Counterparts The Current Will Carry Us |
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 | Tracklist:
1. The Disconnect
2. I Am No One
3. The Constant
4. MMVII
5. Optimist
6. Jumping Ship
7. Pedestal
8. Thank God
9. Uncertainty
10. Sinking
11. Reflection
| Ranking: #77 for 2011 | |
| | other reviews | Sam Eastman(Mixtape) (5)
The Current Will Carry Us is a brilliant album that portrays an underlying message of positivity, an... | Wayne H. (4.5)
Let Counterparts' sweet current carry you away.... | Scott Krasman (4.5)
The Current Will Carry Us represents a transitional point in the band's style that further separates... | Perry Maltese (3)
No longer the "prophets" that they once claimed to be...... |
On 82 Lists
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| Summary: In their utter refusal to progress, Counterparts head down the long and winding road to irrelevance. |
18 of 26 thought this review was well written
Oh how well trodden this path has become, the road filled with the countless footprints of many melodic hardcore bands who’ve vainly tried to make their mark on history. These are the same footprints of those who’ve become mere flashes in the pan, as well as those who fizzled out before ever being noticed. It’s become rather difficult to pay any attention to newcomers, as they simply blend into the glut of metalcore/hardcore acts that have proceeded to form a singular, stagnated sound. Although bands that have stood out before, namely Misery Signals and Architects, did a lot for the genre in regards to popularity and prestige, they did more bad than good, exacerbating the stagnation and lack of ideas.
Enter Counterparts, an Ontario act who’s received quite a lot of attention since their debut, Prophets. Fusing passion and heaviness, Counterparts has captured the hearts of many with their metalcore tinged brand of hardcore. They’re a confident group of young musicians that much is sure, but their sound is derivative to the point that they simply refuse to make a name for themselves. They’ve wrung dry every cliché, making their latest, The Current Will Carry Us nothing more than a tired, vapid excursion into something that’s been done to death, and by many bands better than them.
Perhaps it’s being too harsh to call The Current Will Carry Us expressly bad. It’s not. Even the most menial aspects of the album show at least a modicum of redemption. The young men of Counterparts are very competent musicians, with each member displaying a very nice amount of proficiency in regards to their craft. The vocals, despite being a carbon copy of every melodic hardcore band post-2005, are rather amiable, and never once sound too forced or too trite. There’s a lot of power behind them, and Brendan Murphy has great control. The rest of the band matches Murphy in skill, sowing off a nice amount of technicality, whilst also being somewhat reserved.
There isn’t a whole lot to complain about when speaking of the separate components of The Current Will Carry Us, as Counterparts is a solid group of artists. Where the album fails is in its songwriting. To put it plainly, there’s nothing here to captivate or excite. It bowls along its linear path without taking risks, without embracing creativity, and certainly without ever offering up something refreshing. Without even finishing it, The Current Will Carry Us becomes stale; a forgettable and bland outing that tries to emulate Misery Signals and Defeater to the point of absurdity. The album is composed of eleven average length songs, each containing “furious bouts of passion and melody,” when they each have the intensity of a wet blanket. Even after repeated listens it becomes difficult to discern the difference between songs like “The Disconnect” and “The Constant.” The album runs its course, nary making a wave, until it just sort of ends- a fitting end to an album which lacks any sort of visceral ingenuity.
The Current Will Carry Us is in no way a bad album, it’s just mediocre. Little flourishes of greatness sprout out here and there, mainly in the form of “Thank God” and “Sinking,” but the rest sort of fades into irrelevance. Said songs see the band starting to step out of their comfort zone, experimenting just a tad to break up the monotony. It’s sad, really, considering that Counterparts have so much more to offer. Regardless, their sophomore effort is nothing more than a withered attempt at something profound.
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| Recent reviews by this author | | | |
Album Rating: 2.5
Because I fucking love hatin'
Digging: Suis La Lune - Riala Digging: Suis La Lune - Riala | | |
This is what I feared from this album. Haven't actually listened to it yet, but I was afraid Counterparts would do this. "Prophets" has a few songs I can't tell apart, figures they'd make a whole album like that.
Digging: Deadguy - Fixation on a Coworker Digging: Deadguy - Fixation on a Coworker
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Not a bad review, but it's littered with spelling errors like "road" in the summary and i think you
meant bad instead of "band" in the first paragraph.
I know its a matter of opinion, but your statement about Misery Signals might be taken rather harshly
especially when you consider the contribution they've made to the genre, i.e. Of Malice and Magnum
Heart or Mirrors. This album really draws a lot of influence from Misery Signals first album in
tonality of the guitars to the up-beat tempos and even in the vocals too. Those are just my qualms but
it's really a good review.
Digging: Wretched - Beyond The Gate
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Is your rec'd by the reviewer missing "heard"?
Digging: Arkan - Salam Digging: Arkan - Salam
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Thanks for the heads up guys.
Yeah, I mean, Misery Signals was a pretty great band, but I'd hardly call them revolutionary.
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Not a bad review, but it's littered with spelling errors like "road" in the summary and i think you meant bad instead of "band" in the first paragraph.
I know its a matter of opinion, but you're statement
Lol'd
Can someone write a review for this that I can agree with?
Digging: Amon Tobin - Amon Tobin
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Sorry Dev. Had this at a three at first but after a few listens I couldn't in all honesty keep it that way.
| | | Album Rating: 4 | Sound Off
I don't think we listened to the same album.
Digging: Strapping Young Lad - City Digging: Strapping Young Lad - City | | | Album Rating: 2.5
silly me you're right
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My only problem with this review is that I think it lacks detail. Those small flourishes of greatness you mention -- what are they exactly? What sets them apart from the rest?
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I may check this out at some point, as I liked the debut but didn't adore it as much as many seemed to.
Digging: Old Man Gloom - NO Digging: Old Man Gloom - NO
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Also, have a pos. it's not your absolute strongest review ever, but it's still good and undeserving of ghost negs
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Yeah I may have to go back and extrapilate. It's a tad vague.
| | | Album Rating: 4 | Sound Off
review's okay. i just disagree.
Digging: Candlemass - Psalms For The Dead Digging: Candlemass - Psalms For The Dead | | | Album Rating: 5 | Sound Off
writing isn't bad, i just disagree with about 98% of it
Digging: Balance And Composure - Acoustic 7" Digging: Balance And Composure - Acoustic 7" | | |
pos'd for using the word "exacerbating"
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not a bad review
nice to see you again xeno
Digging: mewithoutYou - Ten Stories Digging: mewithoutYou - Ten Stories
| | | Album Rating: 3
MIXTAPE SMASH
Digging: Joe Bonamassa - Driving Towards The Daylight Digging: Joe Bonamassa - Driving Towards The Daylight | | | Album Rating: 5 | Sound Off
TEAR DOWN THESE WALLS
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Thanks Sowing, nice to see you around too : )
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