Portal - Outre' [Profound Lore Records - 2007]Outre is a death metal nightmare with very gothic, Grand Guignol like & darkly theatrical surreal tendencies that bob like a headless corpse to the top of the audio water ever so often. The whole albums is soaked in a wonderful murky, grimy and dusty air, just as if it’s been performed on a dank and musty stage with blood spurting every so often, as hunched figures drag victims on and then off again, as black choking and laughter fill the rancid air. The guitar & bass lurch as the drums bound off cobwebs,and the singer’s growl hovers in the dark shadows stage left. The tracks go from fairly speedy to mid-pace ramshackled death metal runs, to cold black metal clouds of bitter riff craft, to discordant death bell ringing metallic guitar discharges, to hatchet in hand ‘he’s behind you ready to kill’ doomy chugs. Mixing in brief trips into dense horror string lined atmospheric and sinister backstage ambience/ dread. Musically the band are not technical that great, but it’s the way they’ve recorded the album and sewn the dead flesh of the album together that makes this worthwhile and something a little different. The three piece originate from Australia and dressing in fitting manner for the music murky murderess stage feel, all in black with balagalfers, nose and rancid looking witch hats, which adds nicely to the feel of the music. A horror-filled, dusty, twisted & dramatic trip into metal craft, & one of the more original takes on death metal in recent years. Roger Batty
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