Working within the confines of a scene that seems to embrace nostalgia or boring metallic licks, it's unfortunate that a powerful and original hardcore punk band is such a rarity in 2007. Enter Boston's Conversions into the fray. With a fury that bespeaks their influences without aping them the New England quartet bash their way through fourteen tracks on their Level-Plane debut, Prisoners' Inventions. The CONVERSIONS' formula melds the mid-90's chaos of bands like Merel and Heroin with the bitterness of Reagan-Era American hardcore; updating both sounds for a seemingly hopeless post-9/11 world. Vocalist Terry has no trouble keeping up with the hyper-fast stop-start fury of bassist Rob, drummer Chris and guitarist Beau, delivering lyrics that touch on the personal as well as the political and the frustration wrapped up in a 21st century existence. "Prisoners' Inventions" breathes new life into the often stale hardcore milieu and is recommended for fans of sincere, passionate and skillfully played punk rock.
