CONVERGE - Axe To Fall

Back in 2006, when art-metal combo Isis had just released their fourth full-length, In The Absence Of Truth, Magnet columnist Andrew Earles chastised vocalist Aaron Turner, asking: "And what’s up with men in their 30s bellowing like 18-year-old hardcore kids? Screaming is one thing; barking like you’re in a ’90s power-violence band is everything this side of silly." The four men in Boston hardcore/metal band Converge are most certainly over 30—nearly 20 years into their career—and vocalist Jacob Bannon is a screamer, no doubt. And lets face it, for a lot of listeners, that's still a turn-off—I know, because I used to be one of them. So, why scream? Is it merely a trapping of a hardcore youth that some bands can't shake? Or can a group of guys in their mid-30s find a legit artistic reason to put their throat through the meat-grinder for another round?

Whether or not it's because 30 is the new 20, Axe To Fall answers this query with an unwaveringly confident "Yes." Like much of Converge's output, this record is quick out of the gate and Bannon wastes no time in unleashing his howl. Even compared to other screamers, Bannon possesses an unholy voice, but what really makes him successful is an uncanny sense of rhythmic placement and timing. That's no small asset here, because the other 3/4 of Converge are tighter than a marine's bootlaces, whilst as unpredictable as chaos itself. Openers "Dark Horse" and "Reap What You Sow" shred at times like vintage Kill 'Em All thrash, while "Damages" hulks and lumbers like an unchained sauropod. In short, this band is truly a force. And ultimately, what excuses the indulgences of torn vocal cords and journal-worthy angst is the fact that Converge are not tethered unwillingly to either. After unleashing a sustained half-hour of the adrenaline rush that hoodie-wearing teens so desperately crave, Axe To Fall closes with a pair of tracks that have more in common with Tom Waits and Fugazi respectively than any hardcore act out there. It would be a bold move if it wasn't one that they've already pulled off in various forms many times before—age and experience have given Converge the guts to be both exactly what their fans love and what they don't yet know that they need.