Outcast – Awaken the Reason

Next up we have French thrash/death band Outcast and their third album, “Awaken the Reason.” They are similar to my last review in that they play a mix of thrash and death metal. They are different in that I feel Outcast leans more towards the melodic death metal side than the thrash side. There are thrash elements about the music, but the way I hear it, the feel of the album is much more melodic death metal.

Listening to the first track on the album, I thought I had a handle on where the music was going; but no, I was wrong. I am starting to feel a little Gojira stylistic influence here, which makes sense, as Gojira is also French. Whatever is going on here, I am enjoying “Awaken the Reason”; it is turning out to sound much more original than I expected. Think of a mix of thrash and death metal, combined with the chunky staccato riffing of Meshuggah, ambient melodies layered on top of heavy music reminiscent of Gojira, and vocals that are a combination of Psalm-era Ministry and any number of death metal vocalists. If that wordy run-on sentence does not impress upon you that this music has a lot going on, I’m not sure what else to say.

I was not lucky enough to win the Mega Millions lottery drawing last week, but so far this week I feel as though I have hit the metal music jackpot. All the music I have heard this week has been pretty good, if not great, and I have even had the good fortune to hear a couple bands that sound pretty fresh and engaging (Outcast being one of those bands.) I hope this week continues to be so musically fulfilling.

“Awaken the Reason” is yet another album this week that I feel compelled to recommend. If you are on the hunt for something that stands out as a little different than the rest of the pack, here is the album for you.