Angels & Airwaves Album: “I-Empire”

Whereas "We Don't Need to Whisper" sounded a bit forced and stuck in the eighties, I-Empire brings back Tom Delonge to his element; this move should please both blink fans and fans of AVA alike. There is a much harder rock sound to a lot of the songs on this album, and the slower songs show a side of Tom we've never heard. "Rite of Spring" is also the most personal song he has ever written. This album feels much more thought out as well - there aren't needless wandering instrumental bits stuffed into the songs. Pick it up if you like catchy rock music with a positive theme (the powerful notion that "you can do anything"). Highly recommended.

Well, let's see. How do you begin to explain the beauty that is Angels and Airwaves to someone who doesn't want to listen, or can't look past the fact that Blink 182 is no more? Chances are you can't, which is why I-Empire has only sold about 150,000 copies in it's first few months of existence (although I still say that's an impressive number considering the record business today). But for those of you who love AVA, have an open mind, or perhaps were never die hard fans of Blink, here goes:

1) Call To Arms (5/5)- Wow, what a way to start off the album... and without the two minute intro that came along with Valkyrie. This song is an incredible lift off with amazing vocals that have been shockingly sang to perfection by Tom during live performances.

2) Everything's Magic (5/5)- The obvious single, I haven't stopped listening to this one since it leaked oh so many months ago. Does it sound like Anthem Pt. 2? A little bit. Does it sound like "Close to Me" by the Cure, a little bit. Are those bad things? I don't think so. Perfect single.

3) Breathe (3/5)- I find this to be a poor placement track wise on the album, but lots of fans love it so it's just my opinion. To me, it's something of a bland song that is really repetitive and doesn't truly kick in until about 4 minutes in, at which point it becomes brilliant. You probably really have to be truly in love to enjoy this one as much as Tom does. Oh yea, musically it's got a Phil Collins/Peter Gabriel sound to it.

4) Love Like Rockets (4/5)- A cool little song with an Eisenhower speech at the beginning that as a history teacher I can't get enough of. This one is hard to describe (other than it being very "outer-spacey") and doesn't really stand out. However, it's a great song with a great ending reminiscent of the end of "Feeling This".

5) Sirens (5/5)- I felt this should've been the second single as even my friends who don't care for AVA make me put this one on in the car. It almost has two different chorus' and the entire song is a "sing along" if I've ever heard one. I can't say enough good things about "Sirens", even if I have a completely different interpretation of the lyrics than Tom.

6) Secret Crowds (3/5)- This is where the title of the album comes from. I'm sorry, but I just don't love this one. It falls into the old AVA trap of getting far too repetitive. The radio version is said to have cut the song down to about three minutes, removing most of the repetition at the end and the drawn out intro, which I'm pretty sure is going to make it one of my favorites. I wish it would've been cut down for the album.

7) Star of Bethlehem (4/5)- This one has been out for a while, but has been cut from the rest of the song for the purpose of the album (People had complained about the length of intros on WDNTW). This could definitely be a Moby song if you didn't know it was AVA and it really set's up the next song.

8) True Love (4/5)- Combined with S.O.B, this song has been a favorite of fans of the band for over a year now. It's a great song that makes you feel like it's Christmas. Unfortunately, it gets really repetitive at the end "The Stars in the Sky....". He repeats the chorus about 15 times and after a while you kind of wish he would stop.

9) Lifeline (6/5)- Wow. This is the most touching and wonderful song Tom Delonge has ever written. Reminiscent of "A Little's Enough", this one is guaranteed to give you chills. This song is about Tom's drug/pain killer addiction that nearly killed him a few years ago. He is definitely talking about God here, and the "Footsteps" reference is really powerful. His vocals for the line "Here's your lifeline" sound like nothing Tom has ever done before. "We all make mistakes, here's your lifeline"... incredible.

10) Jumping Rooftops (NR)- I'm kind of sick of this whole interlude thing that's been plaguing the Blink boys since Untitled. It does however bridge Lifeline and Rite of Spring very well.

11) Rite of Spring (3/5)- This is probably the one that will get me negative reviews, but I just don't feel it. The chorus is great but the lyrics throughout the song, while extremely personal (which is nice), are not really well written. It seems out of place on the album and somewhat awkward.

12) Heaven (5/5)- This one is unreal. Throughout the song you hear little clips of previous songs such as Valkyrie Missile and The Adventure, which is incredibly cool. The song itself is just 6 minutes of awesomeness, great music, great lyrics, and great vocals! This is an uplifting and new way to end an album, quite contrary to the way Tom has typically done so; Start the Machine, I'm Lost Without You, Instrumental... etc. "Please stay, don't go, I've got you now... are you curious please stay!"

