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Angels and Airwaves

We Don't Need to Whisper
2006
Interscope

Angels and Airwaves - We Don't Need to Whisper (Cover Artwork)


Review by: Aubin
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Published on May 23rd 2006

Though many are loathe to admit it, Blink-182 is one of those great gateway bands; the one that invited so many people to discover punk and hardcore; even if the first song you heard was “All the Small Things,” by now, you might be listening to nothing but Orchid and Defiance, Ohio. Yes, it has been that long. The result is that the split of Blink-182 is one that came with an inordinate amount of attention, just because so many punk fans would sheepishly admit that Blink-182 got them into it.

The products of band splits are always interesting, not just because of the innate drama that comes with it, but because of how it reveals a little more about the original band and the songwriting dynamic that influenced it. Take At the Drive-In; the resulting two bands, Sparta and the Mars Volta took two decidedly different directions, with Sparta focused on shorter, more traditional arrangements and the Mars Volta taking an unrestrained foray into prog. While fans split into separate camps over the results, it becomes clear that Cedric and Omar were the force behind the band's most experimental moments, while Jim grounded the band in reality leading to the now beloved dynamic of the At the Drive-In.

With Angels & Airwaves and Plus-44 coming out of Blink-182, the main songwriting duo of Tom and Mark split. Though Plus-44 has only one track publically available, one could speculate about the dynamic of those two songwriters on Blink-182, an album that had the band experimenting with ambitious song structures and mixing up everything with more dance-oriented drumming. It seems pretty clear that Tom Delonge was aiming high, while Mark kept the album tight and loose.

With Angels & Airwaves, Tom Delonge has certainly taken the route of the ambitious songwriter, sometimes leading to great moments, but often unrestrained and overlong. The first single, “The Adventure” was Blink-182 by way of U2's Unforgettable Fire, replete with the overlapping and delayed guitar chops that could only have been inherited from the Edge; it's still a great song, and one of the standouts of the album. Even the opener, “Valkyrie Missile” has a terrific song somewhere, but it's sadly buried in an overlong two-minute intro.

Another track, “Little's Enough” maintains an artificially slow tempo; the hook is pure Enema of the State, but it feels like it's standing at the edge of a familiar drumbeat, one which never actually appears. “War” is another Blink-182 song, and a good one -- it's just too long. That is a recurring problem; unlike the efficiency of great songs like “Anthem” or “Carousel, ” so many of the songs aren't allowed to work on their own merit but become buried in lengthy introductions and overproduction.

It's a little unfortunate to have to criticize this album, because Blink-182 was such a wonderful maturation for the band and one that understood that complexity does not always equal progress. The Ramones were great because they could do so much with so little, and Blink-182 were certainly students of this mentality. The extra production and instrumentation that comes with Whisper often obscure gems of songwriting rather than highlight them.

In the end, the problem with We Don't Need to Whisper is not one of ambition; Tom wants to write the Cure's Disintegration and U2's Joshua Tree, but needs a creative foil to keep his songwriting economical. Even on Cheshire Cat, you could hear this musician's ability to write an incredibly tight, no-nonsense post-NOFX pop/punk song, and Tom still can -- he just needs a friend to tell him to tone it down once in awhile.



People who liked this also liked:
AFI - DecemberundergroundBrand New - Deja EntenduRefused - The Shape of Punk to ComeBad Religion - SufferNOFX - The DeclineWeezer - PinkertonRise Against - The Sufferer & the WitnessJohnny Cash - American IV: The Man Comes AroundSay Anything - ...Is A Real BoyArmor For Sleep - What To Do When You Are Dead



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    Posted by John-311 on 2007-04-13 14:38:52
    My Score:

    It would be interesting if someone took this album and did strip it down to the essential elements of the songwriting and production and kept them simpler, maybe made it closer to blink-182 style. They did it with The Beatles - Let It Be...Naked album where they stripped it of Phil Spector's wall of sound production because some people didn't like it. I think the blink/AVA/ 44 fanbase is big enough to warrant such a release. Less Than Jake released a whole B is for B-Sides techno remix album (although LTJ is big on rare collector nerd items). I think a lot of fans would appreciate it.

    Posted by AutumnInAshes on 2007-03-21 14:35:07
    My Score:

    So much better than all the Blink stuff. So different, love this new special kind of music.

    Posted by fugazifreak on 2007-03-10 14:08:33
    My Score:

    not great but not bad either

    Posted by adamn16 on 2007-01-07 00:05:49

    BlinkRules is a poser fag!!! ohhh and i signed up for this sight because it is called punk news... angels and airwaves is not a fucking punk band fuck tom... fuck them.... and fuck blink 182... poser fags!

