Converge / Dropdead

It's a pleasure hearing Converge at their most streamlined after all the experimenting and collaborating on 2009's Axe To Fall. This is the band as we know and love them: pissed off and playing at a breakneck pace. But "Runaway" does more than pander to nostalgia. With its off-kilter, almost bluesy lead guitar work and Jacob Bannon's ever-expanding delivery, it's one of their most unrelenting songs in years and definitely the band at their nastiest. Dropdead bring a more conventional hardcore sound to the split, but with the ferocity and pace to make it a natural complement. This may only be two songs long but it could be the most dominating four minutes you'll hear this summer.