At First Listen: Touché Amoré, ‘Spiral in a Straight Line’
The hardcore vets are back with their sixth full-length album that continues both the refining of their sound and the consistency they've displayed their entire career.
At First Listen is a series of album reviews made up of only my notes and first thoughts from my first front to back listen of a new album.
To say Spiral in a Straight Line was one of my most anticipated albums this year would be a massive understatement. Over the years I’ve watched Touché Amoré grow from the local Cobalt Cafe to first or second supporting act on a bill to multiple headlining tours and they’ve continued to occupy a unique space in my rotation. Between the relentlessness of their guitars, the ferocity of the drums, and Jeremy Bolm’s razor-sharp lyrics, they’re a band I always find myself coming back to.
Long road trip ahead? Oh, I’ll shuffle all their albums.
Need something to listen to at the gym that will keep me up tempo? Oh, To The Beat of a Dead Horse is 20 minutes of nonstop post-hardcore.
In a weird headspace and can’t get my thoughts straight? Oh, Stage Four is a modern hardcore classic that features arguably the best lyrics Bolm has ever written along with career-best performances from the entire band up and down the track list.
Suffice it to say, I was very excited to hear that the band had a new album coming and that it would once again feature producer Ross Robinson, who’s first album with the band, 2020’s Lament, was actually the band’s longest (just over 35 minutes) and allowed for them to push themselves musically in ways they hadn’t before.
Anyways, now that all of that is out of the way, let’s dive into Spiral in a Straight Line.
Nobody’s - One thing you can always count on is that a Touché album will always have a banger of an opening track. Nobody’s is no exception as it kicks things off with a frantic urgency and an instantly singable chorus. I can already picture a live show and hearing everyone in the building screaming “Is it enough, to call it off?” and “we’re nobody’s business” enough to blow the roof off.
Disasters - What a song. Drummer Elliot Babin is just showing off with the relentless drums that power a vintage vocal performance. What really sealed this one for me though is the last minute where it slowed into the bridge. A previous Touché song might’ve ended before that but the slow groove exploding back into the last few choruses is just another sign of how they’ve continued to develop and push themselves over the years.
Hal Ashby - In full disclosure, since this is the lead single I have heard this before but it really does feel like a mission statement for the album as a whole lyrically. Named after the Harold and Maude director, lyrically this song shares themes with Maude and other Ashby films focusing on miscommunications and their impact on our lives. “Misguided, Hal Ashby catastrophe” in the bridge drives home the feeling that something has gone wrong whether it’s right people wrong time or another tragic trademark of Ashby’s movies.
Force of Habit - One of my favorite things that Touché will do from time to time is when they juxtapose a slower, more melodic song with Bolm continuing his guttural screams. There’s something about the slow build of this song as the background of his vocal performance that really drives home the emotion in the song. This type of restraint really gives everything (and the listener) more room to breath and take in everything the band has done up to this point.
Mezzanine - Again, this is an absolute banger of a song. Just over 2 minutes, this is another vintage Touché track with a relentless, pummeling energy and brutal lyrics that could easily slide onto either of their first two albums. Everything coming to a head for the slower bridge/outro is a great touch as well. This is absolutely going to destroy when they play it live.
On Spiral in a Straight Line, Touché Amoré continue to push themselves out of their comfort zones, lyrically & sonically, to great results. Photo via Touché Amoré on Facebook. Altitude - You can feel the desperation in Bolm’s voice as he screams “I spiral in a straight line, Like some clever reaction, I didn't know what I feel, Was I oppressed that it happened?” This song continues to tie together the album’s theme of ill-timing, miscommunications, and what happens after a monumental life decision/change. The music matches the aggression of the lyrics and acts as a perfect metaphor for things moving forward whether you want them to or not.
This Routine - Incredible guitar work from Clayton Stevens and Nick Steinhardt drive this song that features what might be my favorite lyric on the album so far. “I’m bad at taking photos of the people I love the most, I just think they’ll always be there, When we all know that they won’t” hits like a ton of bricks for multiple reasons. This song feels like the acknowledgment of feeling stuck after a breakup or recognizing the ways your partner grew.
Finalist - This song continues to follow the path lyrically of reflecting on adjusting to a new change while reflecting on the way things used to be or a lack of recognizing a problem before it’s too late. This is another standout track for Stevens’ & Steinhardt’s guitars though, they elevate this song that could’ve easily just blended into the last few tracks and help give it its’ own flavor.
Subversion - Combining this song with lyrics from Sebadoh’s Brand New Love and getting Lou Barlow himself to come sing them overlapping with Bolm’s screams builds so much more emotion in the song. I don’t know if they would’ve took this risk earlier in their career and saving it for this moment is just a complete chef’s kiss.
The Glue - It was going to be very hard for any song to follow up Subversion so it feels like they play it a little safe here. The drums that start the track are a great way to draw you back in and another clear example of Elliot Babin’s unbelievable ability. These may also be the most straightforward lyrics on the album about the themes of love lost, poor timing, and two people drifting apart as the years go by.
Goodbye For Now - This intro was so good that I had to rewind it and listen again and I got goosebumps both times. From the second Julien Baker comes on through the end of the song is absolute perfection. The overlap of her voice with Bolm’s is stunning and adds such a rich layer of emotion to the heartache and regret that fill most of the album lyrically. Sonically, the music builds alongside at a fever pace until everything comes to a sudden end and you remember to catch your breath.
Takeaways: This was one of my most anticipated albums this year and it didn’t disappoint. Just about every track is filled with the hallmarks that have made Touché Amoré such a massive band in the post-hardcore scene. I think working with Ross Robinson again was a great decision as a lot of these songs take bits and pieces from their discography and expands on them without ever feeling bloated or overblown. After how bare Jeremy Bolm laid everything out on Stage Four, I’m blown away at the vulnerability, self reflection, and regret that fill this album. I shouted out Clayton Stevens, Nick Steinhardt, and Elliot Babin for their work but I can’t end this without also mentioning Tyler Kirby’s basslines. Throughout the album there are so many moments where things slow down or change course but he holds the groove every single time. Tying everything together almost every single time.
Standout tracks: Disasters, Mezzanine, Subversion, Goodbye For Now
You can listen to Spiral in a Straight Line here.