Touché Amoré doesn’t claim to have an exact methodology for climbing out of a doom spiral.
A subject of the band’s upcoming release, “Spiral in a Straight Line,” out on Rise Records on Friday, Oct. 11, lead guitarist Clayton Stevens and bassist Tyler Kirby offer their fans some advice: trust your intuition when navigating the roller coaster of life.
“We’re all searching for and doing anything to make us feel whole and complete,” Stevens said in a Zoom call. “That’s always a never-ending journey, so I don’t know if telling people how to cope is our place. We do owe our audience a level of respect and honesty. It’s up to people to connect with it in their own way and discover how to navigate it. I’d say don’t be so hard on yourself and be okay with the fact that at times you’re not going to be okay, but you’ll get through it.”
Touché Amoré will kick off a headlining tour beginning at the Regent Theater in Los Angeles on Oct. 9 and an additional stop at the Casbah in San Diego on Oct. 11 with the support of Soul Glo, Portrayal of Guilt and Soft Blue Shimmer.
“We’re going to put our all into it and give people a really good hardcore show,” Stevens said. “I can confidently say we stand behind the lineup you’ll see. A lot of people, nationally, haven’t gotten a chance to hear a band like Soft Blue Shimmer who is opening, and I highly suggest people come to the show early because you’ll be kicking yourself soon if you don’t.”
“Spiral in a Straight Line” marks the group’s sixth album release and is perhaps one of the most unwavering under the band’s belt. The record has all the staples of a signature Touché Amoré product: fusions of loud rhythmic instruments led by the poetic primal spoken word of frontman Jeremy Bolm, all, of course, delivered relentlessly in under 30 minutes. Songs such as “Disasters” and “Force of Habit” exude the themes of mentally spiraling, with lyrics of internalizing doubt and the negative thoughts that can manifest into a cloudy self-deprecation.
“‘Spiral In A Straight Line’ is probably our most aggressive record since maybe ‘Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me,’” Kirby said. “We’ve kind of gone back a little bit in that way, but it’s all felt natural.”
The album also includes collaborations with Lou Barlow, lo-fi king and founding member of Dinosaur Jr., and with returning collaborator Julien Baker of boygenius, whose vocals on the closing track, “Goodbye For Now,” offer a chilling melodic contrast to Bolm’s jarring vocals and the chaotic crashing of drums and guitars.
Another stand-out single is the catchy pop-punkish “Hal Ashby,” which references the director while nodding to the film industry with visuals of theater concession stands and the iconic vintage Paramount studio logo. and remaining on par with the album’s theme. The lyrics for the single stays on par with the album’s themes too: “A misguided Hal Ashby catastrophe/Not exactly something you plan to be/You gotta handle it gracefully.”
This isn’t the first time the band out of Burbank has paid its tribute to filmmakers. The song “Palm Dreams” from their fourth album, “Stage Four,” honors experimental and surrealist director David Lynch. Stevens said that being raised in Los Angeles, a city vital to the film industry, and alongside the people who work production on the sets has impacted the band’s music.
“Growing up here has given us a unique perspective, seeing the remnants of film all around us, and it plays a huge role in all of us as individuals,” Stevens said. “We try to allow that to enter our art through the subconscious or conscious.”
The group also welcomed back legendary producer Ross Robinson, who collaborated with them on their previous release, “Lament.” Robinson, also known as the “Godfather of Nu Metal,” has earned the title by working on some of the era’s most prolific releases, including Slipknot, Soulfly and Korn‘s self-titled albums. He’s also worked with post-hardcore icons Glassjaw, At The Drive-In and the moody English rockers The Cure.
Robinson’s producing methods have been characterized as unorthodox, from allegedly throwing potted plants at the late Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison to capturing the visceral breakdown of Korn frontman Jonathan Davis in the studio after recording “Daddy,” a song Davis wrote that deals with sexual abuse perpetuated by his childhood babysitter and the dismissive response he received from his parents after bringing it to their attention.
However, in their work together, Stevens and Kirby said their experiences with Robinson aren’t as off the wall as some of the stories out there. Stevens said that the band and the producer meshed pretty well on their previous album and felt in sync creatively by the end as if their work together wasn’t quite finished.
“Make no mistake, Ross is a complicated person, and at times, he’s our biggest cheerleader, and at other times, he is a drill sergeant,” Stevens said. “He demands full focus, attention to your art, and seriousness in the process. He doesn’t have any preconceived notions of what the band should be and I think that’s cool and different compared to a lot of producers. We all have a lot of respect for Ross.”
“His creativity is so contagious, and I’ve never met anybody in my life as creative as he is,” Kirby added. “Just being around his energy is very inspiring. It’s all about matching the emotion of whatever lyric or melody and distilling that through music.”
“Spiral in a Straight Line” is one of many accomplishments Touché Amoré has garnered in its nearly 20 years together. Like many of their fans who went from being hardcore kids to adulting with an inner hardcore kid at heart, they recognize that the future of punk rock and hardcore will always belong to the youth.
“The youth are who decide what connects with the moment,” Stevens said. “The youth will always rise to the moment. I genuinely believe that. Yes, older people, if we’re calling people in their 30s or 40s or 50s or whatever, age older still connect with the music because the music is bigger than all of that. That’s kind of the beautiful thing about hardcore, is that it can bring us all together.”
Touché Amoré
Where: Regent Theater, 448 Main St, Los Angeles.
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 9.
Tickets: $42.25 at Ticketmaster.com.
Also: 8:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 11 at The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., San Diego. Tickets are $27-$30 at the casbahmusic.com.
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