Avion Avion

Okay, so I’m thinking Radiohead, Oasis, arena rock.  I’m thinking “guilty pleasures,” meaning the kind of song blips proffered on TV shows like Ed and just about anything on the WB - the engaging pop I want to seek out but feel a little silly about, like I should always be listening to terminally cool artists like Tom Waits, Thinking Fellers, Mary Timony - know what I mean? Or, for older readers - ever admit to liking the Eagles, Hall & Oates, Cheap Trick (the latter being an influence, by the way, on Avion dreamer-up/writer and former Torie Steve Bertrand?)

With some patience I detect more blood and vibrancy than noted on the two rather bombastic openers.  And it gets better.  The r-r-rock of Perfect for No One and Bulletproof Glow grows on me like a bad habit.  It Falls Back On Me rides changes that never surprise, but the predictability is aced by the song’s depth and vulnerability.  Starting Over has strong momentum and a nice bridge.  As for the album’s single, Seven Days Without You, I like the lyrics and bridge (Bertrand has a knack for these) but find the playing and production overly pomp and circumstantial - it’s like Bertrand aimed it, along with the rest, at stadium concerts.  In any case, the CD’s multi-tracked vocals make me want to remember a couple of Excedrin should I ever attend any of Avion’s possible Superbowl halftime sets, but hey, that’s just me.  Relief is more than offered by Love is Here Again (despite, again, the clubfooted pace) and the aforementioned “It Falls Back...”

Can this band knock Weezer or the Pixies off their current perches in my car CD player?  Maybe not, but Avion’s best is good enough to get a shot at being mixed with those faves.  If Bertrand can break the habit of  wallowing in mid-tempo, drawn-out grooves and if future mixes are earthier, the band might  make more direct rockers break into at least a  mild sweat should they have to follow Avion on stage.  Meanwhile, what strike me as weaknesses could mean interest from listeners who follow bands I never bothered with: Modest Mouse, Boston , Jon Bon Jovi. And it’s nice to hear positive messages like that of The Best is Yet to Come from an apparently non-Christian fundamentalist source.  Hallelujah?

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Release Date: November 02, 2004
Tracks: 13 - Time: 49:50
Produced by: Steve Bertrand & Stuart Brawley
Format: CD
Website: www.avionmusic.com

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Avion:

Steve Bertrand - Vocals / Guitars / Bass
Jamie Wollam - Drums
Additional Personnel.