You Fail Me

Last updated
You Fail Me
YouFailMe2.jpg
Studio album by
Converge
ReleasedSeptember 20, 2004 (2004-09-20) [1]
RecordedMarch 2004
Studio
Genre
Length35:26
Label Epitaph
Producer
Converge chronology
Unloved and Weeded Out
(2003)		You Fail Me
(2004)		 No Heroes
(2006)

You Fail Me is the fifth studio album by American metalcore band Converge, released on September 20, 2004 by Epitaph Records. The band's first release for the label, it was produced by Alan Douches and guitarist Kurt Ballou, with the artwork created by vocalist Jacob Bannon.

Contents

You Fail Me was the band's first album to chart commercially, reaching number 171 on the Billboard 200; [5] it also reached number 12 on the Top Heatseekers chart [6] and number 16 on the Independent Albums chart. [7]

Background and recording

Converge began writing for You Fail Me after they recorded Jane Doe; they wrote on the road during sound checks of shows. [8] Much of the material was worked out in a live setting for some time before the band entered the studio. Bannon stated, "it definitely added a new level of refinement to the album material." [9] Recording for the album took place in March 2004, mainly at GodCity Studio, with additional recording at Magpie Sound Design and Witch Doctor Studio.

Musical style and themes

When asked about the concept of the album, Bannon said:

"After Jane Doe was recorded and released, I thought I was going to feel the emotional burden I was carrying lift from my shoulders. I had all the puzzle pieces there in front of me. Outlets bring closure, or at least that's what I thought. With that, I put myself out on the line looking for an emotional resolve with "Jane..." and it never came. When the album was released I didn't feel any better, nothing was changed. My depression kept collapsing on itself. At that point I stopped hoping and searching and I took a long hard look at my life and at my heart. I did a huge amount of soul searching and found so much failure within myself. That discovery was a massive realization. As I started to see clear again, I also saw the failure in friends and loved ones around me. How we fail each other, and how we fail ourselves. These are songs of failure. And ultimately, surviving self destruction and tragedy we all face in our lives. Musically our only goal was to write an album that moved us and challenged us. We feel we accomplished that." [9]

Bannon stated the lyrics are "opinionated" and that there was definitely a "rage" in the writing not apparent in previous albums. [9] Bannon later said in an interview with Epitaph,

I continued to write and continued to do a great deal of soul searching. In that I found so much failure in myself, friends, and loved ones. These are our songs of failure---how we fail each other and how we fail ourselves. It's about standing up and taking responsibility. It's about facing that demon. It's about putting the practice of living in front of the act of dying every day. It's about surviving." [10]

Release and promotion

You Fail Me was released on September 20, 2004 by Epitaph Records (September 20 in Europe and September 21 in the USA). Converge's first headlining tour in support of the album began in September 2004 with Cave In and Between the Buried and Me. [11] On this tour, Converge sold copies of Bannon's side-project Supermachiner's album Rise of the Great Machine , limited to 50 copies.

On February 14, 2005, a music video was released for the track "Eagles Become Vultures", directed by Zach Merck. [12]

You Fail Me Redux

On June 17, 2016, Converge reissued the album as You Fail Me Redux through Epitaph and Deathwish. The band was "never quite content" with the original mix, and had guitarist Kurt Ballou remix the album and Alan Douches remaster it. The reissue also features updated cover artwork with an inverted color scheme, a black-outlined hand on a white background. [13] The redux had the same track list as the vinyl version of the original album.

In an interview with Noisey, Ballou explained why he felt the album needed to be remixed:

