Review Summary: A return to the scene for Ampere, business as usual for Raein, but not too much else.
Before they debuted the “Parallels” single, 2011 was the last time we heard from Amherst’s Ampere, when they released “Like Shadows”. Hungry screamo fans waited patiently the past few years to hear even a breath of life from the Massachusetts hardcore band, whom only provide around ten minutes of material with each release. Known for their short songs, spastic rhythm shifts and concise approach to screamo, it’s no surprise that Ampere broke the almost half-decade silence with a whopping three minutes of new music on this split with Italy’s most popular skramz act, Raein. But for Ampere fans, and generally for punk fans, minute-long songs can often pack the most powerful punches.
Unfortunately, both Ampere and Raein don’t punch quite hard enough to make the awe-inspiring seven minute punk split that fans have waited for. What we do get however are a few admirable moments from each band, including one of Raein’s most memorable songs in years and at the very least a glimmer of hope that Ampere will write more music in the near future. Ampere has the ability to string short bursts of violent energy together into one consistent experience throughout multiple songs, and that does show here, making this release far more cohesive than you’d expect a noisy punk split to be.
Raein opens up with “Comete”, which, despite a boisterous, reverb stricken, introductory guitar lick, merely trots along for two minutes without justifying its placement as the opener. It’s like much of Raein’s material; songs that stylistically intrigue, but lack the substance that other similar bands generate. “Comete” is a disappointing collection of recycled screamo riffs played at a mild, uninteresting tempo. Thankfully, Raein completely flip the momentum in their favor on their next and last song on the split.
What is so baffling about Raein are the amount of uninspired, flat songs across some of their work that sit right beside hardcore gems like fan favorite “Tigersuit”, “On Air” and their last song on this split, “Spaccare il Mondo” (translated to ‘Split the World’). While the previous song comes and goes without anything to remember it by, “Spaccare” dazzles the listener just seconds after the intro with a guitar lick so good that, upon first listen, seemingly split my world, as cheesy as it sounds. The leading melody is stunning, and is played more gently than nurses that handle your grandmother at the retirement home. Raein fans rejoice! This infectious, post-hardcore leaning track is one of the best they have written in years. This song has everything the first one didn’t; lush guitar melodies, groovy riffs, anthemic gang vocals and a dynamic rhythm section that help the bouncy guitar leads to breathe, carrying momentum carefully into Ampere’s side.
“Parallels” opens with an ugly, unsettling amp crackle just seconds after “Spaccare” fades. What we then get is the first 90 seconds of Ampere in almost five years, and boy, is it worth it. “Parallels” isn’t unlike any other Ampere song, smacking the listener repeatedly with convulsive drum fills, poignant howls from vocalist Steven Pierce, and barrages of skramz riffs that claw at your eardrums until the song reaches its climax. A thunderous, frantic conclusion transitions “Parallels” effortlessly into a contrary “Holding Pattern”. This track is particularly inoffensive, a run of the mill Ampere song but without the usual use of vibrant rhythm changes and sonically crushing riffs. It’s an underwhelming punk short that, like Raein’s first track, comes and goes without making any profound statements. The split then concludes abruptly with “On Form & Function” which ends up being an odd way to finish the record; it starts with an onslaught of punk progressions and choppy drum chugging but unexpectedly morphs into a slow, anti-climactic fade-out that would leave one thinking: “Shouldn’t there be another song after this?”
To offer just three short songs on a split, with the final essentially being a fade-outro, Ampere may just be teasing us. That fade-out could be the beginning to their next album-or it could just be their way of giving us what they think is a proper ending, when really, it just reminds us how lacking in content this split often feels. Raein’s side leaves the listener thinking the same things, some great executions, some boring ideas, but no real time to absorb the band’s intent, because before you do, “On Form & Function” is already fading out, and half the songs you just heard simply don’t cut it. The greatest strength here is perhaps the flow of the record, which again, for a short punk split, is made shockingly cohesive mostly through Ampere’s connective songwriting.
Ampere’s “All Our Tomorrows” album is only ten minutes, yet carries enough weight to feel like a spellbinding punk experience regardless of the length. On this split, they give us a small dose of their glory days with “Parallels” but disappoint with the final two minutes, split between a stoic “Holding Pattern” and a real tease with “On Form & Function”, an outro that would perhaps fit better if something more substantial preceded it. The three Ampere songs demonstrate the band’s ability to create a sonic, fluid experience from song to song, but the songs themselves don’t quite dazzle. Raein’s side is just as frustratingly hit-or-miss, with an intro track that drags dry, ineffective melodies through the mud but into a brilliant, groovy punk tune that is undoubtedly one of the best the band has written in years. It's not so much that this split is mediocre, because it's not, but it's inconsistent, and both bands are capable of greater things.
