(Yeah I saw Dune recently, it was dope, leave me alone.) Variety is the spice of life, or whatever Paul Atreides said. Along with the musical pedigree and dexterity on offer, this also helps to make no two songs here feel overtly similar, and that’s a great balance to strike on what can be a protracted record. Bannon shares the vocal (and lyricism) duties here among his two cohorts, only contributing his iconic screams or raspy singing when absolutely necessary for each given song. It just wouldn’t be called for.Ĭonverge give their pals equal space on Bloodmoon: I. The way I see it, too much more of the typical fast and furious Converge on a record such as this would’ve been the equivalent of hurriedly jingling keys at random intervals. This allows for songs like the karmic dirge of ‘ Daimon’ to breathe before being earth-shattering when it transitions into its final post-metal waves this makes shorter, more vicious songs like ‘ Tongues Playing Dead ’ properly stand out. So when the chaotic shit does kick in, it’s all the more impactful. Koller’s jittery percussion and Kurt Ballou’s angular riffage rarely appear, the pair favouring slower and tasteful yet still super heavy movements, displaying a patient restraint that works for much of the album. Like how the feral hardcore assault of early ‘ Verge appears in the opening seconds of ‘ Viscera Of Men ,’ but then takes a sudden, dramatic doom turn just as quickly as it attacked Brodsky and Wolfe creating a cacophonous harmony that howls with confidence and bloodthirstiness.įor this quartet’s side of the equation, less was more. At almost an hour long – and you definitely feel that length – it has moments of their classic, violently sporadic instrumental tendencies, but such parts are spread thin. 31 years in, still doing cool new shit, ya love to see it.īloodmoon: I is a big fucking record. Strings and pianos stalk shadows, synths push up the cool soil, and having two other very esteemed vocalists push the mood along helps make it one of their most ambitious releases. It’s the most produced Converge album, no contest. Fans of Wolfe’s phenomenal 2017 album, Hiss Spun, will feel at home, as will open minded Converge lovers who dig their longer formats, who understand that this band can’t keep re-writing Jane Doe math-savagery until they kick the bucket. More specifically, this is spooky, symphonic, stoner-adjacent post-metal-doom-core. Okay, but what’s the sound of this super group’s collaborative LP? Simultaneously it shares DNA of all parties involved yet can sound very little like either artist. (Six degrees of metalcore separation: Ben Koller drums in Mutoid Man and bassist Nate Newton plays guitar in Old Man Gloom. Then there’s the legend himself, Stephen Brodsky, former Converge bassist – hear him on 1998’s “ When Forever Comes Crashing ”– current Old Man Gloom bassist, and leading man for both Cave In and Mutoid Man. ) We have the ever-talented Chelsea Wolfe bringing her ghostly vocal presence, including her longtime collaborator and producer, Ben Chisholm, adding keys, synths and symphonic bells and whistles throughout. So who’s in this Blood Brain Trust? All four members of Converge for one, striking at a lengthier, denser post-metal sound, further exploring similar ideas heard on their last couple of records. What started out as a special live performance in 2016, reimaging Converge songs, has now become an intense recorded experience. (“Schrödinger’s Converge.”) If anything, it’s closer to Jacob Bannon’s other band, Wear Your Wounds, with influences ranging from Baroness, Pink Floyd, Neurosis, and some moments that even sound like Ghost, except good.īloodmoon: I is like someone invaded my membrane and pulled out my most dreamt about musical collaborations. But then again, in many ways, it also is very much an album by them. As it’s not really a Converge record, not the kind of mathcore or metalcore you think of when you plug their name into a search engine. Ben Chisolm // producer/songwriter/arrangementĪs much as I love the mystical journey of Bloodmoon: I, having the Converge label stamped upon it does feel kinda deceptive.
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