    Posted by treos on 2006-07-29 21:39:11
    My Score:

    Haha i can totally see tom being the vain asshole that this album makes him out to be. WAAAY overproduced and it still didnt have that goof a sound. Anyone with a million bucks coulda made this cd. But i gotta admit blink was like the first band i listened to. pz

    Posted by RBD-biatchh on 2006-07-01 23:29:21
    My Score:

    well, its not better than blink 182 but considering how much music has changed since then i must say that it's a pretty good album. they should have had a few more tracks however; other than that i love you tom!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, June 20, 2006 at 1:41 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    the more i listen to this album the more i understand it and appreciate it, people really need to stop comparing this to past projects because its purpose is to be as different as possible (maybe lyrics are very reminisent of box car) at first i hated it, now i like it alot.....i think people need to lsiten to it in the right moods or situations, so in that sense it's a concept record, in essence i think this album is highly underrated and misunderstood

    Posted by Poison_Operation on 2006-06-15 05:29:15
    My Score:

    Alright, so I just purchased this a week ago, as my curiousity got the best of me. It definitely grows on you, but is nowhere near what Tom wanted it to be. The songs tend to blend together at times, and all of them are too damn long, save for "The War," which is how the band should write more of their songs. "It Hurts" just plain fucking sucks. Overall, it's a halfway decent first effort, enough to intrigue me into checking out more stuff from them, provided they shorten the length of the songs and Tom doesn't overhype his shit anymore.

    On a personal note, anyone else feel ripped off with only ten tracks or less on a CD? I know this CD is definitely long anyway, but I never can help but feel ripped off if I buy an album with less than eleven songs. It seems that it doesn't matter to me if the length is eighty minutes or eighteen, if it has eleven tracks or more, it just feels better to me for some reason. Of course, this may be a form of OCD talking or something, but whatever.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, June 11, 2006 at 5:23 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Angel's and Airwaves ROCKS SO HARD!!!

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, June 2, 2006 at 10:28 AM (EDT)

    people need to stop thinking that posting things on message boards will change the world.

    it's the internet, and no one gives a shit what you think.
    deal with it.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 31, 2006 at 8:00 PM (EDT)

    Comment below was posted by me.
    ____DA

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 31, 2006 at 7:56 PM (EDT)

    Greatness throught the eyes of a true lyric writer. Angels And Airwaves 'We Dont Need To Whisper' is a great insperation to me and other I hope. I have felt the message Tom Delonge is trying to spred. I cant explain the feeling that I get to hear it but for some reason the lyrics inspire me very much. The voice of Tom Delone sounds more depressed and sad but I think maybe after the thing with Blink 182 it made him feel that way. Blink 182 was and still is by far the best band ever to me and it hurts to know that they have come to a end. The song 'It Hurts' is pretty damn effective at that. 'The Adventure' blew me away at first. I didnt really like it cause I thought it wasnt my Tom Delone, but after listening to the whole album and songs it is clear on how great this album truely is. I bought it for Tom and all of Angels and Airwaves sake. The drummer in my opinon is truley amazing, I cant even discribe on how much I adore it. The gutair's are very creative and the style blows my mind of happiness. I cant help but to love the soothing and relaxing feeling from these songs. I think the maturidy of this album is a great improvment. The video was amazing alone with everything Tom Delonge (As a talented musican) has always done. With nothing more to say but this first album from Angels and Airwaves 'We Dont Need To Whisper' is nothing but greatness and talent to my ears, and I'm sorry I ever doaghted it. I LOVE YOU GUYS AND I HOPE THIS ALBUM IS A COMPLETE SUCCESS!

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 31, 2006 at 5:01 AM (EDT)

    I bought this album thinking maybe Tom DeLonge had grown up and wanted to start writing some good songs. Because while Blink 182 wrote some stupid lyrics, they always seemed to come up with a catchy hook to make it all right that the lyrics weren't very good. I was right and I was wrong. Tom had grown up a little bit with Angels and Airwaves, but it seems that he simply lacks the talent to write good, heart felt lyrics to his songs. As far as the music goes, I was impressed at first with Tom's ability to do away with the punk rock guitars and, instead, do some straight forward rock n roll, but the more I listened to this album, the more generic all the songs started sounding too me. When you listen to this album you feel like you're listening to the same song for 50 minutes. I have a good feeling that alot of copies of this CD are going to end up in the used bin at record stores all over the world.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 30, 2006 at 9:13 PM (EDT)

    good review. and i bet blink rules doesnt waste his time on this site arguing wiht fat kids like colin.

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, May 29, 2006 at 10:09 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I give it a 4 out of 5

    Not a spectatular/amazing album but by no means a boring or bad album. I think they could of done more with the guitar, rather than the constant use of the delay pedal.

    Posted by samhi on 2006-05-29 01:57:19
    My Score:

    I think that the album was really anticipated and people were expecting it to be way different to what it is. If you people had the time to actually sit down and listen to it, and i mean LISTEN not just put it on and go um yeah i dont like it - actually listen to the messages in the songs and what the lyrics actually mean then you would appreciate it a whole lot more.

    Posted by skamanifesto on 2006-05-27 23:32:56

    Tom flipped the second "A" and made it a V because a.)he thought it looked cooler, and b.) his daughter's name is Ava.

    idk if i find that cool or dumb. i guess ill leave that decision up to you.

