Converge are one of the few bands that continue to get better with age. While there are pockets of fans unable to look past the late 90s albums When Forever Comes Crashing and Petitioning The Empty Sky, there’s no doubt the quartet have been on a tear since 2001’s Jane Doe.
Album number eight is just as prickly, emotional, energetic and vital as anything they’ve been heralded for since and, if we’re being honest, not only does it transcend their early work, but it’s somewhat surprising that gents in their mid-to-late 30s still perform with unabashed teenage verve. It must be the glucosamine.
All We Love… has elements of post-rock being piledriven by noisecore (Coral Blue and Aimless Arrow, both of which see Jake Bannon very nearly carrying a tune), prog rock, with the technical interplay between drummer Ben Koller and Kurt Ballou’s spindly riffs (Sparrow’s Fall, Veins And Veils) and ferocious balls out punk/hardcore (Trespasses and the Oi! feel of Vicious Muse).
The beautiful thing about Converge is their ability to transform everything they embark upon into something that screams their own name. That’s the sign of true artistry and All We Love… is the stunning result.