"You Fail Me was the last time Converge did a record where I wasn't involved in the entire engineering process. The record that followed You Fail Me, which was No Heroes , was the first time that I both recorded and mixed a Converge record, with the exception of The Poacher Diaries , which was an EP or a split. Upon completing No Heroes and managing to make my bandmates happy with the work I did on that record, I thought that I'd really like to go back and remix You Fail Me. I recorded that one, but Matt Ellard, who did most of the engineering work on Jane Doe , was the one who mixed it. But it was also mixed under less than ideal circumstances. [...] Jane Doe was mixed at Fort Apache on a console that Matt was familiar with, and we had sufficient time to do those mixes. With You Fail Me, he came up and mixed in my studio, which he'd never worked in before, and it was an unfamiliar console. He's a very malleable engineer and can work anywhere, but it probably wasn't his top choice to mix at my place. We also kept having power outages during the mixes. I can't remember the exact details, but I think we booked six days of mixing with him, but he ended up having to do it in about three because he'd come in, work for half an hour, and the power would go out. It was mixed in the summer under brownout conditions, so we'd have electricity in the morning while it was still relatively cool but then as things heated up in the afternoon we'd lose power. So he spent a lot of time lying on the couch waiting for the power to come back on. I still think it turned out great, but there was something about the lack of consistency from song to song and a few other details that made me want to remix it. Sonically, I wanted to make it fit more logically between Jane Doe and No Heroes." [14]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg link
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal 9/10 [15]
LambgoatStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg link
Pitchfork 8.0/10 [16]
SputnikmusicStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg link
Stylus Magazine A link

You Fail Me received positive reviews from critics. AllMusic said that the album "manages to hit all the right emotional highs and lows" and called it "a visceral and bracing blend of metal and old-school, CBGB-worthy gutter hardcore". [17] Joe Pazner of Stylus Magazine said that "Converge has emerged an impeccably pared-down case study in calculated cruelty, resourcefulness and cunning tempered by desperation. More than any record in their expansive catalog, You Fail Me stands as testament to the brutal necessities Converge has created to ensure its survival."[ citation needed ] Adam Turner-Heffer of Sputnikmusic called the band "as important as Botch and Palehorse in their own genres, and with [You Fail Me], they are here to prove it". Sam Ubl of Pitchfork said, "Not only have Converge retained (even sharpened) their razorblade cut, they're now bolstered by a brawny low-end". [16]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Jacob Bannon; all music composed by Converge.

No.TitleLength
1."First Light"1:01
2."Last Light"3:33
3."Black Cloud"2:19
4."Drop Out"2:31
5."Hope Street"1:06
6."Heartless"2:28
7."You Fail Me"5:36
8."In Her Shadow"6:25
9."Eagles Become Vultures"2:10
10."Death King"2:07
11."In Her Blood"4:06
12."Hanging Moon"2:04
Total length:35:26
Vinyl edition and Redux
No.TitleLength
1."First Light"1:01
2."Last Light"3:33
3."Black Cloud"2:19
4."Drop Out"2:31
5."Hope Street"1:06
6."Heartless"2:28
7."You Fail Me"5:36
8."In Her Shadow"6:25
9."Eagles Become Vultures"2:10
10."Wolves at My Door"2:32
11."Death King"2:07
12."In Her Blood"4:06
13."Hanging Moon"2:04
Total length:37:58

Personnel

Adapted from CD liner notes. [18]

Chart performance

Chart (2004)Peak
position
Japanese Album Chart [19] 246
UK Album Chart [20] 190
US Billboard 200 [5] 171
US Billboard Heatseekers Albums [6] 12
US Billboard Independent Albums [7] 16

Redux

Chart (2016)Peak

position

US Billboard Vinyl Albums [21] 11

Related Research Articles

Mathcore is a subgenre of hardcore punk and metalcore influenced by post-hardcore, extreme metal and math rock that developed during the 1990s. Bands in the genre emphasize complex and fluctuant rhythms through the use of irregular time signatures, polymeters, syncopations and tempo changes. Early mathcore lyrics were addressed from a realistic worldview and with a pessimistic, defiant, resentful or sarcastic point of view.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Converge (band)</span> American metalcore band

Converge is an American metalcore band formed by vocalist and artist Jacob Bannon and guitarist and producer Kurt Ballou in Salem, Massachusetts in 1990. While recording their landmark fourth album Jane Doe in 2001, the group became a four-piece with the departure of guitarist Aaron Dalbec and the addition of bassist Nate Newton and drummer Ben Koller. This lineup has remained intact since. The members have also been involved in various side-projects and collaborations, including the bands Supermachiner (Bannon), Old Man Gloom (Newton), and Mutoid Man (Koller). With their extremely aggressive and boundary-pushing sound, rooted in hardcore and heavy metal, they are pioneers of metalcore and its subgenre mathcore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Ballou</span> American musician and record producer

Kurt Ballou is an American musician and record producer based in Massachusetts, best known as the guitarist for metalcore band Converge and for his prolific recording and production work at his own GodCity Studio.

