Avastera “The Clocks Have Ticked Too Long” Album Review
Avastera “The Clocks Have Ticked Too Long”
Avastera is:
Mike Lang
Chris Hanssen
Dave Thoomes
Chris Crole
Jamie Savage
These Emo rockers from down under have been doing their thing since March 2012 and in their very brief existence have managed to tour overseas with such prime time acts as Mayday Parade, Silverstein, and The Wonder Years. With a fine collection of positive reviews for their latest release “The Clocks Have Ticked Too Long” Produced by Paul Leavitt (All Time Low, Yellowcard, The Dangerous Summer), a long list of shows supporting popular acts, and an official endorsement courtesy of ESP, it seems that Avastera are well on their way to the top. But what does Punk World Views think about Avastera and their debut EP “The Clocks Have Ticked Too Long”? Well, to put it quite simply, we think its pretty good.
Available December 3rd
Track List:
1.Hear Me Out
2.As The Tables Turn
3. December Sun
4. This Beautiful Nightmare
5. Highways From Home
6. Ms. Conception
7. December Sun (Acoustic)
“Hear Me Out” begins with 7 seconds of sound that could lead us to any musical destination. As soon as we take a guess, the song hooks us with pop punk and speeds off with us on a bumpy road of rock, punk, and metal for the rest of the album. The majority of this track sounds like All Time Low, but there are some metal chops that suggests a lot of Atreyu went into the ear of these guitar players. Its catchy, its anthemic, and its the best track on the entire album.
“As The Tables Turn” starts with an unusual piano lead over a break down in homage to “Four Year Strong”, and very different from the sounds we’ve heard prior. We bounce with the melody pleasantly during the verses until the band presses the “fast forward to punk” button and we speed up for the chorus. After the first round, we’re blindsided by screaming metal chuggery oozing with dark synths. We continue on in such fashion, and begin to adapt to the radical musical styles sequentially Avastera introduce to us.
“December Sun” is an awesome Emo song to cruise in your car with your girlfriend on the highway towards the sunset. Or by yourself for that matter, trying to come to terms with some relationship issue. It utilizes the classic four chord pop verse riff, with the epic chorus that bares sentimental lyrics that cause you to feel emotionally moved about something. It ends with a sick double bass drum boosted, melodic breakdown ending. I’ve decided that This upbeat breakdown conclusion signifies that you probably win the girl back after this song is finished. So you have that to look forward to.
“This Beautiful Nightmare” includes some more of the unwarranted metal screaming that occurred in tracks previously, but disappears before we get used to it. Avastera likes to keep these metal interruptions short and sweet, which I feel is appropriate as too much of this contrast produces a dynamic that is hard to maintain. Through fiery guitar shreddings, and elaborate breakdowns Avastera really crank the rock all the way to 11 on this one.
“Highways From Home” launches at full speed to an 80’s metal influenced guitar lead. The vocals soar like an eagle above the glory of this sonic mass, and we’re rocking pretty hard. By the time we get to the end of the song, we don’t remember where it all began. But it doesn’t matter cause we enjoyed ourselves while it lasted.
“Mrs. Conception” Starts off much in the fashion of early Escape The Fate, except the following section takes us to a much prettier place ETF aren’t capable of. Soon enough, we are back to the melodic Emo rock we’ve come to enjoy. There is an exceptionally good guitar solo, with near perfect tonality. Unlike the rest of the album, the metal vocals appear in the background to reinforce the melodies. There is a tough breakdown and there’s clean guitars again and a bunch of other stuff happens and its at this point that I become more interested in my chips and dip then listening.
For their closing number, Avastera choose to reprise the previous song “December Sun (Acoustic)”. It gets pretty sentimental and…acoustic on “December Sun (acoustic)”…There’s plenty of heartfelt emotion and earnest strumming on this final track, the girls will enjoy their glimpse into the passionate heart of lead singer Mike Lang. I wonder if they really needed to include it on the EP because as much as I like “December Sun” I prefer the “plugged” version better, and feel the band could’ve added another song instead of supplying us with a rearranged version of something we heard already.
Although Avastera is not the most strikingly unique act out there, they manage to pull some tricks out of their hat, and do it with solid performance. The times where I would normally cringe, I find myself nodding in approval, or pausing with unexpected delight. Avastera seem to take the metal influenced pop punk to places where rock and roll blooms, and sprinkle bits of heaviness here and there to keep things fresh. They’ve emerged with a substantial product on their latest EP, their success is no doubt demonstrated from it. It is very difficult for these kind of bands to walk the fine line between corny and tough. Avastera have found a balance between the two, apply with taste and commit to it with confidence. Unfortunately, Avastera does not tickle my fancy, as there is a zest, and sense of danger I search for in music, and I have not found it here. Although Avastera has much to offer, there is also much left to be desired.
About the Author
Denise Borders 39, Los Angeles. Denise founded PWV in 2008 and remains the primary manager and photographer/videographer. She is not secretly obsessed with Joey Cape.
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