Derange – “The Awakening” [Album Review]

The Awakening is an interesting piece of work. From modern metal to thrash to gothic metal, Derange cram a lot into the forty-odd minutes that make up this album but, surprisingly, when all mixed up, the whole thing works really well.

Having a vocalist in the vein of Cat Pereira helps Derange’s cause to no end too. With such a rich range – from haunting, cleaner singing to a more aggressive style – style-wise there appears to be little that Pereira can’t handle. In fact, it’s this diverse vocal range which gives Derange the freedom to explore the gamut of musical styles they do.

Opener “The Thinker” is a fine example of the band flitting between haunting, melodic, Lacuna Coil-style passages where Pereira really soars above other vocalists, to passages where the band get their heads down and Pereira uses her vocal chords to unleash merry hell. It’s a format which runs throughout the course of the album wherein Pereira slips into whatever style suits the music. From the melodic, epic direction of tracks like “This Is The End” and “The Negative” to the metallic blast of album closer “The Awakening”, everything about this album feels effortless.

Whereas a lot of diverse albums fall foul of sounding too much like eleven different songs rather than a complete album, The Awakening is a release which sees Derange play to the strengths of their stunning vocalist to create a piece of work which you’ll be captivated by from start to finish.

Track Listing:

01. The Thinker
02. Echo
03. The Observer
04. Passive
05. This Is The End
06. Ruins (Part One)
07. Ruins (Part Two)
08. The Negative
09. The Other Side
10. The Awakening

Run Time: 41:56
Release Date: October 5, 2015

Check out the song “The Thinker” here.