Ben Koller is an American drummer who has played with Converge, Mutoid Man, Killer Be Killed and All Pigs Must Die. He started playing a full drum kit at age 14.

<i>Petitioning the Empty Sky</i> 1996 studio album / compilation album by Converge

Petitioning the Empty Sky is the second studio album by American metalcore band Converge. However, contrary to many sources, the band considers this a compilation album, being a collection of songs recorded at different times. While tracklists differ between releases, this album features studio recorded tracks along with live recordings of three songs. Petitioning the Empty Sky was released and distributed through several different labels beginning in the mid 90s.

<i>When Forever Comes Crashing</i> 1998 studio album by Converge

When Forever Comes Crashing is the third studio album by American metalcore band Converge, on April 14, 1998, through Equal Vision Records.

<i>Jane Doe</i> (album) 2001 studio album by Converge

Jane Doe is the fourth studio album by American metalcore band Converge, released on September 4, 2001 by Equal Vision Records. The album was produced by Matthew Ellard alongside guitarist Kurt Ballou, and the artwork was designed by lead vocalist Jacob Bannon. It was the band's first album to feature bassist Nate Newton and drummer Ben Koller, and the last to feature guitarist Aaron Dalbec; Converge's line-up has remained stable since.

<i>No Heroes</i> 2006 studio album by Converge

No Heroes is the sixth studio album by American metalcore band Converge, released on October 24, 2006 by Epitaph Records. The album was produced by guitarist Kurt Ballou, and the artwork was created by vocalist Jacob Bannon.

<i>The Poacher Diaries</i> 1999 studio album by Agoraphobic Nosebleed and Converge

The Poacher Diaries is a split album released by the bands Agoraphobic Nosebleed and Converge in 1999. It was remastered by Scott Hull in 2006 and re-released by Relapse Records.

Supermachiner was an experimental music project that Jacob Bannon and Ryan Parker began writing for in 1994 and soon became a collection of four track recordings. When Converge had about six months of down time as the band searched for a drummer, Bannon and Parker found the time to resurrect that project. Bannon and Parker named the project "Supermachiner", a play on the term "Supermachinder" the compound word for Japanese giant robot toys from the 1970s. The music was very different from Converge's, having more in common with influences Swans, Bauhaus, and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacob Bannon</span> American vocalist (born 1976)

Jacob Bannon is an American musician who is the vocalist, lyricist and graphic artist for the metalcore band Converge. He is the co-founder and owner of the record label Deathwish Inc. and the author of many visual works for independent punk rock and heavy metal musicians. Bannon has also composed and performed experimental music as Supermachiner with Ryan Parker and more recently as Wear Your Wounds.

<i>Axe to Fall</i> 2009 studio album by Converge

Axe to Fall is the seventh studio album by American metalcore band Converge, released on October 20, 2009, by Epitaph Records. It is the band's most collaborative album, featuring a number of guest musicians, including members of Cave In and Genghis Tron and Steve Von Till of Neurosis, who performs lead vocals on the slow, Tom Waits-esque track "Cruel Bloom". The album was produced by guitarist Kurt Ballou, and the artwork was created by vocalist Jacob Bannon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">On My Shield</span> 2010 single by Converge

"On My Shield" is a single released by American metalcore band Converge. It was originally made available during the band's European tour in July 2010. The single was self-released by the band, though it was distributed by Converge's labels, Epitaph Records and Deathwish Inc. The physical release does not contain a label catalog number, however Deathwish lists the single as CONCULT01. The song was recorded and produced by guitarist Kurt Ballou at his own GodCity studio between the band's 2010 US and European tours in support of Axe to Fall.

<i>All We Love We Leave Behind</i> 2012 studio album by Converge

All We Love We Leave Behind is the eighth studio album by American metalcore band Converge. It was released on October 9, 2012, via Epitaph Records. The album did not feature any guest collaborators, unlike the band's previous album Axe to Fall. The album was produced by Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou and the artwork was created by the band's singer Jacob Bannon.

<i>From Parts Unknown</i> 2014 studio album by Every Time I Die

From Parts Unknown is the seventh studio album by American metalcore band Every Time I Die.

