Rapture is back with their sophomore effort, Persevere, which packs 13 minutes of Los Angeles style hardcore fury into the six songs on the ep.

Rapture have only been around since 2014 and Persevere (ep) is their second ep, following the release of Trials in 2015, which On the Attack records released and in conjunction with the band made it a free release.  Coincidentally, it is still available that way on the band’s and label’s Bandcamp sites.  Coming from Los Angeles and playing hardcore, one can’t help but think of bands like Terror, who not surprisingly is listed as an artists they like.  Fitting with their Christian outlook, the band also lists some well-known Christian hardcore bands as well including Sleeping Giant, Dynasty, and xDeathstarx, and lyrically the band covers the ongoing struggle against sin and challenge to walk the Christian path, all the while through the hardcore voice that can simultaneously inspire and lift spirits as well as serve as a light in the darkness.

I’m not going to lie, I seriously love the opening ominous slow guitar riff on “Prevail”.  The tone and pacing of it totally reminds me of the old-school slow intros to hardcore songs where you just wait for everything to explode into chaos and after a slow first verse, Tony Rangel picks things up with the drums to a near gallop and the song takes off.  Richard Haro’s vocals are appropriately screamed with authority and a bit of a “chip on the shoulder” attitude that one would expect.  For me, I could have lived without the breakdown at the end of the song, but that is part of things nowdays, so just keep that in mind.

“Dead” and “Convictions” follow a similar pattern in terms of song structure, while songs like “Battleground” waste no time in getting started at a high rate of speed and “144” even has a bit of melody to its verse sections before slowing down for the chorus and gang vocals.  “Relinquish” closes out the album and to be honest seems like an extended breakdown and shout along, of which I’m not a great fan.  While one can easily hear their influences in these songs, on Persevere, one can also hear the band maturing in terms of songwriting and overall sound  compared to Trials but not losing any of the intensity, which bodes well for their future.

Rating: 7/10

Written by John Jackson

Tracklist:
1. Prevail 02:56
2. Dead 02:12
3. Battleground 02:05
4. 144 02:10
5. Convictions 02:58
6. Relinquish 01:32

Band Members
Richard Haro – Vocals
Tony Rangel – Drums
Garrett Gutierrez – Guitar
Isaac Guerra – Bass

Record Label: On the Attack Records, Aug. 2016

Albums:
“Trials” 2015 (review)

Weblinks: Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Bandcamp