Lexington, Kentucky post-hardcore band Too Close To Touch announce their final album ‘For Keeps’ today, coming out on March 8th via Epitaph Records. Over more than ten years and two full-length releases the band continuously earned praise for their skillful musicianship and intricate arrangements that highlight each member’s technical ability. The glue that held them together throughout it all was beloved front man Keaton Pierce, who met his untimely death in 2022.
With atmospheric production and dynamic drums, Too Close To Touch share lead single ‘Control’ alongside a satisfying music video chronicling the meticulous process of artist/director Whit Flint painting the album’s artwork.
‘Control’
Today the band has also shared a mini documentary where guitarist Mason Marble and drummer Kenny Downey sit down to discuss the significance of the record and what it means for the future of Too Close To Touch.
“ ‘For Keeps’ is our last gift to the Too Close To Touch community,” Mason explains. “Too Close To Touch would never have existed without Keaton and will not exist without him in the future.”
“To be able to give it closure is a blessing,” Kenny continues. “To have this much of him left, his lyrics and emotions captured… not a lot of people have that.”
A play on one of Keaton’s many nicknames (“Keeps”), the band reveals that ‘For Keeps’ is the final keepsake for themselves and fans. Encouraging listeners to “keep close and let the record change them in whatever way they let it,” this last catalog entry ensures the preservation of Keaton’s legacy.
Last fall the band unearthed single “Hopeless” in observance of Keaton’s birthday. Their first music since their 2016 album ‘Haven’t Been Myself’, it was also their first posthumous offering of the late frontman, featuring vocals from The World Alive’s Telle Smith. “Sourced from a library of unfinished and unreleased material,” Too Close To Touch dip back into that untapped library in For Keeps, honoring Keaton for the powerhouse vocalist, frontman and lyricist that he was.
With a knack for infusing might with melody, Too Close to Touch is Keaton Pierce (vocals), Mason Marble (guitar), and Kenny Downey (drums). Offering an explosive mix of indie-rock cool and punk-blasted emo pop energy, the band has toured extensively with the Vans Warped Tour and acts such as Waterparks, Issues and Crown the Empire. The band’s releases include the EP series I’m Hard To Love, But So Are You, Nerve Endings (2015), and Haven’t Been Myself (2016). In 2016, Too Close To Touch won the award for Best Underground Band at the Alternative Music Press Awards. Haven’t Been Myself debuted on the Billboard charts as the #3 Alternative Artist Album, #9 Top New Artist Album, and #133 Billboard Top 200 Current Album.
For Keeps Tracklisting
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