So I have to say that as amazing as Whisper was, I-Empire may very well top it. Lifeline and Heaven are two of the best songs ever written (by anyone!) and the rest of the album is as wonderful as I've described. I can't wait to hear what's next.

This is easily the best CD I've heard all year. The human spirit permeates every song. Tom DeLonge has managed to give musical form to the intangible and timeless. The CD is not so much a collection of 12 songs as it is a 53-minute sonic sunrise. Superb!

I own over 1600 albums from the past 40+ years, and this may be the first time I've given every single track 5/5 stars. There's nothing even close to a weak track in the bunch. It's an uplifting breath of fresh air. There's nothing completely original, but that doesn't matter at all. Every single second is thoroughly enjoyable.

I was never a Blink 182 fan, although I do like a few of their songs. But I considered them mostly bratty and annoying, including Tom Delonge's vocals. But here it works completely. He and the band has done an amazing job. I really enjoyed their debut, but I think this blows it away.

I'm a huge U2 fan, and I highly recommend this album to fans of U2's anthemic music.

Absolutely perfect in every way.

Angels & Airwaves continues forward with their 80s-tinged blending of punk vocals, anthemic and chest-beating U2 choruses, and the guitar shadings and conceptual nature of classic Pink Floyd. All in all, some of my favorite musical touchstones that have been part of the soundtrack to my life.

"Call To Arms" opens in classic AvA style, widescreen and epic, beautiful chiming guitars and pulsing keyboards building up into a huge song with big choruses and gorgeous Hammond organ.

"Everything's Magic" has become sort've "our song" between my girlfriend and I. I heard it for the first time just days before we met, and it was played quite a bit in the car during our first few months. Everytime we hear it come on in a department store or the mall, we give eachother this look and a smile that is priceless. There's a nice pop-punk quality to it (which is different from anything on their first album), although the chorus is a pure adrenaline rush reminescent of early Asia.

"Love Like Rockets" is another "classic AvA" song, with those trademark sequenced keyboards and drums. The intro is perfectly epic, utilising sound samples of President Eisenhower, astronauts, and various radio chatter and feedback that brings to mind the Space Race of the 50's and 60's. Tom seems to be making a parallel between the giddy rush of new love, and launching on a rocket into an unknown frontier.

"Breathe" is sort've a ballad with nice soft keyboards. "Sirens" is fast-paced and frenetic and the chorus reminds me of The Proclaimers. "Secret Crowds" has a huge chorus, although I love the music and words during the verses a bit more. "Star of Bethlehem/True Love" was originally recorded for a compilation CD in late 2006, and is mixed a little differently on I-Empire. Another mini-epic, with trancey sequencers and Edge-like guitar effects. "Lifeline" has a keyboard sound that immediately brought me fresh memories of 1985, considering that it sounded exactly like the intro to Reading Rainbow.

"Jumping Rooftops" is a cut-and-pasted percussion and keyboard interlude that leads into "Rite of Spring", which is another relatively experimental song, sounding more raw and punky as Tom reflects on his teenage life. (He said that he wanted to write a song that would sound like a garage band's first tune, written in high school.) The album ends with "Heaven", reprising musical and lyrical themes from "Valkyrie Missile", the opening track on We Don't Need To Whisper, effectively ending the two-album concept and bringing things full circle.

The lyrics continue in the same vein of We Don't Need To Whisper, and are positively infectious in their optimistic spiritual outlook, topics of reformation and reinvention, living your dreams, and never giving up. This is a message that I wish more Top 40 bands would preach, and is vastly needed during the hard times we live in. Being a grounded but optimistic person myself (as well as having a love for the 80's, Sci-Fi, and prog-rock), this band is perfect blend of my favorite things.

Overall, I-Empire sounds quite a bit like their last album, although has a couple of curveballs and is a little more organic sounding. New bassist Matt Wachter (formerly of 30 Seconds To Mars) and guitarist David Kennedy don't stand out too much (being buried behind layers of effects and keyboards, not to mention Tom's own playing), but drummer Atom Willard continues with greatness previously seen before, with a fiery, explosive energy, awesome fills, and a rhythmic groove that very nearly puts him in the "virtuoso" category. Check out his electronic/acoustic percussion showcase throughout the first few minutes of "Star of Bethlehem/True Love" (notably performed just as perfect in a live setting when I caught the band live in early 2008.)

The album artwork is a departure from the last one, instead featuring a painted montage (by Drew Struzan, famous movie poster artist of Lucas and Spielberg) of the band over a sunset horizon. Yet another reference to a positive 80's childhood.

If AvA fans can't get enough of this type of sound, I'd strongly recommend some other prog-rock bands such as Pendragon (Believe or Pure), 30 Seconds To Mars, It Bites (The Tall Ships or The Big Lad In The Windmill), Rush (Grace Under Pressure or Power Windows), dredg, Coheed & Cambria and Asia.