Saturday 23 August 2014

Waiting on Forever

This was what I would categorise as one of my top 10 eBay steals. I scored this for a few quid a couple of years back, and everything about the sound and design is completely on point, so we'll go with this today. 


Petitioning Forever by Converge, released through Deathwish Inc. (DW147) under license from Equal Vision. This is from the 2nd press and is/1000. The three 2nd press variants were all /1000, and this one seems the nicest looking of the bunch. This has recently received a 3rd pressing on clear red vinyl. Both of these albums were remixed by Kurt Ballou and remastered by Alan Douches and sound massive compared to the original recordings. Normally remasters don't really appeal to me too much, but in parts these sound like new albums. So good. 


B-Side labels and back cover. Actually, I may have got the records the wrong way round. I'm sure it's not too important. Either way, The front and back sleeves of the record display the updated artwork of the band's two LP's 'Petitioning the Empty Sky' and 'When Forever Comes Crashing' respectively. The labels of the 'Petitioning' LP feature the updated artwork on one side, and the art from the 'Petitioning the Empty Sky' 7'' on the other. Furthermore, the 'Forever' LP contain the updated artwork, and then the original 'When Forever Comes Crashing' art on the other side. I have an OG copy of WFCC on Equal Vision, but not PTES. I'd love a copy of that record. In fact, my Converge collection is a little thin on the ground and I really need to change that. 


Inside the gate-fold and to the artwork. The art was handled by Aaron Turner of Isis and Hydra Head Records fame, and then the layout and additional art was courtesy of Jacob Bannon. 


As this is the 2nd press, there is no bonus 7'' (came with the 1st press only), but there is an essay of sorts 
called Waiting on Forever written by Chris Gramlich, and I'm not too sure who he is but it's a cool read. That takes up the first half of the fold out, and the bottom half is lyrics and credits. There was some lineup switching and stuff, particularly on Petitioning the Empty Sky so the credits are pretty extensive. 



Front and back art of the fold out. These faces originally appeared on the centre labels on the Equal Vision press of Petitioning the Empty Sky. These LP's are incredible listens, and i'm glad I picked this up. From having the original cuts on CD for years, stepping up both in terms of sound and format in the same listen made it a complete game changer. 



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