This is the 12th studio LP from Salem, Massachusetts metalcore band Converge consisting of drummer Ben Koller, bassist Nate Newton, guitarist Kurt Ballou and finally frontman & Deathwish Inc. co-founder Jacob Bannon. Although their 1994 full-length debut Halo in a Haystack was moderately received, nearly everything they’ve done since has cemented them as quite possibly the greatest metallic hardcore band of all-time. Petitioning the Empty Sky, When Forever Comes Crashing, my personal favorite Jane Doe, their Epitaph Records debut You Fail Me, No Heroes, Axe to Fall, All We Love We Leave Behind when I was a sophomore in high school, The Dusk in Us & Love Is Not Enough have all been widely praised for the own individual reasons & are back with Hum of Heart.
“Slip the Noose” begins with a metalcore intro reminiscent of the Jane Doe era directly tackling generational trauma whereas “Doom in Bloom”combines post-hardcore & sludge metal exploring how Jacob’s middle-aged introspection doesn’t always bring a brighter light. “It Only Gets Worse” spends a couple minutes angrily realizing the world’s indifference towards him & after the intimidating “Detonator” encourages one not to be blown apart by their mistakes, “I Won’t Let You Go” ends the 1st leg with the official Cyberpunk 2077theme.
Kicking off the 2nd half, “It’s Not Up to Us” made for another aggressive moment explaining there’s no end in sight without a will to fight while the doomy “Dream Debris” starts with a simple bass note that builds to a booming crescendo detailing the deception of being led to believe we could be anything we wanted to be. The post-hardcore, metalcore, neocrust & post-metal title track after the “It Used to Matter” composition emotionally examines the price of the lives we pursue & the outro “Nothing’s Over” ends on a sludgier note saying we must rage for the dying light.
Love Is Not Enough made for a great comeback for the greatest metalcore band & following a sense of urgency, Converge have outdone themselves by delivering a raw counterpart retaining the unpredictable potency of their last album. Their signature sound’s still being fused with elements of mathcore & sludge metal similarly to it’s predecessor aside from the hardcore punk undertones being swapped out for post-hardcore for another bleak yet empathetic assessment of the human condition & it’s ongoing deterioration.
Score: 4.5/5
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