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Outlandish’s latest album “Sound of a Rebel” was recently released in Europe. Unfortunately it isn’t out yet in the United States, but I was able to get a hold of the album another way (I do plan on purchasing the CD when it’s available - if anyone knows where I can get it please do let me know).

I haven’t had the time to listen to the whole CD attentively, but I skimmed most of the tracks. As always, their album is very diverse and contains tracks with influences ranging from Arab, Latin, Hip Hop, R&B, Pop, and even techno/dance music!

However, this album does not appear to be as spiritual as their prior two albums, and is definitely more mainstream. The only introspective track I found thus far was track 11: Crash N’ Burn, which I will post and review tomorrow. For those expecting an “Islamic Album”, you probably won’t be satisfied with “Sound of Rebel”, but I for one appreciate Outlandish’s growth and different genres of tracks.

Nonetheless, what initially drew me to Outlandish’s music was their introspection and lyrics about everyday life that I as a Western Muslim could relate to, i.e. everyday struggles [Eyes Never Dry], marriage [Fatima's Hand], those times you feel indifferent/depressed [If Only], the Palestinian suffering [Look into my eyes* (shout out to Gihad)], purifying your intentions [Any Given Time], longing for a better ummah [I've seen], and of course Aicha, Walou, I Only Ask of God. All of these tracks are excellent. I hope Outlandish doesn’t ignore their Muslim base which I believe helped them gain their initial popularity.

I still do like their latest album, and of course most of their music does have meaning and promote positive messages, and isn’t just materialistic and hedonistic garbage like most of today’s music. Therefore I do recommend the album for those who appreciate music (obviously if you view music as haraam, stay away :P).

Insha’Allah instead of just reviewing the album as a whole I’ll try to review individual tracks from the current (and prior albums) semi-regularly. Check back tomorrow for my review of ‘Crash N’ Burn’ - in which Outlandish react to their critics, especially their Muslim ones.