You’d think after nearly two decades of existence, CONVERGE might soften its approach. But you’d be wrong – on its latest album Axe to Fall, the pioneering metal/hardcore quartet roars out of the gate with guns blazing as violently as ever. The Salem band wasn’t the first to combine hardcore punk velocity with sizzling heavy metal riffs, but its particular blend solidified into a form much copied by other, inferior acts, and it’s easy to hear why. Despite the music’s almost unrelenting aggression, the way the guitar riffs dance around the pulverizing rhythm section is best described as nimble – no matter how dense the arrangements on “Wishing Well,” “Reap What You Sow” or “Dead Beat,” they never suffocate. JACOB BANNON‘s larynx-smashing vocals verge on hysteria, maintaining the intensity; combined with his cohorts’ slash-and-burn, he keeps the music on a teeth-gritting edge at all times. Well, nearly all – “Cruel Bloom” incorporates piano, acoustic guitar, harmonies, a breathcatching tempo and a sinister mutter for a gothic metal anthem, while “Wretched World” adds synths and a world-weary croon for atmospheric art rock. Both tunes are welcome respites from the rest of the record’s relentless charge, but add to its overall power. Axe to Fall encapsulates the creative arc of a long career, and proves that intelligence and imagination rule, no matter how thuggish the initial impulse.
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