Converge : " the Hum of Hurt"

 

These guys have been working overtime as it's their second album of the year. From what I heard about this album going in, the buzz seemed to be it was going to be their noise rock albun, but I am not hearing that on the opening track, which might find the feral speed dialed down a bit but is pretty metallic otherwise, just more deliberate and not as chaotic.  Jacob's vocals are not as snarled on "Doom in Bloom". They pretty much pick up where they left off on the "Love is Not Enough" album with "It Only Gets Worse." Production-wise, it sounds like it was recorded in the same sessions. 

"Detonator" carries a steadier groove as the riffs flow with a more organic intention. Jacob is exclaiming the vocals in a pained spoken tone that he tenses up into his trademark bark here. There is a post-hardcore feel to some of the space and atmosphere here, rather than the type of barrage they normally hit you with."I Won't You Go" has a more Black Flag era hardcore sound to it, but there are more rabid, rapid-fire injections of blasts forced into the transitions. There is more tension built into these songs thanks to the bass being more of the backbone, but on a song like "It's Not Up to Us," this is continued to be tempered by wrathful sonic indulgence. I can appreciate the increased levels of dynamics here, and Jacob is using more vocal colors. 

At six minutes, "Dream Debris' is the longest song, but it's also the darkest and most brooding, with the rumbling bass line coming further to the forefront yet. When the vocals come in, they are low and spoken at almsot a whisper. It builds up into a sludgey roar. The two-and-a-half-minute instrumental."It Used to Matter showcases creepy guitar tones, but it seems like an intro to the more caustic title track. The opening riff is the most metal part of this album so far, and adheres closer to what you expect from the band. The last song is the album's second longest. It has a crushing, heavy riff that powers it and gives you the kind of punch you want these guys to pack as it ebbs back into weirdness. I will give this album a 10 as it might even be better than the year's previous release from them. 

Welcome to Death is June 2026

 

Here we are bringing things to a boil as the heat of another June shifts the focus to death metal. The genre has made great gains in popularity, with a band like Amon Amarth playing arenas, and enough wars popping off around the globe to set the stage for it.' continues to leap in popularity with each passing year, with all the wars simmering around the world setting the stage for it. I 

As a fan of the genre since the 80s, the things I ask of my death metal is not unlike what I want from most music... first and foremost, darkness and moodiness to it. This means death metal that is just straightforward and heavy on the part of the snare is more than likely going to bore me. Looking for bands doing their own thing, who are not solely tributes to Morbid Angel, Incantation, or Entombed. The 90s were an important time for death metal, so leaning into that sound is ok, as long as you are doing your own thing with it. 

Going to cover death metal adjacent genres like death-core, grind-core, metalcore, and even thrash, if they are more metal than whatever core they wish to imply. One thing I am big on after hearing too many death metal musicians complain about the death toll of COVID or lamenting the death toll in Palestine, is, are these guys legit? Are they having doubts about worshipping death? Death is a sure outcome; there is no running from it. Everyone is going to die; this should be embraced and celebrated. If the band is not ready to embrace that kind of darkness, I do not want to hear them. With that said, let us enter the month of death metal for Death is June.