Converge, true to themselves and their art no matter the cost bring Axe To Fall. Already touted as perhaps their finest work to date, Axe To Fall is an album that continues to push relentlessly forward, much like a shark that needs always keep swimming to survive. Where No Heroes was a refinement and broadening of hostilities declared on previous assaults such as Jane Doe, Axe To Fall returns to the more AmRep-inspired noisecore abrasions of You Fail Me while also updating and making vital the thrash influences that defined earlier Converge efforts (Caring and Killing, Petitioning the Empty Sky) and retaining the hardcore hostilities and frantic pace so vital to their foundation. Of course, the experimental anguish and pleading for salvation are no mere sharpening of past knives but yet another leap forward in an existence full of them.
Fitting like a puzzle piece in their all but flawless catalog, Axe To Fall is an undeniable...
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Converge, true to themselves and their art no matter the cost bring Axe To Fall. Already touted as perhaps their finest work to date, Axe To Fall is an album that continues to push relentlessly forward, much like a shark that needs always keep swimming to survive. Where No Heroes was a refinement and broadening of hostilities declared on previous assaults such as Jane Doe, Axe To Fall returns to the more AmRep-inspired noisecore abrasions of You Fail Me while also updating and making vital the thrash influences that defined earlier Converge efforts (Caring and Killing, Petitioning the Empty Sky) and retaining the hardcore hostilities and frantic pace so vital to their foundation. Of course, the experimental anguish and pleading for salvation are no mere sharpening of past knives but yet another leap forward in an existence full of them.
Fitting like a puzzle piece in their all but flawless catalog, Axe To Fall is an undeniable progression in the band’s canon of cacophonous sound, dexterous skill and ingenious art, as thirteen of the most viciously powerful songs Converge has ever written reign down on listeners in a surge of sonic fury. True to their meticulous DIY style, guitarist Kurt Ballou helmed production duties once again from his infamous GodCity studios in Salem, MA.
Without warning, Converge lets their metal flag fly on Axe To Fall when drummer Ben Koller’s galloping beats meet Ballou’s lightning fast riffs as bassist Nate Newton provides a pummeling backbone and vocalist Jacob Bannon takes command with menacing growls on the album’s shattering opener “Dark Horse.” Perhaps Converge’s heaviest music they’ve ever recorded, the foursome invited a slew friends to contribute to the album, and the result was a wall of metal-infused hardcore on a level that’s never been heard before.
Songs like the hardcore pit-swirling “Effigy” (feat. Steve Brodsky/Lead guitar, Adam McGrath/Guitar, J.R. Connors/Drums), the furiously relentless neck-breaker “Wishing Well” (feat. Ulf Cederlund/Lead guitar/backing vocals) and the blazing thrash-track “Cutter” (feat. John Pettibone/backing vocals) keep the album moving with power and energy. As defiant as ever, Bannon roars through songs about despair and self-indulgent choices warning that “we'll show the demons for what they are.” As the album comes to a close it takes a doom-ridden turn as Neurosis’ Steve Von Till shares vocal duties with Bannon on the brooding track “Cruel Bloom” and Genghis Tron’s Mookie Singerman providing lead vocals on the beautifully dark post-metal album closer “Wretched World.”
After 19 years as a band, Converge still maintain the steadfast individuality and uncompromising artistic vision they had when they formed. The band has been credited with giving rise to a genre of music and influencing bands worldwide, yet by never wavering have created a sound that is entirely their own.
With the release of Axe To Fall, Converge are readying an arsenal of music from their storied catalog to unleash on audiences across the US when they tour with Mastodon, Dethklok and High On Fire in October.
Prepare yourself for the year’s most vicious album, Axe To Fall, in stores now! Buy it at iTunes, Amazon or the Official Epitaph Store!
Axe To Fall Tracklisting:
1. Dark Horse
2. Reap What You Sow
3. Axe To Fall
4. Effigy
5. Worms Will Feed
6. Wishing Well
7. Damages
8. Losing Battle
9. Dead Beat
10. Cutter
11. Slave Driver
12. Cruel Bloom
13. Wretched World
Converge Tour Dates:
11/05: Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/06: Myrtle Beach, SC @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/07: Orlando, FL @ Hard Rock Live w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/08: Pompano Beach, FL @ Pompano Beach Amphit w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/11: Dallas, TX @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/12: Houston, TX @ Verizon Wireless Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/13: Austin, TX @ Austin City Music Hall w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/14: Tulsa, OK @ Brady Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/16: Las Cruces, NM @ Pan American Center w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/17: Mesa, AZ @ Mesa Ampitheater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/18: Las Vegas, NV @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/19: Los Angeles, CA @ Palladium w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
05/28: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest w/ Entombed, Obituary, 16, and more
05/29: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest w/ Entombed, Obituary, 16, and more
05/30: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest w/ Entombed, Obituary, 16, and more
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