<i>Rise of the Great Machine</i> 2000 studio album by Supermachiner

Rise of the Great Machine is the debut and only studio album by the project Supermachiner. It was released on November 28, 2000, through Undecided Records. The album features artwork created by Jacob Bannon.

<i>WYW</i> 2017 studio album by Wear Your Wounds

WYW is the debut studio album released by Jacob Bannon. It was released on April 7, 2017 through Deathwish Inc. WYW has multiple guest musicians such as Kurt Ballou, Mike McKenzie, Chris Maggio, and Sean Martin.

<i>The Dusk in Us</i> 2017 studio album by Converge

The Dusk in Us is the ninth studio album by American metalcore band Converge. It was released on November 3, 2017, via Epitaph Records and Deathwish Inc, and is the band's first studio album in five years since 2012's All We Love We Leave Behind. The album was produced by Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou and the artwork was created by the band's singer Jacob Bannon.

<i>Beautiful Ruin</i> 2018 EP by Converge

Beautiful Ruin is an EP by American metalcore band Converge. it was released on June 29, 2018, via Epitaph and Deathwish. It consists of four tracks that were recorded during the sessions for The Dusk in Us. It was produced by Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou and features artwork created by the band's singer Jacob Bannon.

<i>Bloodmoon: I</i> 2021 studio album by Converge and Chelsea Wolfe

Bloodmoon: I is the tenth studio album by American metalcore band Converge, and a collaboration album with Chelsea Wolfe. It was released on November 19, 2021, via Epitaph Records and Deathwish Inc, the band's first studio album in four years since 2017's The Dusk in Us. Converge's longtime collaborator Stephen Brodsky and Wolfe's longtime collaborator Ben Chisholm also contributed. The album was produced by Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou and the artwork was created by the band's singer Jacob Bannon. It was met with universal critical acclaim, receiving an average score of 89 based on 10 reviews aggregated by Metacritic.

References

  1. ↑ "Converge 'You Fail Me' on Epitaph Records" . Retrieved September 20, 2024.
  2. ↑ Punknews.org (21 September 2004). "Converge - You Fail Me". www.punknews.org. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
  3. ↑ "Converge: You Fail Me Album Review | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
  4. ↑ Terich, Jeff (October 9, 2012). "Converge : All We Love We Leave Behind". Treblezine . Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Converge - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Retrieved 2017-02-02.
  6. 1 2 "Converge - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Retrieved 2017-02-02.
  7. 1 2 "Converge - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Retrieved 2017-02-02.
  8. ↑ Records, Epitaph (2004-04-26). "Rocksound talks new CD with Jake Bannon of Converge!". Archived from the original on 2021-01-18. Retrieved 2016-08-12.
  9. 1 2 3 "Interview Converge". www.creative-eclipse.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-10. Retrieved 2016-07-11.
  10. ↑ https://www.epitaph.com/news/article/skratch-interview-with-jacob-bannon-of-converge
  11. ↑ "Converge, Cave In, and BTBAM tour" . Retrieved 2016-11-14.
  12. ↑ Converge | Eagles Become Vultures | Music Video | MTV, archived from the original on November 6, 2009, retrieved 2016-11-14
  13. ↑ Adams, Gregory (April 29, 2016). "Converge Reveal 'You Fail Me Redux'". Exclaim! . Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Converge Guitarist/Producer Kurt Ballou Explains Why He Remixed 'You Fail Me' | NOISEY". 16 June 2016. Retrieved 2016-07-10.
  15. ↑ Popoff, Martin; Perri, David (2011). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 4: The '00s. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 87–88. ISBN   9781-926592-20-6.
  16. 1 2 "Converge: You Fail Me Album Review | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2016-07-07.
  17. ↑ "You Fail Me - Converge | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  18. ↑ You Fail Me (CD liner notes). Converge. Los Angeles, California: Epitaph Records. 2004. 86715–2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ↑ "コンヴァージのアルバム売上ランキング". ORICON NEWS (in Japanese). Retrieved 2017-02-05.
  20. ↑ "Chart Log UK: Chris C. - CZR". zobbel.de. Retrieved 2017-02-05.
  21. ↑ "Converge - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Retrieved 2017-02-02.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.