Album Review – Angels and Airwaves – I-Empire

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It’s interesting watching a big band break up and seeing the results of the individual member’s solo efforts. A lot of bands break up with the stars convinced that when they do a solo album, they’ll leave the losers they’ve been feuding with behind, and that they alone will be revealed as the true greatness behind the band. Often though, they wind up making records that sound like only half, or less than half, of a greater equation. So wrapped up were they in their own talents, they lost sight of what their bandmates’ talents brought to their music.

That certainly seemed to be the case for former Blink-182 frontman Tom DeLonge’s new band, Angels & Airwaves. Tiring of Blink-182’s million selling toilet humor pop-punk formula, he broke off to record his “mature” record We Don’t Need To Whisper under the Angels and Airwaves moniker, enthusiastically describing it as the “best music in 20 years”.

The hype led up to an inevitable let-down. Blink-182’s drummer Travis Barker had played a big role in structuring Blink’s songs and keeping them tight and to the point. “Fourth Member” Jerry Finn had helped with the arrangements, and bassist Hoppus had helped with the hooks. Without them, DeLonge’s music sounded directionless. There was actually a pretty good album buried in WDNTW, but it was difficult to find. The songs were bloated, over 5 minutes each, with endless build ups and a lack of big, deal-clinching hooks. Never before had a album so long and tedious sounded so unfinished. Some began to speculate that DeLonge’s melodies might be best suited for 2 and a half minute sugar-pop punk ditties about breakups, and nothing greater.

It’s with some surprise, then, that I can report that Delonge’s new Angels and Airwaves record, I-Empire, is great, and arguably DeLonge’s best work. He’s grown into the mature style power pop that he’s been honing since the last self-titled Blink 182 album, and finally fond the sweet spot between pouring his heart out, and delivering the hooks his music needs to stick with an audience.

I read that this album would be “stripped down”, and that he would be doing acoustic sets. Actually “I-Empire” is as excessive as ever musically, packed with synthesizers and electronic bells and whistles. In fact, there are several 80s-esque, keyboard assisted pop dirges, and the band it most reminds me of is (+44), his Delonge’s former bandmate’s new project. It almost sounds like he deliberately did some songs on here in response to theirs, to beat them at their own game. On several (”Sirens” being a good example), he succeeds. Hoppus and Barker have a good sound with (+44), but DeLonge is the better songwriter, and he gets more mileage out of it.

The stripping down appears to be in the song structure. I-Empire delivers punch after punch with every track, and even the longer songs don’t overstay their welcome. When I first heard it I listened to the whole thing without skipping through a single track. Even with repeated listening there are few songs I pass on.

Will Angels and Airwaves ever be as big as Blink-182 is? I doubt it. While this album
gets to the point a lot faster than the last one did, the songs still take a while to swell into full form and deliver, and larger audiences might not warm to it. But If you listen to a lot of music and tire of the same old 3 power chords, you’ll appreciate the build-up and craftsmanship.

This is a great album, and DeLonge has finally proven that following his muse and developing this new style was worth the risk. Hats off to him. (jf)

Key Tracks:
MP3 | Angels & Airwaves – Secret Crowds [via]

MP3 | Angels & Airwaves – Call to Arms [via]

MP3 | Angels & Airwaves – Sirens [via]

Tagged as: Angels and Airwaves