepps to help record songs he had written. The project became known as Catharsis. With Aki on guitar, Justin on bass and Adam on drums, the trio started out by multi-tracking songs on recording software in the basement of Aki's home. The songs consisted of clean vocals and riffy backgrounds that made obvious references to 80's thrash. Catharsis began to evolve into a more melodic style of metal. Eventually the group was combining elements of 80's thrash with euro-power and Gothenburg style melodies. Ben Carlucci was soon asked to join as a second guitarist.

Now with a full line-up Catharsis began playing local shows and developed a reputation for delivering true metal to the local audiences that had until this point been deprived of the genre. However, in the fall of 2002, as result of conflicting interests, Adam left the band. Ian Jacyszyn, a friend of the group with past band experience in the Philadelphia area, soon joined to replace Adam on drums, and brought a much heavier influence to the group. Now, with a new line-up and a new style of music that combined elements of hardcore, thrash, power metal and Gothenburg metal, the group renamed itself to Ash&Elm, after the mythological Norse birth of man and after characters of the group's favorite movies: the "Evil Dead Trilogy" and "Nightmare on Elm Street."

In the summer of 2003, Ben Carlucci was replaced by Justin Greczyn on guitar. After agreeing to postpone college for one year to help jumpstart the band, Ben Carlucci, at the request of his family, chose the path of the Scholar instead of the path of The True Metal Warrior. Justin Greczyn, a friend of the band's, assumed the responsibility of this latter role, and continues to rock on with the band.