    Posted by lol_omg_wtf_nambla on 2006-05-27 22:45:13

    I don't mean to sound completely retarded, but why is the acronym for this band AVA? The only V comes after the thrid A. What am I missing?

    Posted by CaptainQuirk on 2006-05-26 13:46:41

    The more I listen to it, the less I like it. Not terrible by any means, but certainly not great either.

    The main thing that drags it down is the lyrics. The instrumentation is good (very good at times), but the lyrics and subject matter are pretty amateurish and weak.

    Posted by grantino on 2006-05-26 05:24:10
    My Score:

    half of the album is good, half of the album is crap. what got the band off on the wrong foot was tom's arrogance that this record was going to be the best thing to happen to rock in ages. i didnt mind about half of the songs, some have that catchy little lyric or riff that just stays in my head but then again some were so fucking long i got bored.

    the only good thing that tom did was leak the whole album about a month ago, that way i could see if i really wanted to throw down $10 at target or not. in the end, i didnt.

    angels and airwaves is like losing your best friend to drugs...well in this case losing your best friend to U2 and shitty "rock star" attitude bands.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 11:32 PM (EDT)

    did anyone see the video for ther single ahahaha, tom delonge has some new moves, he plays his guitar and moves differently ahaha, quite sad

    Posted by IAMTHEMIRROR on 2006-05-25 21:30:18
    My Score:

    Good album. I dig it a lot.

    Shit Shit Tit Death

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-05-25 19:02:46

    How can you listen to this and forget about Blink and U2? It'd be like listening to Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars and not just wanting to put a Beatles record on. You cannot separate this from its influences when it wears them so freaking hard on its sleeve.

    Posted by jacknife737 on 2006-05-25 17:19:04
    My Score:

    This is a great album, people need to give it a chance, and approach it with an open mind, forget about references to Blink/U2/the cure, just listen to the album around twice through, as some of the songs really grow on you after repeated listens.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 3:39 PM (EDT)

    i was wondering why there is so much hype about this band. i didn't know it was blink 182.

    Posted by benz on 2006-05-25 13:59:31

    "1. Aubin is one of the site's creators. That's how they found him, insomuch as he could find himself.
    2. Anyone with a user name can submit a review, so instead of complaining, write a glowing review of the AVA CD, and they will post it.
    3. Very few people are ragging on this because of the genre, or the members' previous bands. In fact, most of us were interested in it because of that. Very few of us are ashamed to admit that we like blink182. And most of us like the band's AVA is ripping off (U2, The Who). We just think they did it poorly."

    Very well put. We're not close minded for attacking this. I actually gave this two full listens, hoping it would be as good as the hype, so if anything, I'm being open minded. It's just so lame and generic studio rock. There's nothing experimental here, it all relies on known formulas for popularity.

    Just because it's not Britney Spears doesn't make it dumb pop music. If anything, it's worse -- it's self important pop music.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 5:34 AM (EDT)

    I'm another who got into punk via blink 182, and I continued to like their songs up to their self-titled album (which seemed overproduced).

    Angels and airwaves seem to have the same problem the self-titled album did, it's stupidly overproduced - and it annoys me how slow the songs are, you just want the damn songs to go faster!

    not a bad effort though, by no means the best band ever or w/e he wanted.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 2:51 AM (EDT)

    "everything about this album is pure"

    what says a great record like chastity.....

    wyzo

    Posted by fritobandito on 2006-05-25 02:36:33
    My Score:

    Tom always wanted to start the best band ever. Funny thing is, he BROKE UP WITH the best pop-punk band ever to start a U2 rip-off band. Bah.

    The album has a few shining moments (War, The Adventure), but despite what Mr. Delonge would have you believe, it sounds like almost entirely filler. I mean, there's fucking "whoa-ohs" in almost every single goddamn song. I'm so tired of his whoa-ohs after seeing them a few days back.

    And their live show sucks a lot. Tom has done way, WAY too much heroin, and it's obvious every time he opens his goddamn mouth between songs or floats around stage with his arms spread out. I had the unfortunate experience of seeing them on Sunday. I am glad, however, that I didn't have to actually BUY a ticket.

    Oh, he did a rad rendition of There Is (the BCR song) though. that was the only good thing all night.

