Touché Amoré
Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me

Twenty-one minutes. It seems short, and indeed it is short, but it's twenty-one minutes in which Jeremy Bolm and his Touché Amoré give us their best album, their most captivating, therapeutic, and engaging record. 

Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me is the second album from the Burbank hardcore band, released under the banner of Deathwish Inc. in 2011. Thirteen short, direct tracks that go straight to the point and especially to the heart. Compared to their raw (yet always splendid) debut two years prior, here Touché Amoré have refined their sound, smoothed out some edges while still maintaining the high levels of violence and screams so cherished by the hardcore world.

Everything starts with "~", a rush of power and compelling melody. Jeremy Bolm sings with his hoarse voice, and with that reassuring and damn likeable face that sets him apart. In the minute and a half of this track, the entire winning formula of Touché Amoré is already concentrated. Hardcore rhythm, punk soul, and sincere and brilliant lyrics.

Throughout the album, it's the musicality that excels. The two guitarists shred each track to pieces, enveloping the listener in a melody that grabs from within and knocks you out. Just listen to the intense and pulsating "Crutch" or the famous "Home Away From Here" to be completely captivated by how perfect the music is, flawless and brimming with passion and emotions. The drummer relentlessly pounds on the skins, the bassist follows him without ever stopping, and the rhythm remains chaotic and fast. Like in "The Great Repetition", a whirlwind rollercoaster ride, where you start off at lightning speed, then slow down, then speed up again.

The thing that stands out the most on this Touché Amoré album, however, are the lyrics. Sharp and direct words, like short sincere poems that pierce the chest with their frankness and disarming sincerity. Jeremy Bolm spits them out in a barrage, shouting into the microphone but never attacking the listener. They reflect like in a mirror in those words, recognizing something familiar in each of the lyrics. If actions speak louder than words, I am the loudest noise you've ever heard, Jeremy says in the aforementioned opening track. A huge inner strength colliding with the insecurity and vulnerability of a thirty-year-old who grew up too fast.

The best comes at the end, the bombs arrive. "Condolences" sheds its hardcore exterior, remaining bare, covered only by the breathtaking notes of a piano. And Jeremy's words break down the walls that protected us, leaving the listener in a catharsis that chains you, from which it's impossible to escape. If you fantasize about your funeral, I understand, I've been there before. If there's more importance in the music played than who'd attend, we are the same. With heads to the ground as I'm lowered down, there will be a chorus, an overwhelming sound.

The curtain falls on the grand "Amends", goosebumps and emotions following one of the band's most poignant and successful pieces. In just twenty-one minutes, Touché Amoré have broken every record, producing a spectacular album where never-ending adolescence and the adult world at the door unite in a devastating embrace. Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me is the album of the definitive confirmation of a huge, brilliant, and exciting band. Applaudable.