Rise And Fall Faith

Let’s give some credit where credit is due. Along with the obvious influence of Converge, Belgium’s Rise and Fall may be the Deathwish band most responsible for fine-tuning and furthering the label’s trademark hardcore sound. Sure, there are more arguable examples earlier in the pipe that were major forces in honing the style (see: Cursed, Modern Life Is War, and the brief, almost undetected existence of The Power & The Glory), but none of them hung on for an extended label run. It would also be hard to deny that Kurt Ballou’s omnipresent recording duties contributed to a common vector. Yet it is the trio of Rise and Fall records since 2006 -- Into Oblivion, Our Circle Is Vicious, and now Faith -- that best explains the crisp, modern recipe that borrows equally from Integrity’s metallic hardcore, Tragedy’s d-beat fury, and Entombed’s latter-day grooves. If Into Oblivion was the raw, slightly coarser slab of hardcore and Our Circle Is Vicious the sparse, moodier effort, Faith is definitely the tightest, most precision oriented collection of tracks. The lead-off group comprised of "A Hammer and Nails," "Deceiver," and "The Gallows Await," each clocking in at around two minutes or less, leaves little room to come to any other conclusion. Fast riffing, fierce screams, and stellar interplay between guitar hooks and meaty bass lines abound. "The Gallows Await" is the stand-out, owing its success to a catchy, energetic punk back-bone and some slick drumming (the half-blasting, half pummeling showcase around the 30 second mark is both clever and pleasing to the tuned ear). Backing out to a higher level, a mirrored arc of song progressions gives the album a carefully designed feel. On LP format, each side leads off with a collection of fuming sprints, only to close with something more emotive in the final slot. "Things Are Different Now," anchored by rumbling bass lines that aren’t a far cry from what’s heard in Engineer’s gloomier material, is Faith’s best melodic dirge and a fitting mid-point conclusion to the record’s initial onslaught. "Faith / Fate" has even more time to breathe in its near-seven minute journey, closing out the similarly structured second half of the record. Whether arrived at organically or through careful masterminding, the sense of direction and purpose in this record is stronger than anything these guys have put together before. Combine that with the band nailing their bread-and-butter two-minute calculated outbursts and we’ve got a worthy release on our hands. Bottom line: As with Into Oblivion in 2006 and Our Circle Is Vicious in 2009, Faith will be at the top of this year’s pack of hardcore offerings. While Rise and Fall might not be the first band that most people call to memory when defining the Deathwish sound, the timing of when the label started picking up steam in the mid-00s lines up perfectly with when the output of this Belgian foursome began to do the same. Coincidence? I’d argue not.