Wrench in the Works is a four-piece, noisy, Christian metalcore outfit hailing from Hartford, Connecticut. Their 2010 release Decrease/Increase is a metalcore album very much in the vein of dark and heavy metalcore and hardcore contemporary acts Shai Hulud, Advent, Converge, Trap Them, and Gaza. It’s a loud and fast cacophony ripe with foreboding imagery and assertions of a divine truth. One can imagine such a sonic barrage mirroring the near-incomprehensible and frightening chorus of the heavenly hosts witnessed by prophets and shepherds in the biblical canon.

The opening track, “Vultures” to Decrease/Increase sets the tone and the pace for the album. A vocal introduction gives way immediately to furious and frenzied drums. The drumming on the album is remarkable. The stampeding percussion carries much of the intensity of the album with rolling blast beats, dense tom fills, and dynamic cymbal hits. The resulting textural depth in the sound of the album is memorable. Some interesting choices were made with the mastering however. The drums are very up front (particularly the kick drum), almost as if they are sitting on top of the mix. The dry, raspy calls of the vocalist sound intentionally buried and raw. While the abrasive distant vocals would normally serve to add to the intense and noisy sonic experience of this musical style, they instead lean awkward against the near pristine guitar tracks and the overwhelming drum mix.

As the album progresses, it is clear the band has a very defined sound. Wrench in the Works sculpts a sonic landscape of octave textures, palm muted breaks, and hammer-ons; pummeling a furious progression of chords and notes into a dense form. While the ability of the band to maintain this intensity is unquestionable, it quickly begins to feel as if the compositions are like a dragster, with two speeds, full stop and full speed. The tracks that do incorporate a greater dynamic rise and fall or layer accessible melodic tones and textures are the tracks that shine on the album. “Desert Voice”, “Vows (I Must Decrease)” and “Vows (He Must Increase)” are the notable tracks that are very successful at providing depth to the raw and brutal sonic plane. These tracks give a listener the sense of a progressing fury, one that is not an aimless barrage or hail of blast beats and furious fret peeling. Instead, these tracks succeed at being memorable by engaging the listener with subversive instrumental passages and leading them through a crescendo of emotional content. While much of the other tracks on Decrease/Increase provide exhibitions in metal musicianship, the rather flat sonic topography does not do justice the passion rooted hardcore elements of Wrench in the Works’ aesthetic. Greater character in the song writing with a more deliberate use of texture and dynamics would likely bring this album from the realm of good to remarkable.

3.5/5