Customer Reviews

I Am the Avalanche

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Edgy lyrics and talented musicians, what's not to like?. All good tracks, from start to finish. I Am the Avalanche doesn't disappoint.

Sorry I couldn't think of anything cute for a headline - but that's what I really think I am the Avalanche's self titled - AMAZING!

I am the Queen of Exageration though, so you may want to check it out for yourself :)

I was a hater at first. I had been hoping for a Movielife reunion but when the members started joining new bands I started to face the facts. They were done. So I listened to the new bands. Nightmare of You. WOW. Awful. Sorry Brandon and all his loyal followers but if I wanted to listen to the Smiths - I would.

Then came June 2005. I had been keeping up with what Vinnie was doing on MySpace but wasn't really sure if he was touring or what. SO I go to see Head Automatica and who's opening!? None other than IATA. Very excited.

Not so much when they came out as a disaster (no pun intended) - again it could have been that I tryed not to listen. Again saw them at Warped 2005, and a little intoxicated, I may have screamed out some Movielife songs for requests. Still I was a hater.

Then this album came out and blew it all out of the water. My roomate got it and I would stick my tongue out whenever she played it. But after a few hundred listens I came to understand that this is one of the best albums that has come out in the past year!

There has been some doosies (from the label that signed the Movielife and ultimately IATA - Drive Thru) but I am really proud to say that this album stuck out in the midst of a bunch of really medicore and passion-less albums.

I listen to this album and as much I don't want to compare it to the movielife I have to for just a second. I listen to Vinnie's voice and remember the passion he (and I) had for the movielife.

I Am The Avalanche experiments with alot of different riffs and music types for this album and it's one reason why it's so electic. I listen to Murderous and I feel a little Sublime/Incubus feeling and then I listen to "I Took A Beating" and feel like I'm seeing a hardcore show.

The album slows past number 10 in my opinion (but don't most albums)and it's also where the lyrics fail (listen to "Emergency" and you'll know what I mean).

I fought with giving this album 4 stars - but it deserves 5 for sure. Even if the lyrics get questionable :)

So yes, I did like the Movielife, but I was not a huge fan because I felt like it was too similar to what I had already heard countless times before. What did intrigue me, though, was Vinnie Caruana's intense voice, a barrage of emotion and anger that deflected any of the "emo" labels that people love to pin on bands nowadays. The first time through Avalanche's self-titled, I couldn't help but sing along to Vinnie's driving melodies, but after a few more listens, I realized that he wasn't the only person in the band. The guitars pound away with the sort of rolling intensity that with Vinnie's voice, seem just at home. The drummer is not one to overlook either, with solid non-showoffy rhythms that aren't just lifted from your everyday pop punk band. Standouts for me are:

1)Green Eyes
2)Clean Up
3)Always
4)This Is Dungeon Music

This album is always what I play when I can't decide what else to listen to. Definitely pick it up because you won't be disappointed.

i listen to alot of emo/punk and these guys stand out, Vinnie writes amazing emotional songs like on I Took A Beating. Creative but originial mixed in. What can i said about it, just get it!

I saw them live this summer in Phoenix and they were pretty freaking awesome. So, I coped the cd and it was good. But I couldnt help thinking how much better they were live. This being said, its still a great cd. Best Song: New Disaster Second is Green Eyes. Peace Emo Kids

This album is absolutely outstanding. I've been listening to them since the beginning of last october, and it is amazing to see that they came out with an album this incredible. The improvement is just outstanding. I introduce them to everyone I know, and they fall in love with them. I'm also a big fan of The Movielife, but it's not the Movielife, it's Avalanche. You shouldn't be emo and compare them, but Avalanche is Still outstanding with great musical talent and lyrics that hit your body with a passion. I highly recommend it.

It really took me a while to warm up to this kind of music. Maybe it was checking out criteria, and some others on saddle creek, even though I hated it at first. It might have something to do with getting into weatherbox, which I also hated at first. Regardless of what it was that convinced me, I was very excited to find out, yet again, that there is good music in ANY genre, if you look for it.

