2019 closes out with great friends—California’s Touché Amoré and Michigan’s La Dispute—kicking off a tour at Saint Andrew’s Hall in Detroit, Michigan today on November 16th. Empath will be there opening up as support. The melodic hardcore crowd will undoubtedly have a holiday with this show.
Saint Andrews Hall is one of the sexiest venues in town, featuring old architecture, wonderful balcony space, and a pit that’s only fit for those who love the experience. This entire show will be a mosh pit.
“Can I still get into heaven if I kill myself?”
Hailing from Grand Rapids, Michigan, La Dispute is a post-hardcore band that has been unforgettable since it helped defined the voice of melodic hardcore revival. Wildlife, arguably their most seminal album, released in 2011 and features one of the most important songs in post-hardcore. This track is based off a news story, and is titled “King Park”.
Jordan Dreyer, La Dispute’s vocalist, opens up this track with the lyrics “Another shooting on the southeast side/ This a drive-by, mid-day/ Outside of the bus stop, by Fuller and Franklin/ Or near there, not far from the park/ About a block from where the other shooting was last month/ Or was it last week?/ Shots were fired from an SUV heading northbound, Eastown/ The target a rival but they didn’t hit the target this time/ They hit a kid we think had nothing to do with it”.
Jordan floats through the scene as an angel, watching the killer suffer until the perpetrator finally shouts “Can I ever be forgiven cause I killed that kid?/ It was an accident I swear it wasn’t meant for him!/ And if I turn it on me/ If I even it out/ Can I still get in or will they send me to hell?/ Can I still get into heaven if I kill myself?”
This genre is percussive and lyrical porn.
“I’m losing sleep. I’m losing friends. I’ve got a love/hate love with the city I’m in.”
One of the few bands able to compete with this level of poetic excellence, Touche Amore out of Los Angeles, California, is headed by Jeremy Bolm, a man who screamed his voice raw for the art of it. In 2019 they released Dead Horse X, a complete recording of their first album, which was one of the best moments of 2009. Now it’s rocked two decades.
Stream Dead Horse X
Bolm’s lyrics are more lived than visuals. “I speak in sarcasm to relate to all the things I appreciate,” he states on “Honest Sleep.” These harrowing – unforgettable – but terse lines define all of Bolm’s work.
The song cadence is simple, yet indescribably powerful:
“I’ve got my own brand of patriotism. It comes with nights of emptiness, where I show my true colors. The real meaning of independence. I’m hanging this flag as a warning for you to keep your range. It’ll be better if you keep your distance. It’ll be better if you just keep away. I am marching to the beat of a dead horse.”
While finishing off the track “Nine”, Bolm spits: “But I swear there’s nothing innocent in these eyes, because I’ve seen dead friends, and I’ve seen murder, and I’ve done things I wish I hadn’t done. But that’s not to say that I’m not afraid of long nights dwelling on past mistakes, because with life moving as fast as it does, I’ll still have stories to fucking tell.”
Nothing describes these bands better than their lyrics, the crash of their drums, and the pulsing blood of their instrumentation. If any of this appeals to you, Saint Andrews Hall is the venue for you tonight.
Stream Panorama
Watch Empath’s Video for “The Eye”
Follow Touche Amore on Instagram
Follow La Dispute on Instagram
Follow Empath on Instagram
