Since day one, you could count on Torche to deliver a sound based equally on intestine-rumbling doom, via guitars tuned to ungodly depths, cushioned up against saccharine-coated rock that essentially and theoretically negated the discographies, if not the existence, of every pop-punk, pretty-boy/girl band around.
Sure, the melodic aspect of the band’s compositions got stronger and more prominent as they moved from Meanderthal through to Harmonicraft, but when called upon, they could still rattle colons with the best of them.
Album number four begins on a darker clip with slow-burning opener Annihilation Affair and continues along in a blearier tone than long-time fans have come to expect. Even poppier tracks like Bishop In Arms and Loose Men have a deeper sense of solemnity despite being bright lights of sunshine when compared to just about anyone else treading the boards today. This balancing act is highlighted in Minions, where a sludgy, downpicked crunch is propped up by classic rock vocal phrasing and a grandiose chorus. Restarter is still Torche, just a darker, more sullen expression of their ‘doom pop’. If all depression and bum-outs sounded this uplifting, the world would be a way better place to be.
Via Relapse