    This is just...bad background music for tween movies. The fact that it's "Tom Delonge's brainchild" just intensifies the embarassment of the whole project.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 1:45 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    this album is perfect!
    tom delonge always puts out great music

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 12:50 AM (EDT)

    yeah. i agree. he could have done MUCH worse. and yeah, blink was one of those gateway bands.they were the first punk bands i ever liked. and yes. i just called them punk. cuz pop-punk in my opinion, is still a subgenre of punk rock. its just poppier and has more melody. hence, the name. bands like blink-182, sum 41, and green day(and yes,at one point when i was like, 12 i liked GC and simple plan, i depise them now.), got me intoharder stuff like Anti-Flag, NOFX, pennywise, bad religion, dropkick murphys, flogging molly, rise against, rancid, the distillers, H20, old the offspring, old AFI, etc. then from there i got into the stuff my dad was listening to in the 80s as a teen such as black flag, the misfits, the vandals, the clash, the ramones, the descendents, the exploited, dead kennedys, agnostic front, the buzzcocks, social d, the adicts, iggy and the stooges, the germs, ect.and from there igot into really hard stuff and crust bands such as the virus, the havoc, defiance, the casualties, the unseen, a global threat, cheap sex, aus rotten, conflict, discharge, crass, riot 99, action, monster squad, grimple, icons of filth, doom, ect. and it all started with blink-183. and i still to this day listen to them. but as for AVA, it all sounds the same. in a bad way.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 25, 2006 at 12:21 AM (EDT)

    Honestly, Tom could have done far worse things on his own, but there are sooooo many much better records coming out (like Murder By Death's new disc. for example), I just can't summon up the energy or will to buy this. Although Tom does some good marketing and I built up high hopes for this because of how secretive it was for so long and how much he would talk it up, I couldn't help but be dissapointed when I once again realized that Tom does not have the talent, nor the pipes to fulfill his ambitions.

    Posted by Poison_Operation on 2006-05-24 22:18:43

    I just saw live footage of these guys on Fuse (why I was watching Fuse, I have no idea), and I'm sure this has been said before, but, goddamn, Tom must think he's the second coming of Christ or something. His movements on stage make him seem like he's got a Son-of-God complex or some stupid bullshit like that.

    That said, I thought the actual songs I heard weren't horribly bad, but they weren't really that great, either. They all blended into each other, and if there were no breaks, I would have assumed that AVA had just played one long song. I'll probably pick this up anyway, because it does intrigue me to that point, but after three or four weeks, I'll more than likely end up putting the album on the CD rack and forget about it.

    Also, Punknews, you have to fix this time limit on posting. I take the time to check my shit for errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling, only to get punished for it by losing my post. Thank goodness for copy-and-paste.

    Posted by chipsahoycookie on 2006-05-24 21:18:21
    My Score:

    crap. vinnie's side project or what?

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 7:22 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    i love the guy who said "blink18U2"

    I concur.

    Anyways, I thought Tom's voice was more in tune on this album... too bad the songs blend together and there's like 4000lbs of reverb on every single instrument. This album has way too many delay-pedal guitar lines... yikes. i give it a 3/5. Not terrible, not memorable. Merely blah.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 7:02 PM (EDT)

    Die, please die. Your voice sounds like a cat getting ass-raped. Stop making music...please.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 7:00 PM (EDT)

    i bet 'aubin' is at the AVA show in toronto right now screaming his little head off

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-05-24 18:52:22

    "where does punk.org find these reviewers? they should have people that are actually open to music and that don't label albums as shitty just because it's not in their personal taste. come on, grow up.. everything about this album is pure and one of the best albums that has come out in a long time"

    1. Aubin is one of the site's creators. That's how they found him, insomuch as he could find himself.
    2. Anyone with a user name can submit a review, so instead of complaining, write a glowing review of the AVA CD, and they will post it.
    3. Very few people are ragging on this because of the genre, or the members' previous bands. In fact, most of us were interested in it because of that. Very few of us are ashamed to admit that we like blink182. And most of us like the band's AVA is ripping off (U2, The Who). We just think they did it poorly.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 6:44 PM (EDT)

    where does punk.org find these reviewers? they should have people that are actually open to music and that don't label albums as shitty just because it's not in their personal taste. come on, grow up.. everything about this album is pure and one of the best albums that has come out in a long time

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 6:37 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    oh man, this is shitty

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 6:17 PM (EDT)

    I went to a gay orgy last night and this cd was played a few times. I remember how I got spit roasted as it played and how they both finished at the same time and shot their loads all over me. I want to pick up the cd because of the memories of my Johnny Cakes rimming me to this.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 4:47 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    great great great album!!!

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 3:53 PM (EDT)

    this isn't bad for listening to while your boyfriend blows you and shoves things into your anus. I know. Believe me, I know.

    Posted by jockmcbored on 2006-05-24 15:30:08

    i liked green day but China Drum and Snuff got me into punk

    Posted by jockmcbored on 2006-05-24 15:24:54

    you might be listening to nothing but Orchid and Defiance, Ohio

    lol....

    defiance, ohio are poppier than blink 182. they don't even sound like a punk band

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 1:59 PM (EDT)

    Too bad Tom DeLonge stole the "It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts," from The Cure's "Cut Here".

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 1:43 PM (EDT)

    oh and for the record i love blink 182. i dont think theres anything wrong with that, they were a great fun pop punk band. terrible live, but fun as hell cd's. 'dude ranch' was the soundtrack to my junior year of highschool, and 'enema of the state' was the soundtrack to my senior summer. fun times, fun albums. its gone downhill since 'enema', for all parties involved.

