Review by Tristan FernieTouche Amore straddle an awkward tightrope between mawkish, "I-hate-my-parents-and-want-to-die" melodrama and genuinely heartfelt passion. The biggest clunker is 'Condolences', a screamed piano ballad that opens with the morbid "if you fantasise at your funeral/I understand" - the wangst is overbearing and comes across as completely insincere, I mean, what does a youngish band signed to Deathwish Inc. have to be so fucking depressed about anyway? I've heard that some of the band are Christian, which doesn't sound too implausible - there are times when the lyrics positively reek of religious guilt. 'The Great Repition' is also about witnessing your own funeral, the metaphor being about as subtle as a sledgehammer to the face.
When they wipe off the mascara and rock out, the results are exhilerating- 'Face Ghost' has a ball-quakeningly intense breakdown, 'Pathfinder' reminded me of the much-missed Sinking Ships, and 'Home Away from Home' is the single coolest love-letter to going on tour I've ever heard. All in all, a mixed bag, the stolen Integrity riffs are as good as ever, but the lyrics have definitely regressed. You can't help but feel Touche Amore's magnum opus is yet to come, so here's hoping they overcome their growing pains and become the powerhouse that I'm sure they're capable of being.
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