Converge
"Axe To Fall" | Deathwish Inc./Epitaph | LP/CD
Written by: Christer Davidsson | Posted: December 1st, 2009

Better late than never :) I have finally learned to appreciate the twisted doomsday machine that is Converge. People have been on me for quite some time, telling me how brilliant these guys are, but I never really took the time to give them a fair chance. However, after hearing about 10 seconds of the new album, or more specifically, the intro of "Dark Horse" I now understand what the fuzz has been all about. "Axe To Fall" is one of the most intense records I've heard and at times this record is pretty damn scary. The new Converge LP could very well be the soundtrack of the apocalypse.

I still haven't gotten myself very aquainted with the band's earlier stuff but I feel like I need to listen to this new one at least a hundred more times to fully get it and then look up their back-catalouge. You see, I'm sure there's a ton of stuff I haven't heard on this album yet, even though it's been spinning pretty much non-stop since I got it. There's just so much happening :)
Before playing this album for the first time I had a picture in my head that Converge was all about strange beats, extremely technical riffs and songs that would just make my head spin (I usually give bands like that 5 minutes of my time and then I've had more than enough). Partly, I was right. Converge are twisted and technical, sometimes crazy technical, but they manage to do it all with such finesse that it all draws you in and grabs a firm hold of you, from start to finish.

I also love how this record goes in so many different direction without losing it's core. From the brutal (almost scary..) chorus of "Dark Horse" to the thrashy riffs of "Reap What You Sow", from the extreme title track to the bluesy intro of "Worms Will Feed, Rats Will Feast", from the d-beat gem "Wishing Well" to the brilliant and extremely cool "Cruel Bloom" with Neurosis' Steve Von Till by the microphone, this record has it all (including stunning artwork by J Bannon). This stuff is epic.

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