    Paul

    Posted by Klonny on 2006-05-24 13:04:10

    "Though many are loathe to admit it, Blink-182 is one of those great gateway bands; the one that invited so many people to discover punk and hardcore; even if the first song you heard was “All the Small Things,” by now, you might be listening to nothing but Orchid and Defiance, Ohio."

    I'm not gonna lie.

    I used to love them...

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 1:02 PM (EDT)

    hahaha you know those music choice channels on digital cable?

    go listen to the 'new age' channel.

    angels and airwaves is that channel's music, overlapped with some boxcarracer

    god dammit.

    Paul

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 12:55 PM (EDT)

    "Oh, get over yourself. Just because the songs are long, doesn't make them better. I've only heard two tracks, and they sounded identical. And each song only had about 3 parts; they're just repeated more times than they would be if the songs were 2 minutes. And, I'm sorry, but I don't think Tom Delonge will ever have a message good enough to make me sit through boring music."

    I agree completely.

    the lyrics are painfully average

    the songs have no more than 3-5 parts, no more than any blink song, and the music really is no more complex or revolutionary than the tom songs on the last blink record.

    its box car racer done slightly better

    tons of effects

    tom really wishes this was U2 or the Cure.

    much as tom hyped boxcar racer as 'fugazi meets the refused' this is no more amazing than that album. slightly better.

    its not a bad album, but its nothing special. any decent pop artist with a million dollar recording budget and some competent muscians can make this record. its mostly effects and synth , wrapped up with box car racer and blink 182 s/t album songs, with only tom singing

    his voice has no more range than it ever did, he just carries notes longer and has shitloads of autotuning and effects on them.

    Paul

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 10:59 AM (EDT)

    people are so fucking close-minded it kills

    ANGELS AND AIRWAVES ARE PERFECT BITCHES

    Posted by skolarx on 2006-05-24 10:58:34

    i had to run into a record store yesterday and the kid who was working was listening to this album. his observation was perfect, its one long song and it really isn't that good of a song. i honestly think plus-44 will be a lot better than this crap. at least i hope so

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-05-24 09:59:01

    "anyone who is still wrapped up in short 2 minute songs won't like this.. it is a masterpiece.. something that takes time and energy to understand... its not another pop punk record... if you sit back and take it in... you'll see the message.."

    Oh, get over yourself. Just because the songs are long, doesn't make them better. I've only heard two tracks, and they sounded identical. And each song only had about 3 parts; they're just repeated more times than they would be if the songs were 2 minutes. And, I'm sorry, but I don't think Tom Delonge will ever have a message good enough to make me sit through boring music.

    Posted by kill_fftl on 2006-05-24 09:42:44

    angels and airwaves sucks, but yes i'll admit that blink 182 got me into punk music

    Posted by kozaihod on 2006-05-24 06:10:02
    My Score:

    Somewhat boring album. And how many times you can whine "I'll be your distraction" during 5 minutes? 50?

    Posted by JKyle on 2006-05-24 05:24:27

    I liked "The Adventure," and I really want to like this album, but I just don't know if I even want to bother listening to it. I'm pretty sure I'll be disappointed.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 4:31 AM (EDT)

    I think it's alright. The problem with the online stream which wouldn't allow you to skip to new tracks is that it made you focus on how much everything kind of bled together into a pool of slop. It's still pretty alright to listen to. But umm... I don't think DeLonge was trying to make Disintegration or The Joshua Tree. These songs are good, but they don't have that level of construction. The details don't click like ones that have gone through multiple multiple drafts and bettered over time and thought.

    Posted by Not-To-Regret on 2006-05-24 02:32:23

    Don't even care...

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 1:28 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    anyone who is still wrapped up in short 2 minute songs won't like this.. it is a masterpiece.. something that takes time and energy to understand... its not another pop punk record... if you sit back and take it in... you'll see the message..

    Posted by benz on 2006-05-24 01:06:02

    "Should I feel old for never having had to listen to Blink 182?"

    I guess. Considering that I first heard Dude Ranch in 6th grade. Blink has been around for awhile.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 12:59 AM (EDT)

    its funny how the people ragging on this album are all struggling musicians.

    Posted by Nameless on 2006-05-24 00:21:04

    I liked blink-182. I liked their self-titled. But, man, for the life of me, I don't like this. I've tried. I've sat down and listened to it, but seriously, it just sounds like wannabe blink-182 with weird effects and intros that take too long to get to the actual song, boring the listener. Maybe it's just me, but for something that is supposed to revolutionize rock music, or whatever Tom said it was going to do, it should be more than that.

    Nice review, though...

