The music scene in 2020 fell flat on its arse on a global scale after everyone was forced to stay inside in order to just stay alive. Tours and festivals got cancelled and many album releases got postponed. In the metalcore scene, however, not so much. Connecticut quintet Currents can’t be stopped so easily. After releasing a solid album and EP in 2017 and 2018 respectively, the well still hasn’t dried up. Joining them on this current adventure is producer Adam “Nolly” Getgood of Periphery fame, who has been behind the mixing desk for many high-tier bands, such as Northlane and Animals As Leaders. With their new record The Way It Ends, the collective once again tests the waters. Taking a shot at various different angles of the heavy music scene, Currents kicks off the record with ‘It Was Never There’, a melodic hardcore intro, reminiscent of bands like Casey. Once ‘A Flag To Wave’ jumps in, we hear more of the Currents that we know and love. Aggressively pounding drums combined with some nasty groovy metalcore riffs. With a modern day human’s low attention span, it can get hard for songs to catch on, but the breakdown tagged at the end of this song makes this track one for the history books. An impressive feat on this record is the development of frontman Brian Wille’s vocals. Where many bands within this realm of music split vocal duties over two or more members, Brian Wille covers all ground with his wide range. Sinister riffs develop around him as he showcases his capabilities on songs like ‘Monster’. In terms of melodic aggression, several parts of this album would fit perfectly on a Polaris record.
While this 38-minute journey starts off very strong, with heavy breakdowns, blastbeats, chugs and big choruses all thrown together and blended perfectly – the latter half of the record leaves some wishes unfulfilled. As the album progresses, the music slowly starts repeating itself and the band keeps falling either into repetition or fruitless experimentation. The way The Way It Ends ends, with closing track ‘Better Days’, feels a bit lackluster. Nevertheless, this album will be the stepping stone the band needs on their road to perfection. Score: 8/10 The Way It Ends is out now via Sharptone Records. Purchase the record here.