Outworld (band)
Encyclopedia
Outworld was a progressive metal
band that was formed in 1997 by guitarist Rusty Cooley
. Their name is allegedly taken from the fictional Outworld realm of the Mortal Kombat video games.
They worked on two bonus tracks for Rusty Cooley's solo instrumental album, which was released in January 2003. Outworld signed a management deal with the Danish Label Intromental Records in mid-2003. Later in 2003 Outworld added Shawn Kascak as bassist and Matt Mckenna as drummer, replacing Marches and Davis. Kelly Carpenter decided to join Danish metal band Beyond Twilight
in late 2004 but remained with Outworld until they added Carlos Zema as singer in fall 2006.
In December 2004, Outworld signed with Replica Records and recorded their first album, which was released November 13, 2006.
In August 2007, Outworld won the Famecast Fenom Contest in the metal category, having been voted #1 in all six rounds of voting.
On March 12, 2008, The band announced founding member and keyboardist Bobby Williamson and vocalist Carlos Zema were leaving the band. They will be searching for a new singer as well as a second guitarist (instead of a keyboardist) for a heavier sound on the new record.
On March 24, 2009, Rusty Cooley announced that Outworld had disbanded, with members going on to other projects.
, Iron Maiden
, Pantera
, and Symphony X
., while their overall sound was influenced by the likes of Meshuggah
and Nevermore
Progressive metal
Progressive metal is a subgenre of heavy metal originating in the United Kingdom and North America in the late 1980s...
band that was formed in 1997 by guitarist Rusty Cooley
Rusty Cooley
Rusty Cooley is a guitarist from Houston, Texas known for his highly refined guitar technique.-Early life:Rusty received his first equipment on his fifteenth birthday. From that day on Cooley immersed himself in music, practicing upwards of 4 hours a day...
. Their name is allegedly taken from the fictional Outworld realm of the Mortal Kombat video games.
History
The original line-up of the band was keyboardist Bobby Williamson, guitarist Rusty Cooley, drummer Darren Davis, bassist Brent Marches. They set out to make instrumental music but soon after decided they wanted to also have vocals and added Kelly Carpenter.They worked on two bonus tracks for Rusty Cooley's solo instrumental album, which was released in January 2003. Outworld signed a management deal with the Danish Label Intromental Records in mid-2003. Later in 2003 Outworld added Shawn Kascak as bassist and Matt Mckenna as drummer, replacing Marches and Davis. Kelly Carpenter decided to join Danish metal band Beyond Twilight
Beyond Twilight
Beyond Twilight is a progressive metal band from Denmark with symphonic elements to their sound such as keyboards and harmonic vocals. The vocals are high-pitched as is typical for power metal bands, another possible classification of their style. The band was originally formed by Finn Zierler in...
in late 2004 but remained with Outworld until they added Carlos Zema as singer in fall 2006.
In December 2004, Outworld signed with Replica Records and recorded their first album, which was released November 13, 2006.
In August 2007, Outworld won the Famecast Fenom Contest in the metal category, having been voted #1 in all six rounds of voting.
On March 12, 2008, The band announced founding member and keyboardist Bobby Williamson and vocalist Carlos Zema were leaving the band. They will be searching for a new singer as well as a second guitarist (instead of a keyboardist) for a heavier sound on the new record.
On March 24, 2009, Rusty Cooley announced that Outworld had disbanded, with members going on to other projects.
Sound, style and influences
Outworld was ostensibly a progressive metal band, though they often blended many different styles. Their writing was influenced by bands such as Dream TheaterDream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of their studies to further concentrate on the band that would...
, Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
, Pantera
Pantera
Pantera was an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas. Formed by the Abbott brothers, Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell in 1981, bassist Rex Brown would join in late 1981 with vocalist Terry Glaze. Looking for a new and heavier sound, Pantera had Terry replaced in 1987 with Phil Anselmo as...
, and Symphony X
Symphony X
Symphony X is an American progressive metal band from Middletown, New Jersey.Founded in 1994 by guitarist Michael Romeo, their albums The Divine Wings of Tragedy and V: The New Mythology Suite have given the band considerable attention within the progressive metal community...
., while their overall sound was influenced by the likes of Meshuggah
Meshuggah
Meshuggah is an extreme metal band from Umeå, Sweden, formed in 1987. Meshuggah's line-up has primarily consisted of founding members vocalist Jens Kidman and lead guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, drummer Tomas Haake, who joined in 1990, and rhythm guitarist Mårten Hagström, who joined in 1992...
and Nevermore
Nevermore
Nevermore is an American heavy metal band from Seattle, Washington. Formed in 1991, they are known to incorporate elements from styles such as thrash, power, progressive, and neo-classical metal into their songs, and also makes use of acoustic guitars and a wide range of vocal styles.-Early years...
Final Line-up
- Rusty CooleyRusty CooleyRusty Cooley is a guitarist from Houston, Texas known for his highly refined guitar technique.-Early life:Rusty received his first equipment on his fifteenth birthday. From that day on Cooley immersed himself in music, practicing upwards of 4 hours a day...
− GuitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Shawn Kascak − BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Matt Mckenna − DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Former members
- Kelly Carpenter − Vocals (2002–2006)
- Carlos Zema − Vocals (2006–2008)
- Darren Davis − Drums (1997–2003)
- Brent Marches − Bass (1997–2003)
- Bobby Williamson − KeyboardElectronic keyboardAn electronic keyboard is an electronic or digital keyboard instrument.The major components of a typical modern electronic keyboard are:...
(1997–2008) - Stephen Vance − Drums
- Mikey Lewis − Drums
- Shane Dubose − Bass
- Jeff Huerta − Drums
Discography
- Demo (2004)
- OutworldOutworld (album)Outworld is the debut album by the American progressive metal band Outworld. It was released on November 13, 2006 by Replica Records. The Japanese version of the album includes a bonus track entitled, "Polar".-Track listing:# "Raise Hell" − 6:14...
(2006) - EP (2008)
External links
- Outworld official site
- Outworld page at Replica Records
- Official Outworld at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....