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 12:16 AM (EDT)

    Where's the review? The first three paragraphs are useless, the rest barely say anything.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 24, 2006 at 12:09 AM (EDT)

    "i still refuse to believe this band isnt a joke"

    I completely agree. I'm still hoping sometime soon Tom will come out and say something like "haha, got you good fuckers"

    and we'll be blessed with another album abou fucking dogs

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 11:59 PM (EDT)

    i still refuse to believe this band isnt a joke

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 11:22 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I would agree in almost every aspect with this review and would like to simply say that I wish blink-182 had not broken up and simply changed their name. I appreciated the way they were headed with their last album, and I understood that the mega-late 90's pop-punk moniker, Blink 182, wasn't really appropriate for the alternative band they were becoming, but I believe that Mark and Travis would have made this record twice as good. Mark's bass lines haven't been very successful since, well, Carousel, but his low, honey voice always balanced out Tom's overproduced winy tones enough to make Tom even seem appropriate at times. Travis's absent drumming is the only thing on this album that I would consider an absolute atrocity, considering he was the finest weapon Blink ever kept in its armory.

    Posted by TIGHT on 2006-05-23 22:00:15
    My Score:

    Booo

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 9:53 PM (EDT)

    Should I feel old for never having had to listen to Blink 182?

    Or maybe just grateful.

    Old. You are missing out if you don't give Dude Ranch a chance, oh, and your gay.

    Posted by tylerdurden8136 on 2006-05-23 20:59:44

    oops, nevermind.

    best album of the year.

    he knows how to make my day.

    Posted by tylerdurden8136 on 2006-05-23 20:58:26

    hahahaha, where is blinkrules?

    i want a profound comment from him.

    Posted by colin on 2006-05-23 20:45:53

    Havent listened to the record but I heard 'The Adventure' and thought 'Its OK but its not the old Tom Delonge'. I am going to give it a chance seeing as how Blink 182 is the best band ever. And Tom's Lyrics are amazing so all you shit punks shut the fuck up and stop thinking high of yourselfs. Motherbitch fucker asses.

    __DA


    blinkrules, is that you?

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:28 PM (EDT)

    "all you shit punks shut the fuck up and stop thinking high of yourselfs. Motherbitch fucker asses."

    Something about the way that's worded is almost poetic.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:05 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Havent listened to the record but I heard 'The Adventure' and thought 'Its OK but its not the old Tom Delonge'. I am going to give it a chance seeing as how Blink 182 is the best band ever. And Tom's Lyrics are amazing so all you shit punks shut the fuck up and stop thinking high of yourselfs. Motherbitch fucker asses.

    __DA

    Posted by boba_fett on 2006-05-23 19:34:45

    havent listened to this yet, but ive got it waiting in line. from what ive heard so far though, it sounds like ill listen once and go 'that was decent' and then wont touch it again for a loooooong time.

    Posted by MichaelJayMarfans on 2006-05-23 19:33:01

    Im serious when I say this. I mean, really, I'm not trying to jump on any band wagon or A&A bash...

    The music is alright, doesn't do too much for me....but Tom's vocals get FUCKING ANNOYING. I can barely even stand hearing the single where/whenever the hell it's played. He's never had great voice, even in Blink...but maybe it was...say...suited better for that music? I cannot stand hearing his voice wail on and on for 3,4,5 minutes a song

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 6:55 PM (EDT)

    "In the end, the problem with We Don't Need to Whisper is not one of ambition; Tom wants to write the Cure's Disintegration and U2's Joshua Tree, but needs a creative foil to keep his songwriting economical."

    That's pretty much exactly what I thought when I listened to the album stream. It's alright. If someone burned it for me, I'd listen to it from time to time, but I wouldn't pay for these "epic" songs.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 6:42 PM (EDT)

    Alright the lyrics are terrible and the songs are too long, but it's pretty good otherwise.

    So what you are saying is that it isn't very good at all.

    Posted by Frankff on 2006-05-23 18:12:28

    Fair review. Good review.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 5:49 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Alright the lyrics are terrible and the songs are too long, but it's pretty good otherwise.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 5:47 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Pretentious, grandiose, drivel

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 5:38 PM (EDT)

    Blink 182 is hands down better than ava. enema of the state and eveything before it rocks.

    Posted by miff on 2006-05-23 17:19:35

    shit album art

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 5:15 PM (EDT)

    I just put this in my cd player and there are no songs under 4 minutes.

    What the fuck.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 4:58 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Should I feel old for never having had to listen to Blink 182?

    Or maybe just grateful.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 4:13 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    This album is actually really good. But thats an opinion.

    Posted by sxenester on 2006-05-23 16:01:54
    My Score:

    we played this in my cd store yesterday... almost pulled it out after a song.

    Score is for another reason to anticipate Plus 44.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 3:28 PM (EDT)

    "Turn down the vocals and this is makes good background music"

    I was just thinking the same thing. Maybe Tom should start an instramental only band??

    Posted by ElVaquero on 2006-05-23 15:27:45
    My Score:

    This is not an above average album, it's not even listening to more than once (you know, for laughs).

    Posted by threechordsandthetruth on 2006-05-23 15:26:16

    I love how he's trying to be all mature but still has a chorus "it hurts / when your best friend is not your girlfriend" or something. yeah man, profound.

