Album Review: Touché Amoré - Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me

With their second full-length, Los Angeles based Touché Amoré have got about as close to a musical exposition of 'catharsis' as is humanly possible.

‘Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me’ is a record stuffed with insights into a soul far from at ease. Candid to the point of awkwardness, it's often an uncomfortable listen as lead singer Jeremy Bolm lays himself bare on record. There are no punches pulled here, in ‘Uppers/Downers’ he sings: “I’ll be the one that’s self crucified, because I did this to myself, I hammered my own nails”.

It’s relentlessly introspective and, given most treatments, would come across as self-indulgent melodrama. Somehow, however, this is never the case and that lyrics such as “If you fantasise about your funeral, I understand, I’ve been there before” do not come across as anything but sincere is impressive in itself.

Bolm's impassioned screams and yelps provide an excellent foil for the dissonant yet melodic instrumentals of the tracks, which veer from frenetic energy to seething calm. It's not truly 'heavy' in a musical sense though, the sound is a raw noise that captures the energy of DIY punk recordings while retaining modern values. The true weight of this record is not to be measured in the distortion of the guitars, rather the intensity of the sentiment.

At the climax of final track 'Amends', Bolm yells the phrase: "For what it's worth, I'm sorry, and at the end, I'm trying." It's a gut-wrenchingly delivered summation of the sentiment of the record. ‘Parting The Sea...’ is an album whose lyrical and musical presence reverberates long after the music reaches its shattering climax; a disquieted masterpiece.

4.5/5

'Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me' by Touché Amoré will be released on June 7th through Deathwish Inc.

Official Website
Touché Amoré on Facebook and Bandcamp

Nick Worpole