On 'Spiral in a Straight Line', Touché Amoré's Jeremy Bolm and co. navigate a labyrinth of anxiety, existential dread, and the weight of borrowed time, crafting their most challenging and dynamic album yet. Check out our latest Upset cover story.
Words: Rob Mair.
Photos: Sean Stout.
Photos: Sean Stout.
"As someone who is part of the band and who has listened to this record a billion times now, I can hear every second where we're on edge. I can hear where it feels like we're coming apart. It only adds to the record."
Touché Amoré's Jeremy Bolm has been through the wringer on 2016's astonishingly powerful 'Stage Four' and 2020's equally potent 'Lament'. It would have been easy to coast and dial one in for new album 'Spiral in a Straight Line', but the Californian hardcore heroes excel when they're pushed to their limit. This desire to hit new watermarks has meant that the quintet (completed by Elliot Babin, Clayton Stevens, Nick Steinhardt and Tyler Kirby) have once again found new ways to reach catharsis through their music.
That we have a new record just four years after 'Lament' is remarkable, given how busy Touché Amoré have been. Anniversaries for their breakout 'Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me' and follow-up 'Is Survived By' have monopolised the band's time – not to mention their own 15th anniversary, which saw them play a handful of celebration shows last year. The band have clocked up some serious air miles this year, too, playing shows everywhere from Mexico, Australia and the UK.
And then there's the extra-curricular activities. Jeremy managed to fit in a cameo opposite Daniel Radcliffe in 2022's Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, playing the wonderfully named Jeremy Barf, while his record label Secret Voice has ramped up business, releasing some of the best hardcore, emo and screamo of the last few years, capped off by the outstanding compilation 'Balladeers, Redefined'. He's also the host of his own hugely successful podcast, TheFirstEver.
