Awolnation returns to form with a new album that's honestly one of their best in years.
Awolnation is a hard sell.
Aaron Bruno, the frontman and creative force behind this L.A. band, is a truly talented musician and showman; the energy behind his live performances and the unbridled passion he puts into his music are truly remarkable. Even so, Megalithic Symphony, Awolnation’s stellar 2011 debut album, yielded a couple of hits, but never made it into the mainstream. That was followed by two more albums that were uneven at best.
But now, nine years after Awolnation first arrived on the music scene, comes Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders, an album that finally makes good on Megalithic Symphony's promise.
Megalithic Symphony, which came out a year before Imagine Dragons' first effort, Night Visions, and two years before Vessel, Twenty One Pilot’s major record label debut, is a blend of sounds and genre, with Bruno screaming in one verse and switching to falsetto in the next. Its songs combine elements of rock, pop, dance music, electronic, and rap. Lyrically, Symphony is equally nimble with Bruno mixing themes of mental unrest and anxiety with genuinely positive affirmations. While the bouncing around can be exhausting, more often than not it’s exhilarating, and Awolnation deserves a ton of credit in pushing forward alt-pop, genre-bending music.
Bruno and friends followed Megalithic Symphony with 2015’s Run, which leans heavily into electronic and dance music, and 2018’s Here Come the Runts, which is stripped down and too rock-based. But this year’s Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders bridges that divide and shows a return to form for Awolnation.
Lightning Riders arose out of Bruno’s bedroom, after the 2018 California wildfires destroyed his recording studio—but the album is far from lo-fi. It is full of the droning synth and pop hooks that put Awolnation on the map. The second song of the album, “Slam (Angel Miners)," perfectly personifies Bruno’s myriad musical pulls. Cryptic lyrics (“Riptide, worldwide. All seeing paradise. Amen out of sight. Paranoia.”), three distinct vocal styles, and a blend of guitar riffs, violins, and keys create a sound that is perfectly Awol.
Tracks like “Radical” and “Pacific Coast Highway in the Movies” (the latter includes a great feature by Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo) are fun, slightly sarcastic pop songs with just the right alt twist that you really can’t find anywhere else.
“California Halo Blue” is a sad pop ballad with the haunting back vocals reminiscent of the opening of Megalithic Symphony. The song deftly gets to the heart of Bruno’s general anxiety and feelings of loss and fear after the fires ravaged his home state.
The final track, “I’m a Wreck,” furthers Bruno’s exploration of angst and anxiety through lyrics and instruments. It opens with just a reverbed guitar and Bruno’s voice sweetly crooning, “I am in my head forevermore, I am in my head. Run, run, I’m a reckless wrecking ball. Oh my, what the heck.” The bridge is marked by a recording of one of Bruno’s phone calls, and as the call ends, the tension of the song rises. The guitar fades and is replaced by driving strings and techno effects, which fall into heavy metal guitar riffs and Bruno’s trademark screaming: first the lyrics but then simply expletives, almost reveling in anger.
Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders isn’t a perfect album, nor is it the best Awolnation album. But it showcases Aaron Bruno’s strengths as well as his growth as a musician and songwriter.
With the COVID-19 virus still trapping us in our homes, the chances of a summer tour are dim. But if you need a break from the darkness of the world, Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders has the fun pop to do that task. And if you need to dive into the anger, fear, and anxiety that surrounds and binds us, Lightning Riders is there to do that for you, too.
What do you think? Have you listened to Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders? Are you a fan of Awolnation? Tell us in the comments!
