Converge are back with this two-song 7-inch ep containing the tracks “I Can Tell You About Pain” and “Eve”. This marks the newest material from these Hardcore legends since 2012’s excellent All We Love We Leave Behind.

“I Can Tell You About Pain” shuffles backwards just a bit to an older sound circa Jane Doe, but then it shifts into the more aggressive styles of their mid Epitaph Records era showcasing the band hasn’t stopped in their creativity. They are still trying out new ideas while expanding on their trademark sound, which is as fierce as ever on this short track. Easy to listen to and perfect for a quick dousing of harsh tunage for your ears.

On the other side, we have the epic seven minute and a half track “Eve”. This is where things get interesting, and if this song is anything to go by for perhaps a future full length, then I am very excited. Opening with a sorta Post-Rock feel, the band quietly ushers in atmospheric workings of ambience then soft vocals until the eruption from the human bull dog that is Jacob Bannon. This is totally reminiscent of their classic title track “Jane Doe” and is spliced well with the grainy, darkened production of guitarist Kurt Ballou and his now cult production studio GodCity. I cannot say enough for Kurt’s production workings on the many artists he has had the privilege to help. He is becoming the next Steve Albini.

With the internet being an instant connection for people and things, some quick reviews have already claimed that this one song sounds very much like Neurosis. I can accept that and it is a known fact that those sludgy maniacs inspired Converge. What Converge borrow from a legendary band like Neurosis is not so much the idea of copying and pasting the same type of stylings, but instead it is a creative approach to the overall tone and atmospherics. “Inspired by” is a double-edged sword, and bands certainly can die by that sword because they cannot seem to break away from those early inspirations. If they happen to make radical changes in sound, often at times, it ends up backfiring on the artists and the result is the gnashing of teeth from the fans themselves. Then sometimes the death knell.

Converge are a band that, when something new drops, it is always an exciting time. They certainly have not changed from their classic roots, and these two tracks prove that notion, but as well, they also prove that the band is ever expanding, seeking more in their realm of creative output.

Never ones to sit back, Converge hit a home run here and prove to all the many bands that followed that it’s not about how heavy you sound, or how much you bend the characteristics of whatever “core” you belong to, no, it is about how you change yourself and how it can encapsulate your own soul which can be reflected on the outside through your own identity and personality

Converge cult forever.