Written by Jennifer Moglia
On Friday, October 9th, 2020, Los Angeles post-hardcore greats Touche Amore released their fifth album, “Lament.” The record follows up 2016’s critically acclaimed “Stage Four”, in addition to 2013’s “Is Survived By”, 2011’s “Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me”, and 2009’s “...To the Beat of a Dead Horse”, as well as 2019’s re-recording of their debut, “Dead Horse X”, and 2018’s live album, “10 Years / 1000 Shows.”
When writing and recording this album, the band was faced with the impossible-seeming task of living up to the expectations set by the masterpiece that is “Stage Four”, a record chronicling frontman Jeremy Bolm’s grieving process before, during, and after losing his mother to cancer. “I sort of look at this record as a companion piece to ‘Stage Four’,” Bolm explains, “in the sense that I’m not writing songs about [my mom] anymore...but the songs on this record are about what my life’s been like since doing that.”
If the vocalist’s intentions were really just to catch listeners up on what he’s been living through in the years following “Stage Four”, he did an incredible job. While the two differ because, as he mentioned, “Stage Four” is nearly entirely about his mother and “Lament” is not, the latter still feels authentic, portraying grief and moving on in a realistic way, while still bringing us up to speed on other aspects of what his world looks like.
Track one, “Come Heroine”, opens with Bolm’s isolated vocals proclaiming, “From peaks of blue / Come heroine”, kicking off a hard-hitting opening track about letting someone else break down your emotional barriers, no matter how guarded or afraid of love you are. Right off the bat, we’re reminded of that classic Touche Amore sound that fans love so much, with catchy guitars and strong vocals.
Up next is the titular track, a heart-wrenching tale of coping or a lack thereof, whether it’s through numbness or just allowing yourself to go through it - lamenting until you forget, as the lyrics state. The lines, “you’d think by now I’d know my place / But I lose it almost every day / You’d think by now I’d have a grip / But again I’ve let it slip” especially resonated with me, touching on the aforementioned worries of living up to expectations.
“Feign” is up third, and it’s one of the stand-out tracks musically for sure. The guitar riffs and basslines in particular just sound great here, blending seamlessly with the rest of the backing track.
The fourth and final single released off of this album, “Reminders” is one of the more optimistic-sounding songs on “Lament”, both sonically and lyrically. With a music video centered around the band, their friends, and all of their pets, this track perfectly captures how it feels to be reminded of the love that you do have in your life when things start to become too much for you to handle; you can read our full review of this song here.
Track five is the second single released off of this record, and was accompanied by the album announcement; “Limelight” reads like both a celebration and a day of mourning all at once, with phrases like “Let’s embrace the twilight / While burning out the limelight.” Andy Hull of Manchester Orchestra lends vocals to this bittersweet track as well, and his contributions toward the end of the song layered over melancholy guitars have certainly become a highlight on this record for me; our full review of this song can be found here.
Another one of this album’s shining moments can be found on “Exit Row”, where Bolm’s vocals are at their best and most passionate, almost piercing at times. The contrast of his screams over a more melodic instrumental work like magic.
The one-two punch of “Savoring” and “A Broadcast” at tracks seven and eight is a welcome bright spot on a record with a lot of heavy subject matter being discussed. The latter song, particularly, has an almost atmospheric feel, with dreamy chords that help you become completely immersed in the music.
The third single off of this album, and the second since the album announcement, “I’ll Be Your Host” remains one of the strongest tracks here lyrically, exploring how Bolm has navigated being seen as a savior or ambassador of sorts for the band’s supporters who have dealt with death and/or cancer in their lives as well. Its message of remembering that at the end of the day everyone (even your favorite band members) is just a human with their own hardships is extremely important; we have a full review of this song as well, which you can read here.
“Deflector”, released last fall as the record’s first single, is a non-stop ride for its full three minutes and 31 seconds, its intensity keeping you completely engaged. This being chosen as the lead single for “Lament” definitely makes sense, especially in the context of the rest of the album; sonically, it’s one of the louder tracks, and Bolm’s vocals are beyond powerful, going from attention-grabbing screams to desperate pleas in seconds.
Probably my personal favorite track, the album closes with “A Forecast”, which begins with just Bolm, a piano, and some heartbreakingly real lyrics; “Since the last time we spoke / I’ve learned quite a lot / The people I thought would reach out / Turns out would not.” This slow-burn consists of the frontman addressing listeners as if they were a childhood friend he lost touch with, updating them on his healing process, the music he’s currently listening to, his shrinking family (and how he’s lost more to the Republican Party than to cancer), and so much more.
When this final track picks up and the full band kicks in, we’re shown Bolm’s vulnerability in a completely different way, going from completely stripped down vocals to soaring instruments coupled with the blunt confession, “I’m still out in the rain / I could use a little shelter / Now and then.” I’m a sucker for album closers when they’re done right, and “A Forecast” does just that, tying together all of the record’s themes as well as some from “Stage Four”, as well as giving us a closer look into the vocalist’s life right now and what we might be able to expect from him in the future.
In my “Rewind Review” article about “Stage Four,” I said that, though many people believed that album was centered around darker themes like death, grief, and loss, I saw it differently; to me, “Stage Four” was more like an account of what happens after we feel like the world is ending, when we realize that we’re still here and that we have to keep going, somehow. “Lament” is focused around similar ideas, just further into the future, a few more years since Bolm experienced that loss, giving him more time to heal (or not heal), and to reflect on what he can and can’t change; the end product is absolutely beautiful, and will both haunt you and fill you with hope.
“Lament” is available to stream wherever you listen to music, and I absolutely recommend giving it a listen in full, front-to-back, and in order at least once. To keep up with what Touche Amore will be up to as this new chapter kicks into full gear, you can follow them on Twitter @ToucheAmore; they’ll officially open this era with an album release party on Twitch, presented by SOS Booking and Sound & Fury, this upcoming Monday, October 12th, at 6:00 PM PST.
If you want to support the band, they have a fully-stocked online merch store with all the “Lament” goodies you could ever want, as well as some themed around their other albums, including shirts, vinyl, water bottles, flags, and more. If you did listen to this album and want to let us know what you think, you can tweet us @lgndsoftmrw.
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