Review Summary: This band of brothers has got some things to say.
Since kicking things into gear in 2014, Avantist have been on one hell of an upswing in the Chicago underground music scene. A band of four brothers, they effortlessly use their unique chemistry to carry their music to powerful heights that few bands are ever able to reach. Unlike many releases by their contemporaries, this debut does not carry the same mark of inexperience, instead displaying the pure adrenaline-rush and muscular confidence that permeates the band’s live performances.
The sound here is far from one note, to the point that their self-described “post-rock” status seemed to be more aimed towards the complexity and eclectic nature of their sound than any comparisons to bands such as Godspeed You! The only song that might fit that description is the massive “Human Driver” which kicks off with a gloriously propulsive riff and promises to maintain its one-note velocity for its entire length before breaking off into a series of jazzy soundscapes, heavy bridges, and slowly building whirlwinds of sound. The weirdest track on here is only “post rock” by virtue of sounding influenced by rock, but having transcended its roots so fully that it now exists as a blistering vortex of clashing genres. It descends into pure chaos, alternating between rapped, sung, and screamed vocals with such fluidity that they all become one, quickly slipping in and out of a mellow and jazzy dream state (courtesy of Mars Volta saxophonist Adrian Terrazas-Gonzalez) that’ll cause whiplash if the listener isn’t careful. The other tracks range from the latin-punk thrash of “Veneno,” the upbeat and jagged surf-rock of “Tidalwave” and the soaring “Our Design,” which exists a beauty and strength that sounds like a psychedelic desert-rock ballad if ever there were a thing. What I’m getting at naturally is that these words are useful when trying to review an album as complex as this, but the genre turns are so quick and nuanced that defining them will be the last thing the listener will be concerned about.
The only song that betrays their younger underground status is ironically the opener, “Conquer,” whose squelching guitars and raw production style is endearing but also evocative of scores of other less experienced bands, and is a sound that the rest of the album largely shies away from entirely. Aside from that minor hiccup, there are virtually no major flaws on here. A couple of songs slip through the tracks in the middle of the track listing, with the still-great “Truth in Light” just re-iterating sounds heard previous on the album, and “Veneno” doing little to play with audience expectations compared to others on the album. Besides, by the time the excellent closing duo “Deep Red Love” and “Solita Soledad” come around, the listener should be so floored by the mix of passion, fantastic musicianship, and frenetic energy that these faults seem as minimal as possible.
Much of the quality of the record is obviously owed not just to the incredible muscial talent of each of the Arias Brothers (Fernando on vox, Erick on bass, Luis on drums, and David on guitar), who are so uniquely and equally talented that to compare them would be pointless, but their deep-rooted bond as both friends and family. The most important and effective element of the band is their shared lineage. Their love for each other can be heard in the very core of their musicianship. They’re constantly in tune with each other, not fighting to one-up each other, but joining together to create evocative and challenging soundscapes with the chemistry of a band that has been doing this for decades. These guys are just getting their start, yet they’re just as good as the veterans. We’re just lucky enough to say that we’ve been on the sidelines listening since the beginning.
