Picking up where Parting The Sea Between Brightness And Me left off, Is Survived By’s the first single “Just Exist” finds Touche Amore maintaining their direction of unconventional song forms with no real chorus, but plenty of parts for fans to scream along with during the brief 2:18 running time. The opening line “I was once asked how I’d like to be remembered/ And I simply smiled and said ‘I’d rather stay forever!”, is an honest proclamation from frontman Jeremy Bolm who is no stranger to sharing how he feels about life.
“Just Exist” does however feature a slight difference when compared to PTSBBAM. It’s guitar parts come off as being less distorted/effects driven and more “natural” sounding akin to angular indie rock and proto-punk bands (think Mission of Burma and contemporaries like Mewithoutyou.)
Personally, I like the direction Touche Amore are headed in and cannot wait to hear what the rest of Is Survived By sounds like when released on September 24th via Deathwish, Inc.