The Immortal-esque sound is all there it seems to be a combination of 'Damned in Black' (2000), 'Sons of Northern Darkness' (2002) and a tint of way back when 'At the Heart of Winter' (1999) came out. Though the synthesizers were not overpowering. The riffs seem to be pretty strong on here and it's a blend of those albums (to me). The only thing that doesn't pack the punch are the drums since Horgh still was with Immortal though now their status is disputed. Abbath came up with some pretty darn good riffs here. Pure Norwegian black metal and Abbath seems to blend it with some sounding like blackened thrash.

I would venture to say that this one could've been longer in length but it's nevertheless a good follow-up the the self-titled album. I suppose fans for now should follow this band rather than Immortal now that their status is on hiatus. Both Abbath albums have been good, this one a bit better than their debut. If you're a guitar player I'd say the riffs are what's key to follow on here. Abbath does a good job in that department as well as the vocal department. Not so much in the leads, though he puts in a good effort. This album is rather slow in tempos, though there are some fluctuations but not too much.

The sound quality is damn good with a little aura that is grim. This one isn't too intense of a release I'd say it's way catchy. Not only that, but the frontman of Immortal's older lineup. Abbath's vocals are unique and cool, making the album and band sound better than a lot of other black metal bands. I'm glad that there's no really heavy synthesizers on here, but the atmosphere is dark. Like I said, it's sort of blackened thrash metal but with a tint and aura of black metal mixed in. I like it, I like the vibe here. Abbath seems to have improved on lead guitar, but he could've left that part out. So be it, however.

This is definitely an album to check out if you like black metal in general or Immortal with Abbath in the band. This one is a definite "B" rating to me, but if the leads were out I would've raised the rating. Definitely this is worth picking up because the music on here is so awesome. And the Immortal influence that I touched upon gets listeners entranced. At least, it did to me. Hopefully Abbath will continue to make music since he's 47 now, he won't retire for years on end. The guy has a lot of riffs put down and 'Outstrider' is just a small dose I'm sure of what he has left for us. Check it out now!

Rating: 8½ (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Death8699
12/23/2020 15:54