Outsound – Megatherium
Release Date: 9th June 2023
It’s been a while since we picked up an album to review so it’s about time we rectified that and to do so we’re heading back to June for Cork based Outsound and their grunge-infused hard rock debut titled Megatherium. Within minutes of the album starting you can already name dozens of bands that could have influenced them.
The intro of ‘Murder / Dream’ brings some chunky guitars to the fore to pique the interest in what is to come, before raw vocals descend over the soaring music-scape that supports those intro riffs that return with aplomb. The outro turns the heavy up even more and does what it’s supposed to do: Leaves you damn well wanting more. What has become the most popular track on the album follows the opener and it’s easy to see why ‘Venereal Charm’ stays with the fans with its exemplary guitar work and frenetic feel. At just 161 seconds there’s almost a disappointment and that’s because of just how fun a track this one is. One that is bound to be a hit live.
The myriad of influences continues throughout the album as we firmly land in the nineties with ‘Nova’. It’s mostly the vocals that portray the vibe of what is probably the most vilified decade of music, with the backing ‘oooh’ the biggest culprit. Still though, ‘Nova’ is a fun song that doesn’t put a foot wrong.
That goes for the album as a whole though in truth. Just ticking over that 40-minute mark, Megatherium flows incredibly well, through the bigger hitters up top tracks like ‘Adeline’ that, despite the still pretty beefy guitars and vocals that push up against the boundaries of what is deemed acceptable, provide a moment of calming respite and allow listeners to take a couple of minutes to recoup.
There are several parts of the album where it emphasises just how good an album it is to have a beer or three to and ‘Hardcore Daisy’ is probably the epitome of that. It’s got ‘sticky floor at a dingy club night’ pouring out of it and that is as big a compliment as you can give to a rock band in truth. The most unique track on the album follows it in the form of ‘Semi-Dog’, a track that isn’t far away in style from the likes of Turnstile in places. A highlight in terms of both pure energy but also how out of the blue it is on this album.
This all leads to album closer and title track ‘Megatherium’, a track that takes up more than 15% of the album on its own. Feeling a little proggier than the rest of the piece, it certainly doesn’t feel like there are more than six-minutes of song by the time you get to the end of it as the choruses take a more Sabbath-esque approach and the track as a whole passes by in a blink. All ready for you to crack another can and hit play again.
If you’re wanting to continue recent trends and head back a few decades for a nostalgia trip then there are far worse places to head than to Cork right now. Outsound are drawing plenty of inspiration from many of the Seattle grunge crew but with plenty of modernness in there too. A tight line to walk but one that they’ve done well here.
You can pick up Megatherium by Outsound here: outsound.bandcamp.com