Band:	Outcast
Album:	Self-Injected Reality
Style:	Progressive death metal, Progressive thrash metal
Release date:	October 08, 2008
A review by:	Jeff

01. Autonomy In Progress
02. Denial Of Elapsed Time
03. Reversal
04. Fragmented Memories
05. Allegiance
06. Collapsed Into Oblivion
07. Materia Prima (Instrumental)
08. Hysteria
09. Feelings Transgression
10. Deviance

The last album of the French of Outcast was just great so you can be sure that I was awaiting the new release with a lot of expectation. "Self-Injected Reality" is now in my CD reader and I can tell you that I'm not disappointed one more time. I really hope that this time people will understand that they must check this band as soon as possible because they're great really. If you like technical Thrash/Death Metal, be sure that "Self-Injected Reality" will be for you!

What I like the most in the music of Outcast is the great mixing of brutality and technicality. A bit like an excited Gojira or even more like Meshuggah, Outcast plays a really technical modern Thrash Metal mixed with Death Metal elements and above all with really complex deep parts which come from the lands of the Progressive music. This is excellent really and the songs are so complex and go in a ton of different directions that it's really addictive even if it can be messy for someone who is not into such Metal in general. As an example, the great third track, "Reversal", starts with a slow riffs and a really dark and dirty melody which becomes fast a la Brutal Death and then turns into Jazz for some seconds before that it turns back again to Death Metal? It maybe looks chaotic but believe me this is so well-done that it's finally really easy to understand the music of the band. All the songs of "Self-Injected Reality" have excellent riffs and always a lot of surprises, this is really original? Definitely with "Self-Injected Reality", Oucast has released the album of the maturity, the CD which should transform them into a leader of the French Metal scene (and I'm ready to bet some money on the fact that they will cross some borders now?).

It's hard to find anything wrong in the release, the production is good, all (yes all!) the songs are killers with every time a little special thing which transforms them into a unique piece of music, the musicians and singer are great? Nothing is wrong, and my only reproach maybe come from the sound of some guitars which is maybe a bit too similar to the one of Gojira but here again, it's impossible to say that Outcast plays the same music, they're a lot faster and brutal even if of course both bands have the same influences.

So you're looking for technical but brutal music? You want Progressive Metal but doesn't want something which sounds like Dream Theater? I have something for you then, its name is "Self-Injected Reality" and its father is a band from France called Outcast. Be sure that you won't miss this album which is just a fantastic release of technical aggressive Progressive Metal. This is a must and one of my favourite releases of the year. With Gojira and now Outcast, we can be proud to have two of the best original Metal combos in France! "Self-Injected Reality" is a great release highly recommended by me and Metal Storm!