By: Manuel Suarez Staff Writer
On March 11, 2011, Chicago rock band Rise Against released “Endgame,” their sixth studio album. Released under DGC, Interscope Records, “Endgame” has 12 tracks. RA finished recording in January, and through March they kept adding final details until “Endgame” was completed and released. The album’s lyrics are filled with metaphors, which make them hard to understand. The themes vary, talking about government, faith, a better world or Hurricane Katrina.
“Help is on the way,” Make it stop (September’s Children),” Midnight hands” and “Survivor guilt” are the best songs in the album because of the feeling and the catchiness.
“Help is on the way” is the second track in the album, and has a typical Rise Against introduction and chorus. The guitars have a lot of feeling in the song. You can actually listen to this song and feel the music. The bass goes along with the vocals at the beginning, and the guitars have a little break during the verses. The song’s outro sounds very sentimental, and touches the listener’s feelings.
“Make it Stop (September’s Children)” is the album’s third song. At this point, the album is still Rise Against at their best. The guitars well performed, with complex playing and style.
“Midnight Hands”, the sixth song, is the second-best song in the album, next to “Help is on the way.” The feeling, the guitars and the vocals make the song very special, including the riffs and meaning of the song. They mix effects in some parts of the song. When guitars are played slowly, the bass goes faster, and the best part is when lead singer, Tim Mcllrath starts yelling.
“Survivor guilt” is the seventh song. The introduction is incredible, starting with a slow arpeggio in a clean guitar, and then turning to distortion quickly. The techniques used are similar to “Make it stop (September’s children).”
“Endgame” is another good effort by Rise Against. The other songs aren’t as special as the ones outlined here, but besides that, this album is a masterpiece. Rise Against is still a very talented band.