KATAGORY V Bassist Undergoes Carpal Tunnel Surgery

KATAGORY V bassist/founding member Dustin Mitchell has has finally undergone a procedure for the carpal tunnel syndrome in his right hand, which he was diagnosed with at the end of 2006.

"After years of dealing with this problem, I have finally taken the steps to have it rectified. Writing this message is a bit of a challenge right now, but not nearly as difficult or as painful as it could be thanks to the advances in medical technology for treating CTS. I was in and out of surgery in less than 10 minutes! It was that fast! All it took was a one inch incision and a cut to the tissue in my hand restricting the blood flow of the nerve, a few stitches and that was it. I am now home resting up, with only a small bandage wrapped around my wrist. I have full use of my fingers and 75% usage of my whole hand already. According to doctors, I should be 100% in another week! If I had the old-style surgery, it would be weeks, if not months before I would be 100% healed. With the advances in medical technology for treating CTS, I would encourage any musician suffering from it, to get it treated right away. It is practically painless and takes no time at all!"

Dustin also commented about the current status of KATAGORY V, as well as the progress of finding replacements for vocalist Lynn Allers and lead guitarist Marc Hanson who were announced as having left the band in January of 2007.

"We've had several fans and press contact us with concern for the band since it has been all too quite in the K5 camp since the announcement of Lynn and Marc leaving the band, and we appreciate all the positive and encouraging emails and message posts on our forum concerning the matter. But rest assured, we are still keeping very busy! Curtis and I are, and have always been, the primary songwriters in KATAGORY V, and the loss of Lynn and Marc has not slowed the progress on working towards the next KATAGORY V album. We have been compiling several new song ideas over the last few months and things are moving very quickly, and we will have more news concerning the next album in a month or two. For now, Curtis, Matt and I are still in high spirits and are positive that we will find the right musicians to complete the lineup, but we are not in a hurry to do so. We want to be 100% sure that whomever we pick, are the perfect fit and will help further the bands sound, style, and share our vision and work ethics."

"As of this moment, the search continues" states Dustin, "we have a couple of singers that we are very, very impressed with that have contacted us and sent us material, and to be honest, it could be a very hard decision when it comes down to who it will be. Of those we like, any one of them could easily take KATAGORY V to the next level. However, we are not ready to make a final call on any of them right now because we still have a few 'late entries' that we are waiting to hear from. Unfortunately, the guitarist search has been a far more cumbersome process. We have had many more axe slingers contact us with interest, but many of them have not even made it to the initial stages for an audition. Calling them 'flakey' would be an understatement. However, those few that have been brave enough to send us material to hear; although fairly talented, were not quite up to our expectations of what we are looking for. We still have a few more guitarists we are looking at and have high hopes for, but right now, the door is still open for anyone interested in filling this slot."

Singer Lynn Allers and guitarist Marc Hanson's final recorded performance appeared on the band's most recent album, "Hymns of Dissension", which was released in 2007 on September 25 in Europe through Burning Star Records and October 9 in the U.S. on Nightmare Records.

As previously reported KATAGORY V had announced that they are looking to find a new, more versatile and highly motivated vocalist and lead guitarist as soon as possible. The band is currently still allowing interested musicians, both locally and nationally, to contact them about filling the vacant slots. Singers can contact the band directly at [email protected] for more information on the vocalist slot and guitarists can address the band at [email protected].