    Posted by niveK82 on 2006-05-23 15:08:41

    Turn down the vocals and this is makes good background music

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-05-23 14:25:12

    "Ever since Kid A came out, every band thinks they can throw in some sort of drone and it will be art."

    Cough, cough, Vheissu, cough

    Posted by greenerton on 2006-05-23 14:14:06

    Great review.

    I must say, Tom's surprised me. Like most people, I thought he was a crazy pretentious asshole, but I met him yesterday at Fuse's Daily Download and talked to him for a few minutes, and he was incredibly nice and sincere. I haven't heard this album yet, but I think I'll give it a chance rather than just write it off as psycho-babble.

    Posted by benz on 2006-05-23 12:56:21

    I listened to this on myspace in its entirety, just to give it a chance. Nothing stands out for me at all... well as good.

    Putting ambient parts in overlong songs already, does not make them artistic. Ever since Kid A came out, every band thinks they can throw in some sort of drone and it will be art.

    This is not art. It's really generic rock. It's like Coldplay or U2, except with the worst singing ever.

    -benz

    Posted by tylerdurden8136 on 2006-05-23 12:49:44

    know, it's a tough call. i'd say this, because decemberunderground has a couple decent songs on it (kiss and control)

    you're right, i can at least enjoy kill caustic and kiss and control, but there's not one song on AVA that i don't skip.

    what the hell was tom thinking?

    Posted by colin on 2006-05-23 12:41:58

    i still can't decide which is worse: this, or decemberunderground.

    i know, it's a tough call. i'd say this, because decemberunderground has a couple decent songs on it (kiss and control)

    what a shitstorm though.

    Posted by tylerdurden8136 on 2006-05-23 12:36:35
    My Score:

    i still can't decide which is worse: this, or decemberunderground.

    Posted by Marlon on 2006-05-23 12:15:10

    I think 'tight' referred to the the musicianship and structure of verse/chorus/verse of blink. 'loose' I guess means keep it within their musical and vocal abilities, a comfort zone if you will. or aubin fucked up.

    Knowing Aubin my assumption is the former and not the latter.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 12:04 PM (EDT)

    I think 'tight' referred to the the musicianship and structure of verse/chorus/verse of blink. 'loose' I guess means keep it within their musical and vocal abilities, a comfort zone if you will. or aubin fucked up.

    Paul

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 12:03 PM (EDT)

    another great review aubin. I look forward to checking this out.

    Paul

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 11:58 AM (EDT)

    Bastard beat me to the tight and loose comment by seconds!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 11:57 AM (EDT)

    Good review.. except the part where he says "tight and loose." That made no sense ;)

    Posted by matthensley on 2006-05-23 11:57:40

    "It seems pretty clear that Tom Delonge was aiming high, while Mark kept the album tight and loose. "

    Tight and loose? TIGHT AND LOOSE?! does not compute!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 11:45 AM (EDT)

    I like "The Adventure" and I like what they're going for here, but to me the whole album sounds the same...There's little to no variation. There's no reason I'd buy the album when I can listen to one song online and essentially be hearing the whole album already.

    Posted by Anchors on 2006-05-23 11:26:27

    "The Adventure" is a terrific song, but everything else comes out sort of.. blah for me.

    Posted by Marlon on 2006-05-23 11:12:48

    Did anyone else get pulled into punk by Alkaline Trio or am I the only one?

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 10:38 AM (EDT)

    blink-182 got me into punk rock through dude ranch, which is still one of my favorite albums to this day.

    back then, i thought tom wrote the better song. but growing older has made me realize that marks songs were not only better, but written better.

    there still is a soft spot in my heart for songs like 'carousel' , 'does my breath smell?' , 'dick lips' , 'enthused' etc.

    however, this 'angels and airwaves' or whatever. i dont know what the hell tom is trying to do. i'll probably pick this up (download it) and give it a listen though.

    im actually looking forward to plus44. with angels and airwaves, i was more looking forward to tom's next public statement on how his band would change rock.

    great review.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 10:15 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    poop!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 9:51 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I was hoping the new crime in stereo was going to be good, its not bad by any means, just not what i had hoped for-oldpunker-

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-05-23 09:44:13

    Even for the style of music they play, No Trigger was blown out of the water, in my opinion, by the Crime In Stereo album.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:58 AM (EDT)

    I'll end up buying it later today. I'll probably listen to it off and on for less than a month. Then forget about it. I guess I'll take what I can get from these guys now.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:39 AM (EDT)

    Its funny, all these " big name" punk" cough" punk band putting out cd's, afi, ava, ltj, so on and so on and so on.... But the cd that has hands down so far blown everything else out of the water and came out of complete left field ( at least for me).... No trigger..... Cd of the year. I do hope the new good riddance, strike anywhere and souls are good and the new rise against as well.. But for now, no trigger has to be knocked off the top..... They have yet to be -oldpunker-

    Posted by jumptheshark on 2006-05-23 08:32:21
    My Score:

    The album has a few moments where it feels like its about to hit something solid and interesting, but then it gets ruined with pretentiousness or some pathetically stupid lyrics. From the bits I heard of the lyrics that I really payed attention to, I don't think I picked up one song not about relationships, which would be OK, but Delonge just writes about them with no depth whatsoever.

