Somewhere between releasing 2004's You Fail Me and No Heroes in 2006, I started seeing Kurt Ballou getting name-checked more as a producer at his Salem-based GodCity studios than as the guitarist of one of Massachusetts's mightiest exports, Converge. If you take a quick look at what he's recorded between even just 2008 and now, it makes sense: The shortlist includes Disfear's Live The Storm, Genghis Tron's Board Up the House, Torche's Meanderthal, Misery Index's Traitors, Buried Inside's Spoils Of Failure, Doomriders' Darkness Come Alive, Magrudergrind's self-titled breakthrough, and yes ... Converge's forthcoming seventh full-length Axe To Fall. Which is why it's time to forget his production resume for a bit and focus on his riffs ... and piano, glockenspiel, saxophone, etc. Yes, Axe To Fall sounds great, but even if they'd recorded the 13-track collection in a shoebox, you get the feeling these songs would melt your face. The band still sounds like Converge, but like a Converge that's been around for 19 years and continues adding distinctively new details to their attack. For instance, take a listen opener "Dark Horse." It has everything you could want from a Converge song -- knotty guitars, deep hardcore breakdowns, gnarled howls, and a triumphant blast of a finish -- along with an updated dark-progressive feel you'll find threaded throughout.Continue reading New Converge - "Dark Horse"...