28 March 2011
Rise Against wouldn’t be Rise Against without a fistful of political and religious opinions and ravings; their sixth offering, Endgame is no different, except this time around, lead singer Tim McIlrath has decided not to scream so much about it. Although he’s certainly not giving up on his struggle to grasp his surroundings; there is a strong sense of helplessness throughout the record.
The Chicago punk quartet have pieced Endgame together rather intelligently, injecting dogmatic tracks in between bluesy, radio-ready rock songs. In Survivor Guilt, McIlrath sings from a dead soldier's point of view and begs America to stop destroying itself with greed;Gentleman’s Coup is another political vociferate where high-energy drums and guitars tease us in to the story of a nuclear radiation hazard with slow thuds, which get faster and faster before exploding in sonic bursts before each chorus.
Breaking up these lyric heavy tracks are Broken Mirrors, where McIlrath’s raspy scream matches perfectly with a twisted ‘80s riff, Wait For Me with an immaculate fusion of percussion and bass, and Help Is On The Way, where the catchy backing vocals are sure to stick to your brain for days after first listen.
Although McIlrath has toned his screams down a notch or two since the days of The Unraveling, they do make a welcome comeback inDisparity By Design and Midnight Hands; even if only for cursory moments.
The most harrowing track on the record, Make It Stop (September’s Children), is also the most adventurous. Rise Against question religion’s ethics and definition of 'equality' in a call to end bullying against homosexuals. Hopefully lyrics like “What God would damn a heart/ And what God drove us apart/ What God could?” will open a few eyes. The track finishes with a voice reading the names and ages of teenagers who committed suicide as a result of homophobia in September last year.
The album closer and title track has as much heart as Rise Against's politically charged songs but instead paints anarchy in a positive light. “Let’s shed this unclean skin/ And start to feel again/ Because the shoulders on which to cry on are gone.” McIlrath is pleading for a rebirth, unfortunately it takes more than poignant lyrics and punk-rock to curb ignorance.
Endgame is out now through Interscope Records
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