Album Review - Reaching Beyond Assiah (Outlaw)

The Great Metal Debate Podcast

Welcome to The Great Metal Debate podcast. Today we are talking about the Brazilian black metal band known as Outlaw with their new album Reaching Beyond Assiah. These guys have a slightly melodic sound to their guitar riffs but I guess not enough to be classified as such. According to the metal-archives, they are a three piece group that formed in 2015 with two other full-length studio albums. There have been a few line-up changes over the years with the only original member going by the initial D. who is the vocalist and lead guitarist. These guys deliver that grainy black metal sound with a hint of rawness along with some decent guitar hooks and melodies to keep the listening experience fresh. Most of these compliments are not centered around brand new or unique playing methods but rather an interesting way to incorporate atmospheric tones to an otherwise over-saturated genre. There are several moments during this album where you'll forget that there are Watain sounding vocals and you'll just close your eyes and soak in the "Bliss of Soul" which happens to be the name of the first track. I'm not going to say that it's very similar, although I caught some major Uada vibes within the main guitar riff. As for the second track "To Burn This World And Dissolve The Flesh" radiates that haunted cemetery feeling and will make a chill go up your spine with its very short lived but frequent guitar licks. If only they had stretched that hook out just a little longer by at least a few more seconds before returning to its main riff. The song also has a breaking point after almost three minutes where there is a tempo change that makes everything slower including the drum beat. This was a very neat change up to an already complex song structure and then we even get a sweet solo which isn't always a stand out moment for black metal though it is certainly welcomed. Track 3 which is titled "Beyond The Realms of God" is definitely my favorite song on the album as it has a calm melodic black metal sound. Musically, it's everything I could ever want from black metal as a whole. I would spoil it but instead I'm going to say to go listen to it yourself. You won't be disappointed. "The Unending Night" reminds me a lot of the late 90s/early 2000s melodic black metal acts with its main guitar riff and vocal delivery. Even the drum rhythm has those signature quiet blast beats that still fit just right and are audible enough to enjoy. To me it sounds like a callback to whomever influenced these guys. I also love how the music stops for a slit second in this one so we can hear the vocals alone before kicking back into gear. If you're looking for that classic melodic black metal sound with an absolutely beautiful guitar riff, look no further than the song "Everything That Becomes Nothing". My only complaint about this song is that it's the shortest one on the album. It definitely could've benefited from being just a few minutes longer but it's still another incredible track that I'll call my 2nd best. Moving on, we have "The Serpent's Chant" which doesn't have that much to bring to the table in terms of variety. To me, it's not really a moment of falling flat but it does seem to lack grooviness. Although I will say I enjoyed the acoustic guitar break at the track's halfway point. And finally we get the album titled track "Reaching Beyond Assiah". This isn't a redeeming moment for the trio as the melodies for this one are largely forgettable yet still enjoyable. Having enjoyed this record front to back, I will definitely go listen to their debut Path To Darkness and their second album The Fire In My Tomb. Something tells me that I'm going to experience goosebumps while listening to those the same way I did with the majority of this album. My score for album gets an 8 out of 10. There's room for improvement but overall this was still a worthy listen and I encourage any fan of black metal to give this one a spin.