Aaron Bruno, better known as AWOLNATION, became a household name in alternative circles just a few years ago, thanks to the massive success of his band’s multi-platinum debut single, “Sail.” Now the electronic rockers are back with their sophomore full-length and the follow-up to 2011’s Megalithic Symphony. The album, RUN, features fourteen tracks clocking in at a total of just under an hour, and is unrelenting from the get-go.
Right away the listener is blasted with the simplistic but powerful title track. “Run” blends symphonic elements with the band’s rocking electronic sound. Lyrically Bruno explores an intriguing topic in the flaws of human nature, and while the answering-machine outro seems a little overkill, the song is an otherwise great way to kick things off. Its successor, “Fat Face,” is a stripped-down tune driven almost exclusively by piano. The grimy but catchy “Hollow Moon (Bad Wolf)” is the album’s lead single, and its aggressive ending adds to the song’s bite. “Jailbreak” tones things down a few notches, while the vicious “KOOKSEVERYWHERE!!!!” is bound to have heads bobbing along to the beat.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2PsXT88UeU[/youtube]“I Am” starts out calm before building into another foot-tapper on the first chorus and staying that way for the remainder of the song. “Headrest for My Soul” gives the listener a bit of a breather sonically, before the heavy banger “Dreamers” unleashes another aural assault. The hard hitters continue with “Windows,” a song that pairs dirty-sounding electronics and a sing-along sensibility, making it one of the strongest on the entire record.
With the exception of heating up near the end, “Holy Roller” is nothing spectacular; “Woman Woman” and “Lie Love Live Love” follow in the same vein, although the latter of the two doesn’t even boast that much. “Like People, Like Plastic” is interesting in that it has two distinct parts: the meat of the song, and a dissonant ending. This ending is absolutely phenomenal, and its sheer intensity strikes a fine contrast with the album closer, the atmospheric “Drinking Lightning.”
On the band’s latest full-length, AWOLNATION avoids falling into the “sophomore slump” and instead offers up a variety of different sounds sure to please even the most casual of fans. There’s definitely a hierarchy of songs in terms of staying power, but even those on the lowest level of this hierarchy don’t hinder RUN from being an enjoyable listen overall.
0 Comments