music

Awolnation – Megalithic Symphony (2011)

More “indie-tronica”? Maybe I actually like the stuff…

Anyone even slightly familiar with today’s alternative music scene has no doubt heard the song “Sail,” with its eerie, minimalist, electronic instrumentation. Some people can’t stand the analog “buzz” and the fuzzed-out vocals, but for the most part, the song has been a hit with audiences. It’s also one of the biggest sleeper hits of all time, a pretty interesting story in and of itself.

“Sail” is part of a growing trend of electronic-based indie “rock,” which I must admit has really caught the attention of my ears, although it definitely pushes the boundaries of anything commonly labeled “rock” and leans more heavily on industrial and futurepop influences. Immediately drawn to these artificial sounds, melodic sensibilities, and cryptic lyrics, I had to see if the rest of Megalithic Symphony was anything like “Sail.” The short answer? It’s not. The good news? It’s pretty damn rewarding in its own right.

Megalithic Symphony is surprisingly dense and intense but also easy to listen to and remarkably uplifting. Figuring out where Awolnation as a band and as a man starts and stops is a little fuzzy, but whoever’s responsible for these hooks and chord progressions has an amazing understanding of what naturally “sounds good.” So many musicians are bogged down in minor keys or bastardized pentatonic scales, never really exploring the best of what music has to offer. Anyone can write a catchy chorus or two, but why more artists don’t bother with sounds like these is beyond me.

The chord progression in “People,” manifest in the string-like synth backing is brilliant in its simplicity. There’s nothing weird going on rhythmically, it sounds like it “should” and the man/band crafts a melody around it that isn’t exactly catchy but extremely pleasant, particularly the “…it’s a beautiful world” part. “Jump on My Shoulders” is a little more rhythmically focused yet features another elegant melody in the chorus. “Guilty Filthy Soul” is a throwback to some of the cheesily upbeat anthems of the early 80’s; again, these tunes aren’t complex or intricate…they’re just awesome. And I can’t forget about the hymn-like “All I Need” that bears a resemblance to Jackie Wilson’s “Higher.” More of the same can be found on the album’s other two singles, “Kill Your Heroes” and “Not Your Fault,” and as much as I love these tracks, I feel like I’d just be repeating myself if I continued talking about how wonderfully cadenced these pieces are and how and every note was born to follow the one before it. Even the conflated and meandering “Knights of Shame” has some truly inspired moments in it, and it’s a real shame that some of the snippets weren’t more fully formed.

The instrumentation is almost exclusively electronic (“Kill Your Heroes” is the only thing resembling a typical rock song) and though it retains a bit of an indie rock feel, it’s not driven nearly as much by sentimentality as the “indie” label might suggest. Similar to Bleachers’ Strange Desire, there’s a noticeable influx of soaring 80’s pop melodies and even a few of those chimes, blips, and beeps, albeit with an updated approach. Bruno’s vocals range from grainy and distant to clean and sincere, but he always holds his infectious tunes without fail, all the while indulging in everything from the clean and sparse arrangements found in “Guilty Filthy Soul” to the dense “wall of sound” approach in tracks like “Not Your Fault” (which I suppose is rather “rock-ish” as well).

I’m resisting the urge to do a track-by-track here (mostly because I’d probably repeat myself ad infinitum) though I do want to touch on the medley-esque “Knights of Shame.” I’m almost positive that this track wasn’t conceived as such and probably exists as an amalgam of unused bits and fragments that were never formed into full songs. It is a hodgepodge of different styles only loosely strung together, including an extended rap segment that could be lifted straight off of Beck’s Odelay! and another portion that I can’t help but compare to Jamiroquai’s “Virtual Insanity.” There’s an amazing piece late in the track founded on a mournful guitar lick that takes me straight back to The Smashing Pumpkins at the height of their career, minus Corgan’s strained and nasal vocals. It’s a real bummer that “Knights of Shame” can’t really be taken as a “real” track and must function more as an experimental or showcase piece, but if it’s any indication of what Awolnation/Bruno has rattling around in his head, then I’m eager to continue exploring the band’s catalog.

I can’t say that I’ve studied up on Awolnation or Aaron Bruno enough to properly theorize what influences might’ve specifically gone into Megalithic Symphony; I can, however, tell you what I hear. We definitely have the industrial-flavored “Sail,” but the rest of the album is a little more upbeat, drawing more from 80’s nu-wave and earlier rock/synth hybrids from the 2000’s such as The Killers and The Faint. Still, there’s enough abrasive guitar, shouted and overdriven vocals, and a few unforgiving snippets of percussion that leave me convinced of the enduring impact of bands like Nine Inch Nails, whether or not the influence is direct. Melodically, Awolnation is almost certainly drawing inspiration from the recent-ish indie, emo, and even pop-punk circuits. More than once I’ve imagined these tunes as a more refined and nuanced version of something that Tom DeLonge (Blink-182, Angels & Airwaves) would write.

After being totally absorbed by Megalithic Symphony for the last couple of weeks it seems like I have such a clear image of it in my head, but like most great music, it becomes difficult to describe. Having incorporated so many elements that I’m already familiar with I wouldn’t quite say that Megalithic Symphony blew me way, but it has turned out to be an exceptional piece of music. With more and more artists defining and refining “indietronica” it’s likely that “this sound” will become more and more commonplace, though for the time being it is refreshing and inviting. Unfortunately, your opinion on the bleak nature of “Sail” won’t help to clue you in on what this album sounds like. Whether you love it or hate it, Megalithic Symphony isn’t full of “Sail” clones, so I’d recommend checking it out either way.

It’s worth noting that this album was released in multiple “versions,” with special bonus tracks included by some online vendors and a Deluxe Edition featuring a swath of new tracks. I haven’t yet tracked down all of this peripheral material to Megalithic Symphony, but I’m sure as hell going to.

Written by The Cubist