    Also, anyone else notice how much track 3 (i forget the title) sounds like a damn simple plan song?

    Posted by welcome_to_1984 on 2006-05-23 08:27:19
    My Score:

    Score is for the reveiw... great job reviewing an album that is going to get panned soundly by the message boards. Yeah it sucks, but I will admit that Dude Ranch got me into punk in the first place God bless 'em. That and Cheshire Cat were two amazing albums. Too bad they realized they could write an album in one day (enema of the state) and cash in.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:21 AM (EDT)

    Excellent review.

    Posted by blinkrules on 2006-05-23 08:09:38
    My Score:

    best album of the year.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 8:04 AM (EDT)

    its hilarious when he tries to sing earnestly, he should just stick to singing about poop and pee

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 4:57 AM (EDT)

    Should've been titled: We Don't Need To Suck (But We Do)

    Posted by Badger_Legion on 2006-05-23 04:46:56
    My Score:

    Take two...

    I hate the electronic drumbeats, I hate the way the guitars sound, I hate Tom's singing, and all the songs are too fucking long. I didn't really like Blink 182, but I would take Enema of the State over this garbage any day.

    Sorry for posting twice, but it always bothers me when I accidentally put "to" instead of "too".

    Posted by SalsaShark on 2006-05-23 04:34:29

    I really want to listen to this. I only heard "The Adventure" and, to be honest, I enjoyed it.

    The score is for Aubin's review. Quality work. I really see the Sparta/Mars Volta comparison working well.

    Posted by Badger_Legion on 2006-05-23 04:21:43
    My Score:

    I hate the techno sounding drums, I hate the way the guitars sound, I hate Tom's singing, and all the songs are way to fucking long. Now, I didn't really like Blink, but I would take Enema of the State over this garbage any day.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 4:11 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    For some reason this album makes me think about Star Trek. I don't really think that's a good thing so...

    Posted by fistchode on 2006-05-23 03:33:07

    It just bored me. I didn't have the patience to find the songs in the long intros and outros. Maybe modern rock fans like this sort of stuff, and that's cool, but it's plain fucking boring to me.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 3:02 AM (EDT)

    is the video not the most pretentious thing ever made not involving french cinema and sex taboos?

    I mean, put your waving arms down tom, your not goddamn christ.

    wyzo

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 2:21 AM (EDT)

    Tom's singing kills anything he apperars on. He is always way out of tune, its a killer.

    uhm. not really, i enjoyed it on dude ranch.

    Posted by the_other_scott on 2006-05-23 02:18:11

    although i got into punk rock stuff slightly a few years before blink 182 came out, i never really hated them. they were the one band out of all the mallpunk bands who seemed to really understand where they were coming from.

    that being said, this shit is horrible.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 2:17 AM (EDT)

    Tom's singing kills anything he apperars on. He is always way out of tune, its a killer.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 2:11 AM (EDT)

    i'm not sure about this album, but i will tell you one thing..Dude Ranch is still one of my all time favorites.

    Posted by kingofpain on 2006-05-23 01:43:41

    I still haven't listened to this, but I intend to at some point. I was never a huge Blink fan, but I always enjoyed them when I did hear them.

    Posted by HeresLookinAtYou on 2006-05-23 01:41:18
    My Score:

    its not that bad

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 1:34 AM (EDT)

    God Delonge sure stuck his foot in his mouth..don't get me wrong this is a GREAT album, adventure,valkerie missle,it hurts,the war, and distraction are all great,but it's won't save rock music,and this could have easily been blink's next album. It's like boxcar racer in the sense tom uses same lyrical analogy of love/war,only musically it's more blink 1 8 U 2 then refused.

    Posted by notfeelingcreative on 2006-05-23 01:28:44
    My Score:

    wrong score

    Posted by notfeelingcreative on 2006-05-23 01:28:19
    My Score:

    They were playing this record at the show I was at last night, not really my cup of tea, but not bad. I always hate it when a band breaks up or takes a break and the members start projects that sound like carbon copies of the previous band. At least this isn't one of those projects.

    Posted by colin on 2006-05-23 01:28:10
    My Score:

    horrible, horrible, horrible album. tom delonge should be ashamed. this is one of the biggest pieces of trash released this year, and i'm sure it will be incredibly successful.

    for shame, tom. and dude ranch is still so good...

    Posted by Dante3000 on 2006-05-23 01:28:08

    Eh, he may just not be good enough to write a great album yet.
    -Dante

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 1:26 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Like it a lot.

    Posted by MikeStupid on 2006-05-23 01:24:17
    My Score:

    A few good songs, but mostly pretentious and kind of dull. Give me Dude Ranch any day.

    Posted by benz on 2006-05-23 01:23:08

    I always thought Mark Hoppus had the better voice.