Website: Ektomorf
Hailing from Hungary, the foursome of Ektomorf shoot for straight-ahead metal in the vein of Soulfly with Outkast. In fact, it’s rather eerie how they’ve managed to mirror Sepultura, doing a better job than even Sepultura was doing in the years immediately following Max Cavalera’s departure.
Yes, you’re going to find choruses which are nothing more than the title of the song screamed repeatedly: “We Rise,” “I Choke,” the title track, “Red I”… at least it’s catchy. There’s nothing on the album that is downright unlistenable, although “Who Can I Trust (Prayer)” comes close; turning to a down-tempo mood, vocalist Zoltan Farkas neglects to alter his tone or energy from the hard-riffing part of the band’s repertoire. The result is imbalanced and rather uncomfortable. Still, “Ambush in the Night” has groove to spare for weeks, and “Fuel My Fire” has a driving rhythm with a wonderful guitar counterpart. But still… it’s been done before.
Outcast certainly isn’t a mediocre offering and indeed has its shining moments, but not only is no new ground broken, it’s such a Soulfly/Sepultura doppelganger that it’s almost embarrassing. One would almost expect to see a Brazilian flag on Tamas Schrottner’s guitar.
