Review Summary: La Dispute and Touche Amore do everything you expect them to, and do it well.
When it comes to spastic, raw, and emotionally drenched hardcore music, you'd be hard pressed to find two bands that do it better than La Dispute and Touche Amore. With their new split, they show just how well they can hone their skills and craft themselves another bleak and suffocatingly intense musical experience. Throughout the four short songs, the vocalists lend themselves to each other in small snippets to form an impressive and enjoyable contrast between the two. However it is unfortunate that the EP is rather lacking in its length, with TA only holding three minutes of it. This is of course nothing new for the band since they are known for having extremely short songs, though it works to great effect with their expertise in brevity. La Dispute, on the other hand, holds the majority of the time on the record, contributing two very solid songs. The release in whole is a fantastic addition to both of the group's slowly expanding discographies and is a nice listen to hold us over until we get some new material from each of them.
Touche Amore starts off unsurprisingly energetic with
I'll Get My Just Deserve. As per usual with the group, each line is delivered with a swift punch and the music pulses angrily in the foreground. Jeremy Bolm's shouts bounce between barely decipherable and pleasantly furious throughout his two main tracks. His flawless desperation continually builds the angrily pounding atmosphere that remains strong throughout the EP. Helping with this is Jordan Dreyer who appears in small doses on both songs. They bounce seamlessly together on TA's second track,
I'll Deserve Just That, which moves smoothly up and down from softly pounded drums, up to explosive guitar. The production value is spot on with what is needed for this type of release and helps accentuate each aspect of the bands, both their shrieking vocals and extremely strong musicianship.
Following that trend is La Dispute, bringing the fury immediately on
How I Feel. Jordan drops the whiny vocalism he has become known for here and sticks to his fantastic shouting that gives the song the perfect injection of emotion that he has done so well in the past. Along with that he brings his poetic songwriting to
Why It Scares Me, perhaps one of the group's best. The shout of "Sometimes I think they're all acting/Times I'm scared that I'm acting too" is a perfect example of everything this band has to offer. It's the raw, intense, and emotional fury that has embraced their fans since the beginning. He is of course joined by Jeremy on both tracks, adding exactly what Jordan did to TA's songs. The way these bands flow so easily together is impressive to hear and makes the EP perfectly balanced for each of them.
Perhaps the only gripe to find here is how short it is, but for the eight minutes it runs, it captures your attention and doesn't let go until Jordan sends you off with his final shout. It leaves you wanting more, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Both La Dispute and Touche Amore are at top form here and it's clear that they have no intention of stopping. For fans of both bands,
Searching For A Pulse/The World Of The World, is an extremely satisfying release and leaves you hopeful for what they have cooking for us next, knowing full well that they have the potential to do something brilliant.
