The new single “Breaking Waves” lands today as Chalk Hands’ opening gesture toward their upcoming record “The Line That Shapes the Coast of Us”, out March 27th next year through Dog Knights Productions. It’s the first song they’ve chosen to let out into the world, not as an album opener, but as a glimpse into the broader range the new album pulls from — one point on a spectrum that stretches into far darker places and, at times, into brighter ones too.
Their debut “Don’t Think About Death” set a very promising foundation of sprawling textures and emotional weight; this new work pushes into different edges, leaning into contrasts that feel sharper and at times unexpectedly light.
The record was tracked with producer Tom Hill at The Bookhouse Recording Studio, and the band defines it as a step into a wider frame of thought — still grounded in the honesty that shaped their earlier work, but with a stronger pull toward outward landscapes.
Where the debut circled mortality and internal struggle, the new stuff stretches toward the spaces between people, the shifting boundaries of connection, and the uneasy territories where place and memory blur. It also sits in a broader sonic reach, drifting between screamo, post-rock, post-hardcore, shoegaze, ambient, and post-metal without losing the sense of an anchored identity.
“Breaking Waves” fits into that shift. Antoine Mansion, who co-wrote the track and handles guitar and vocals, places its origins in an unexpected corner of his listening habits.
“At the time I wrote ‘Breaking Waves’, I was listening to a lot of alt-country and americana (still do) which I think you can hear in the opening section,” he says. The first riff didn’t immediately feel like something for the band, but sending it to Tommy Lester (guitar/vocals) changed that. Lester encouraged him to finish it, which helped open the path to an album that leans heavily into the idea of contrast as direction rather than just texture. Antoine puts it plainly: “Sonic contrast has always been at the core of what we do, but I feel like we’ve pushed it even further this time.”
Lyrically, the song fits the broader themes of the album. Tommy describes his writing as stream-of-consciousness, closer to drawing than structured composition. “I tend to think visually, so the words I write often describe the pictures I see in my head,” he explains.
He ties that back to his own life with a simple metric: time. “If I relate this sentiment to my own experience, it all comes down to time and how I choose to spend it. How much will a decision cost me?” The song’s lines circle that tension, echoing the feeling of moving toward a distant light while the tide keeps pulling out from under you. (see the rest of his commentary below).
The new album widens that meditation. Across its 44 minutes, Chalk Hands look toward the edges where meaning slips — the threshold between light and shadow, connection and solitude, memory and disappearance.
The title leans into that idea of everything being shaped and reshaped over time, not through sudden breaks but through slow erosion. The band have spent years touring the UK and Europe, including runs with Touché Amoré and Frail Body, and appearances at ArcTanGent and Sonic Rites. They’ve reached as far as Turkey, which they see as its own quiet landmark — a point on the map that hints at how far this new record might carry them.
For now, “Breaking Waves” is the first step, concise but full of the pushes and pulls that drive the album’s larger world. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled. Something really special is coming.
4 songs/artists that influenced Breaking Waves
by Antoine (guitar/vocals)
‘Loom’ by Frameworks (Album: Loom):
Loom is one of my favourite album openers (if you ignore the 23 second intro track). It feels so triumphant and exciting, and it made me feel straight away that I was in for a great ride.
Breaking Waves is not our album opener, but it is the first song we have decided to share as a single and I feel it bears a similar triumphant vibe. Essentially, we are hoping it gets people as excited for the album as I was when I heard Loom for the first time.
‘These Northwood Blues’ by Jack M. Senff (EP: These Northwood Blues):
At the time I wrote Breaking Waves, I was listening to a lot of alt-country and americana (still do) which I think you can hear in the opening section. I remember coming up with the first riff and thinking, “I don’t know where I’m going with this but it’s probably not for Chalk Hands”.
I sent it to Tommy (the other guitarist and vocalist) anyway and to my surprise, he said he thought this could work for album 2, so I finished the song and it became what it is today. That is the beauty of where we’re at right now, we’re exploring new and unfamiliar territory, and I think it started with this song and slowly became a defining part of the whole record. Essentially, sonic contrast has always been at the core of what we do, but I feel like we’ve pushed it even further this time. There are equally lighter/more uplifting and darker/heavier moments compared to our previous work.
Fun fact: Jack M. Senff used to sing in the screamo band William Bonney.
‘Notte Dei Cristalli A Rue Des Trois Frères’ by La Quiete (Album: La fine non e la fine):
When I first got into screamo/emoviolence, it was the angrier and more melancholic sides of the genre that pulled me in. A few years later, when I discovered La Quiete, it felt incredibly refreshing.
I loved how their music can be raw and intense but still somehow be uplifting. Realising that something so aggressive and frantic could also feel hopeful completely changed the way I approached the genre. And don’t get me wrong, Breaking Waves does not sound like a La Quiete song, but there is definitely an uplifting feel to it, and I have them to thank for opening that door for me.
‘Promise’ by Adventures (from their EP ‘Clear My Head With You’):
My favourite emo release of all time is Clear My Head With You by Adventures. I could talk about that EP endlessly, but one thing that has always stuck with me is how they use those slow, tom heavy sections. I’ve wanted to try something like that in one of our songs for ages, and Breaking Waves finally felt like the right place to do it.
Behind the lyrics
by Tommy (guitar/vocals/the hand behind the cover art)
I often write lyrics in the same way I draw my illustrations, using a stream of consciousness rather than a well-laid plan. I tend to think visually, so the words I write often describe the pictures I see in my head.
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In Breaking Waves, I imagined a figure I named Desire, who represents everything we strive for but also embodies the flaws that can appear when we yearn for something deeply. Scenes of chaos, confusion, and loss unfold in a surrealist fashion, and questions arise about whether the decisions you make are truly right for you. At what point do the lines between choice and desire blur and become something negative, like desperation, egotism, greed, or obsession? Is what you desire within your capabilities? How far beyond your comfort level do you need to push to achieve it?
If I relate this sentiment to my own experience, it all comes down to time and how I choose to spend it. How much will a decision cost me?
“The Line That Shapes the Coast of Us” releases 27th March 2026 via Dog Knights Productions on digital, deluxe vinyl, CD and cassette.
