Coalesce

Coalesce convenes whenever it feels right to do so or, as they put it: they come and go as they please. The past fifteen years has broadly seen an absence of Coalesce but the stars are once again aligning for activity within this pioneering, experimental band.

The earliest years of Coalesce were a steep learning curve in navigating creativity and relationships both inside and outside of the Midwest bubble the band was formed within. Emerging with a distinctive sound that set them apart from the hardcore bands they found themselves touring with, Coalesce were an uncompromising prospect. Unfettered and free from any expectations besides their own, the band’s trial by fire approach made for a discordant beginning in many ways.

Their unique sound reached a broader audience in 1997 when Earache Records released a split EP featuring two songs apiece from Coalesce and Napalm Death. Galvanized by the response they got, their debut full length, Give Them Rope soon followed. It was on their sophomore album that the band hit their stride and solidified the core creative components of the band in vocalist Sean Ingram, guitarist Jes Steineger and bassist Nathan Ellis. Functioning On Impatience was a more measured and sparse affair than its claustrophobic predecessor, yet didn’t falter on packing a punch.

Rounding out a run of three albums within three frenetic years, 0:12 Revolution In Just Listening arrived in 1999, and saw the band embracing the blues and forging an enduring partnership with Relapse Records. True to their ‘as and when’ approach, it would be a decade before Coalesce released their next full length, Ox, which showcased the band’s maturing approach to their output as they expanded the scope of Americana within their angular sound.

Whilst the nucleus of the band’s progression can be found within their full length studio albums, they also have an eclectic collection of splits, EPs and other more experimental works within their oeuvre. It is on these additional releases that Coalesce tested the boundaries of their artistic curiosities, before refining their intentions on full-lengths.

Ingram’s acerbic lyrics have covered a lot of ground but are best summed up as a process of finding his way in the world. “It’s hard to tell people what you want to be, but much easier to say what you don’t want to be,” he explains of his lyrical pushback against what he encountered within the American hardcore scene in the 90s, and beyond.

In the absence of live activity and studio output, Coalesce’s influence has not diminished. Traces of their sonic DNA are scattered throughout hardcore and metal; their discordant guitar sound, their off-kilter time signatures and excoriating vocals have stood the test of time. Coalesce may have evolved over the years, but they have always maintained the balance of loud and heavy - with just the right amount of curveballs thrown in for good measure.

2024 sees the band’s core unite with drummer Jeff Gensterblum and return to the live arena. Coalesce live shows have often been a spectacle to behold, however for the band themselves their focus is entirely inward-facing, considering their sets to be something far removed from a performance and more akin to a gut-wrenching purge. The stage has always been a proving ground for reigniting a growing appetite for new music within the band, and this time around is no different.

Arguably Coalesce were ahead of their time when they began, and they have frequently been out of step with the scenes that swirled around them in the years since. Yet, never ones to sink into nostalgia, Coalesce are looking forwards, now and always.

-Becky Laverty