OrckOut - (D)Generation

Brazilian Thrash, it has a real familiarity about it. I've grown up reading about and listening to Sepultura, Soulfly, Sarcofago and bands of that ilk but beyond them, I've been fairly clueless. OrckOut are a newer Brazilian thrash band, forming in 2004 before releasing an EP in 2006 and then (D)Generation in 2012. On this album the band were a four-piece, but they now seem to have grown to a five-piece and they are unsigned. Beyond, there isn't a lot of information around about this band apart from on various Brazilian blogs, but unfortunately I can't speak or translate Portuguese. They have thought supported the most recent incarnation of Sepultura.

Tracklist:-

1. Slavery Dance
2. The Bloodiest Day
3. Bluff
4. Voracity
5. Technotard
6. Miserable
7. Dissorder

After the creepy intro, OrckOut head straight for well-trodden territory, with some guitar-heavy thrash on opener Slavery Dance. The vocals are part-shouted and part-clean and the drums are powerful. This is definitely more accessible than a lot of earlier Brazilian Thrash and takes influence, unsurprisingly, from modern day Sepultura. It’s also pretty progressive. The recording is very organic here and it has a DIY live sound. There’s a subtle echo underneath the instruments, which can be heard during the intro to The Bloodiest Day. Their also more progressive in the song too, with some head-spinning time change going on straight from the off and throughout the intro section. There’s a huge US thrash influence and some of the harmonies recall Metallica, Exodus and even Machine Head, which isn’t a band thing at all. I certainly like this song more than the opener I think.

Bluff is really catchy and OrckOut manage to inject a lot of melody into the song, whilst still remaining close to the old-school thrash blueprint of the big-four. They get more dramatic as they go too, with the fade-in of Voracity being a really cool touch. By now, they’ve settled and sound more focused. Some people though, may feel that the vocals are slightly off-key at time and they are at times, but when the harmonies hit the spot, they sound great. Plus, who’s interested in a thrash record with perfect vocals. Not me!  The solo in the middle of Voracity isn’t off the scale, but it’s a perfect accompaniment for their sound and the introspective section featuring lightly plucked guitar and further lead section, recalls Nothing Else Matters era Metallica. Technotard has a really upbeat feel to it and it’s musical textures are layered really well. 

When OrckOut nail it, like on Miserable, they’re a great listen. It seems that on their more focused, shorter songs they’re more to the point and seem to find a knack when it comes to songwriting. This is another super catchy song. That solo is the best! It’s short and simple but damn it’s effective.(D)Generation ends on a high with Dissorder. It distills everything that is good about OrckOut into one song and ensures that your left with a lasting memory of this album. It may have taken a little bit of time for OrckOut to get going on this record, but once they did they didn’t look back. It proves that even though they’re at the more melodic end of the Brazilian thrash spectrum, OrckOut can still kill it. I really hope they come back with more music soon, as I really want to hear them progress further and become a force to be reckoned with, as I’m sure they will!

You can stream selected tracks from (D)Generation on Orckout's Myspace page - https://myspace.com/orckout.

They also have a website - http://www.orckout.com/index.html

OrckOut Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/orckout