Angels & Airwaves - I-Empire - Music & Performance - CD

Liner note junkies will recognize the names associated with Angels & Airwaves. The group consists of former Blink-182 frontman Tom DeLonge, bassist Matt Watcher, formerly of 30 Seconds To Mars, Over My Dead Body guitarist David Kennedy, and ex Rocket From The Crypt skin man, Atom Willard.

In less than a year and a half, Angels & Airwaves have released two full-length studio albums, the gold certified We Don't Need To Whisper, and the recently issued I-Empire. Like the band's debut before it, I-Empire is a prog-rock-emo amalgamation that bears no resemblance to any of the former bands the guys in A&A were previously associated with. The 12-song disc is a cross between Pink Floyd, U2, REM, and The Ataris.

Space, as in outer, seems to be a huge inspiration for A&A. From the Star Wars-like cover of I-Empire, to the ethereal music contained on the disc, 'out there' seems to have affected these guys in a big way. "Call To Arms," the album's opening cut, builds like a Pink Floyd song, before blowing up into a rocking number. DeLonge and Kennedy bounce David Gilmour-esque guitar licks off of Watcher's and Willard's trudging bottom end.

The band switches gears for "Everything's Magic." On the song, DeLonge surfs rippling new wave guitar riffs and an effervescent drumbeat. Sounding a lot like The Cure frontman Robert Smith, DeLonge half shouts, half sings the track's esoteric lyrics. A&A dip back into the '80s new wave well for "True Love," a cross between A Flock Of Seagulls and the aforementioned The Cure. Kennedy and DeLonge even filch a few licks from The Edge.

Whether it's intentional or not, A&A borrow heavily from some of music's most enduring acts. The intro to "Love Like Rockets" sounds a lot like U2's "Where The Streets Have No Name," while "Star Of Bethlehem," a swirling instrumental, sounds like an out-take from Pink Floyd's The Wall album sessions. "Heaven," with its lengthy intro, is reminiscent of Boston's 'out there' inspired songs. The track would be perfect for the next Aliens movie.

Blink-182 fans probably won't gravitate to A&A, but lovers of classic rock and new wave might. I-Empire is an album best enjoyed at high volumes, with the lights down low and eyes closed.

By Todd Sterling