It's easy to give this album one listen and dismiss it. Granted, it sounds like the majority of the pop-punk on the radio, and I'll admit, I hated it at first. After giving IATA a real chance, it starts to show that this stuff is far from generic...or if it is generic, it's entirely intentional. It may be in my head, it may just be some way to trick myself into enjoying this stuff, but it shows on certain tracks, such as "wasted". The chorus and second verse almost transcend boring pop punk into emo slowcore.

Hell, even dismissing any kind of higher-statement this music (probably doesn't, but might) have, there's plenty to enjoy here. I don't like hardly any pop-punk, but there is something more going on here. Let your gaurd down, forget about being embarassed if someone catches you listening to pop-emo, and you might actually enjoy this, if you don't already.

I'm not sure between 3 or 4 stars on this one, but I was amazed how much my opinion has reversed with just a few listens, and that's rare for me with music like this. I honestly believe there is something to enjoy here for anyone who has any interest in emo or pop-punk, and maybe even those of you who don't, if you are open to it :)

I first heard the song "This Is Dungeon Music" and after a quick search, found and ordered this CD.

Though none of the other songs turned out to be quite as catchy as "This Is Dungeon Music," I still fully enjoyed the whole CD. Anyone already a fan of punk, alternative, or emo rock should get a fair level of enjoyment from this CD.

When The Movielife split, many adoring fans found themselves confused and bemused as to why one of the most under-rated acts on Drive Thru Records had gone and done something as silly as split. The thought even probably ran through front man Vinnie Caruana's mind too as he found himself working construction in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, two days after he'd been playing in front of 3000 kids.

Luckily for us both, Caruanas passion for music was long from dead. In fact, it simply needed a short hiatus from band life in order for him to truly realize he belongs on stage being arguably the best front man in pop-punk. When he finally decided to play again, he had plenty of material from which to draw and the end product was I Am The Avalanche, both the band itself, and their first debut album.

"Dead and Gone", the opening track a live favorite is a melodious ode to an old girlfriend of Caruana's, although thoughts of closure with the Movielife can't help but be considered. Catchy and gritty, undoubtedly a song full of both regret, and anger, but focusing on the future at the same time.

"Green Eyes" opens with quite a bizarre set of lyrics and gradually builds into a questionable musical assault on an ex girlfriend. "I knew she was from the West Coast, or the best coast as she said" - it's hardly Shakespeare, but this little sonnet has just as much charm.

Following that quite odd song, "I Took A Beating" should attract any Movielife fan. Loud, proud, heavy and ripened, this song tells the story of Caruana's 2003Undoubtedly one of the best tracks on the album.

"Symphony", another outstanding song yet again revolves around a simple yet catchy bass line. It's beefy, it's meaningful, and most importantly, it almost signifies what IATA are together as a band. A mix up of several different elements, coming together to make better than good.

"My Second Restraining Order", the last track closes the album perfectly, drawing influence without a doubt from every single other track on the CD, and probably most of what The Movielife did, its almost an ode to IATA, and a cliff-hanger of an ending. It leaves you wanting more, and if Caruana is anything to go by, more is what you'll be getting.

All in all, a brilliant debut, matured by Caruana's experiences. Combining the heavy with the melodious, and with the lyrical genius being the biggest compliment the utterly great songs could get, this album is worth fifty of it's weight in gold.

To give you a frame of reference, here's my current list of favorites:
I am the Avalanche
Death Cab for Cutie
Jets to Brazil
Damien Rice

This CD has already spent a lot of time on my player. It is brilliant music from start to finish. Start playing the CD with the cut "Green Eyes", then go back and play it all the way through. The whole project sparkles with the influence of Barrett Jones and the exceptional songwriting of Vinnie Caruana. The band comes together around Caruana's wide-ranging, expressive voice and loads emotion into every song. Anyone who has ever loved and lost will feel the pain in "Green Eyes" and the longing in "Dead and Gone". Listen carefully for the intricate drumming in "Symphony", a deceptively complex rock and roll song that sounds straightforward in the first few listens. All the songs are like this: listen once for the hooks and the great melodies. Go back again and listen for the gems these musicians sprinkle into every song. You'll hear something new every time you play it. The bass lines are inventive, the interplay of the guitars transcends the usual rock formulas. It's worth multiple plays.