In Currents

In Currents is The Early November’s first project in six years. Lead singer/songwriter Ace Enders and his bandmates seem rejuvenated after their hiatus, dishing out their tuneful emo-punk with the same tormented vigor of their early releases. The quintet’s obsession with romantic disappointment is present, along with hints of a newfound maturity. Enders remains adept at shifting from caressing murmurs to syllable-spitting yelps, capturing the volatile mix of tenderness and rage that seethes in his lyrics. “Frayed in Doubt” (defined by Bill Lugg’s slicing guitar riffs), “Wearing a Tie” (melodic but spiky, with a jazz twist) and “Close to You” (a surging, radio-friendly number) are at once pain-wracked and aggressive in feel. Cutting even closer to the bone are downbeat ballads like “Call Off the Bells,” “The Smell of This Place," and especially “Stain on the Carpet”; these songs let Enders ruminate over his bruised emotions in exquisite detail. In Currents is the work of a band grown older and wiser, yet still infused with plenty of adolescent angst and energy.