Currents are a Christian hardcore band based in Houston (Texas, US) and was formed late 2011. They began writing material for the January 2012 release of a free EP entitled ‘The King’. After this release Currents worked on playing shows in and out of Houston and ended up signing to Red Cord Records. After a week of secluded writing and two weeks in the Red Cord studio Currents their debut full-length ‘Spirit And Truth’ was ready to be released.
There can be no doubt as to what Currents stands for. “I know I’m nothing without You. Let me be a part of Your kingdom.” (‘Meaningless’), “We are looking forward to the great city of God.” (‘Looking Forward’) and “I answer to no one but the King.” (‘Deliverer’) are as clear as they can be. At times the band teeters on the edge of sounding too preachy and every now and then a moral persuasion is rather imposed (‘Looking Forward’). At other times there is more room for interpretation.
The lyrics are supported by a good dose of metallic hardcore. Brutal riffs, angry screaming vocals, breakdowns, distorted guitars, gang vocals… you will get it all. That should be enough to come up with real energizing music, but somehow the band does not deliver on that point. Too often the band walks the same musical path: the further you come on the album, the more the album musically starts to sound too similar. Using some different influences, a change of dynamic and definitely adding intensity would have enriched the music a lot: what you get now is something you already have heard from many other bands, just in a somewhat watered-down version. Yes, it is heartfelt but that is not enough to cover the one-sidedness of the album. Only at times when the band allows more melody into their songs, it is getting a little more interesting. It is too bad those moments are too rare on ‘Spirit And Truth’. At moments Currents reminds me of For Today, for the usage of spoken parts (‘Reviled’, ‘Immovable’). Other bands that come to mind are Bury Your Dead, Death Before Dishonor, Hatebreed and Throwdown; ‘Spirit And Truth’ is just not on the same level of aggressiveness and intensity. However, the band exist for only one year, so maybe at this point in their career I can not blame them for that.
In general, Spirit And Truth’ holds its’ rare, enjoyable moments. This early in their career we might not blame the band for that, but if they want to stand out in the future they definitely need to step it up when it comes to song writing and intensity in their music.
Rating: 5.5 / 10
Written by Patrick
Track list:
1. Declaration (3:00)
2. Identity (3:41)
3. Heart (2:40)
4. Spirit (1:44)
5. Reviled (1:51)
6. Looking Forward (3:06)
7. Meaningless (3:12)
8. Truth (1:26)
9. Deliverer (3:10)
10. Stick Together (3:16)
11. Immovable (3:55)
Band members:
Clayton Douds – Vocals
Spencer Rose – Guitar
Will Chapman – Guitar
Blake Price – Drums
Sam Cumbie – Bass
Record Label: Red Cord Records, Nov. 2012
Buy the album here:
Holland & Worldwide: First Paradox Metalrecords