Here at the tail end of this unprecedented artistic “pause” of sorts, the dust is now starting to settle and we’re getting a better idea of what Milwaukee’s music scene will actually look like when live shows finally and fully return. Soon we’ll all learn which bands quietly called it quits since last March, what new projects started when the world stopped, and which existing outfits have been hard at work these last 15 months to emerge from the pandemic with new music. Though there’s a lot of uncertainty about where the Cream City creative chips have fallen, we’re pleased to report that CONVERT is still alive, well, and prepared to put a new album out into the world.
If you recall, the project that features members of Get Rad, Assault & Battery, Brain-Bats, Burning Sons, and The Stink Lines in its ranks formed in 2019. In the “before times,” the quartet managed a handful of shows, a performance on WMSE, and seemed poised for a big 2020. Despite having its momentum slowed, CONVERT thankfully spent much of last year working on what will be its debut album.
That album, SAVES, was recorded by Shane Hochstetler at Howl Street Recordings and mastered by Carl Saff. The band says it’s currently seeing if there’s any label interest before setting a release date, but they released the first single from the forthcoming record this morning. “Slow Choke” expertly blends CONVERT’s disparate post-punk, hardcore, and industrial influences into five-minutes of jagged guitars, pounding rhythm, and menacing melodies from vocalist Dillon Hallen. Get excited for new material from CONVERT and listen to “Slow Choke” below.