Customer Reviews

One Wrench

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

 

 

To stand out, punk rock needs real aggression from the musicians and to have the greatest appeal, the music needs to be more than just thudding drums and guitars with all melody replaced with distortion. Avail hit the nail right on the head with this CD. I like it a lot.

Listen to the vocals on "N30" for an example of the band's involvement in the music.

The music too is interesting and varied, clearly the band has a lot of ideas and they make fine use of them.

I like every track on this album, the drumming on "Levelled" caught my attention as did "Invisible", "Bell", "Union" and "Old Dominion". "Bell especially shows that the Avail span a wider range than just narrow punk.

If you are into punk then you should have no hesitation over buying a copy of this CD.

I have been an AVAIL fan for about 10 years now, and I must say to everyone else that is comparing this album to Over The James..... This album is different. Period. Each album that AVAIL puts out has the same flow to it, just with a different style. You can not compare one album to the next. So in that case One Wrench is one amazing and awesome album that has perfect hooks and grabs you right away. Never has a band been able to pull off what AVAIL pulls off on a daily basis. Of course this compares not to their awesome live performance!

I should first point out that I'm not a fan of hardcore music. Both of my brothers love the stuff, but it just doesn't grab me. The one exception has been Avail. I think it's the vocals more than anything that made the difference. The singer has more range and melody than the shouting and yelling that I normally hear in this type of music. It also has a real energy to it. It's not as good as their last album, Over the James, but is still a really good hardcore album.

Let me preface this one by saying that I absolutely love Avail. They are by far one of my favorite bands. The songs on this album are just what any Avail fan would want and expect. I really liked the song compositions and the lyrics. If I were to start a band again, this is the style I'd go for. There is so much energy and emotion wrapped into every song. So if you like Avail, by this album now. Definitely see the band live. They are outstanding live! Okay, now let me tell you why I gave it only 3 stars. "Over the James" was an incredible album. The sound and execution were killer. On this effort the band went econo and did everything in one session. "OTJ" just set the benchmark too high and this one just doesn't live up to it. There are too many times when the mix just turns to shizzit. The sound is not as clean as "OTJ" and it gets fuzzy sometimes. At times the drums will be high in the mix and then all of the sudden disappear. Which brings me to the point that the band sorely misses Erik Larson. Erik was a perfect fit for this band. Ed is okay, but he just isn't at the same level ability wise. I never liked Erik's drum sound all that much, but I was praying for it on this album. The kit sound was weak. Man I hate dissing this record. I really hope that on the next record the band at least takes another session to get the right sounds and then spends a bit longer on the final mix. Keep playing Avail. The music world needs you!

Avail is the greatest, most underated band around. They sing their songs from the heart, and on the new one, they continue this trend. I don't think in all the years they have been around, that they have ever written a band song? This is a great CD, but you must buy all their CDs to understand the true beauty of this band. And if they come to your town, or even remotely close to your town, go see them. You won't be disappointed!!!! Buy it now!!!!

I have to say, I absolutely love this album, even in it's semi-mediocre tracks. Avail has always been one of the best bands to ever come out of anywhere, with albums like 4 a.m. Friday, Dixie, and Over the James being among the best in my collection. This album, with Avail on Fat Wreck, has a few tracks that to me are just cookie cutter Fat Wreck tracks. The first track for instance, replaced Tim with the lead's from Strung Out or Good Riddance, it could be any of their songs... but oh well, maybe I'm just getting old... notable tracks on this cd, ALL THE EVEN NUMBERED ONES... great, great Avail... go buy it, shut up.

i have known every word these guys sang since high school(probably cuz they went to my high school) but this record is 10 times better than there other ones because its sounds so much more live then them.... either way this is the baddest punk rock band in the world and everyone should go see them NOW!

With One Wrench, Avail continues right along with their no-nonsense brand of hardcore punk. Any fans of Minor Threat, Fugazi or Hot Water Music should definitely check these guys out. One Wrench is impressive because it combines the fury of previous albums like Dixie and 4AM Friday with the more reflective, melodic approach taken on the last album, Over the James. The first song, aptly named Fast One, is great. Also, check out N30 and Old Dominion. Avail is definitely one of the best punk bands around today, and this album shows why. Oh yeah, don't forget to check out Avail live if they come to your town. Their performances are unreal.

it's funny how all these reviews are like 'one wrench' is not as good as 'over the james'. i remember when 'over the james' came out and everyone was like it's not as good as '4am friday'. why can't anyone just appreciate each as a good album that doesn't need to be ranked? can't we be happy that they have made 3 great albums for us. get all three! and if you like them get 'dixie'. you can live w/out 'satiate' which has it's moments and i don't know i kinda did not like 'front porch stories'. but hey i didn't like it but i still think avail is great and am glad they've given me 4 albums i love. oh man this review isn't nearly as good as the review i wrote for 'over the james'.

I love Avail and have all of their albumns. This one is one of the better produced cds. However it falls short of "Over the James". That is not an insult it is worth buying, but it isn't their best.