Kyriakos Athanasiadis took the opportunity to conduct an interview with Californian Post/Hardcorers Touché Amoré due to their upcoming appearance in Athens in early March at Fuzz Club. A band that has released albums such as “… To the beat of a dead horse” and “Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me”, each new release makes us engage with them more and more.
Good evening from the world of Afternoiz! What’s the news from Touché Amoré camp?
Touché Amoré: We are coming to Greece finally!
What are people’s reactions so far to «Spiral In A Straight Line»?
T.A.: They have been great. Lots of singalongs to the new songs we have in the set.
In the last two albums you have worked with the great Ross Robinson, the man who discovered Slipknot, Korn, Limp Bizkit among others. How is your collaboration going so far and what are the characteristics that set him apart from others?
T.A.: Ross not only has a deep encyclopedic knowledge of music like you would expect from a producer, but he works on a deeply instinctual level that is unlike anyone I’ve ever come across. He meets you on a deep level of investment that forces you to be as present in the process as possible, and generally speaking you cannot argue with the results even if they are outside your comfort zone in terms of a weird filter pedal here or there or something like hat. He’s opened my mind in many ways and I am
forever grateful!
What are the differences between record labels like Epitaph and Rise in the way they manage your material?
T.A.: I think the music industry has shifted so much in the time between our last album on Epitaph (“Lament”) and our latest on Rise (“Spiral in a straight line”) that its hard to give a comparison. We’ve definitely focused a lot more efforts on social media through this campaign, but that’s mostly just a sign of the times. We have great relationships at all of the labels who have put out our material over the years.
If we suggested now that you participate in a farewell event like the one that will soon be held for Ozzy Osbourne. Who would you like to participate for, with which songs and why?
T.A.: This feels like the type of game we would play in the van together! I wouldn’t want any of my favorite bands to bid farewell .. and we’ve been fortunate enough to tour with a lot amazing
bands that have also been personal influences: AFI, Thursday, Thrice, Converge, Modern Life is War … lets make a supergroup / festival of those!
What is your most pivotal album from your discography and why?
T.A.: I would say “Parting the sea between brightness and me” due to it introducing a much stronger melodic bent to our tunes.
What influence have Earth Crisis had on Touché Amoré ?
T.A.: It’s how Jeremy found hardcore!
What are your favourite tracks from your latest album and why?
T.A.: My favorite songs are generally the most melodic ones. In this case “Nobody’s”, “Goodbye for now”, “Force of Habit” which is a stranger outlier of a song. Also “Altitude”, which we had an incredible Greek singer Ioanna Gika collaborate with us on some haunting guest vocals.
Which bands do you single out from the US Post/HardCore scene? What can we expect from Touché Amoré at your upcoming show on March 7,2025 at Fuzz club?
T.A.: An overall excitement to be coming to Greece for the first
time, and a career spanning set that’s long overdue.
So that’s all from Afternoiz, we wish you every success in your continued upward journey. We would like you to end our interview with a few words to our readers.
T.A.: Thank you so much! We can’t overstate our excitement to finally be coming your way.
