Angels and Airwaves’ attitude shines through every crack of who they are. From the lyrics “the whole wide world is mine,” to the liner notes where front man Tom DeLonge states, “we are the best band in the last 18 months,” to the songs off of their previous album being used in the background of the new album’s closer, their confidence that they can pull off anything in the studio comes through relentlessly in their epic sound.

While Angels and Airwaves are not saving the musical world just yet, the band’s new album, I-Empire, picks up right where We Don’t Need To Whisper left off.

“Call to Arms” and “Everything’s Magic” kick off the album by displaying the same elements which were common in We Don’t Need To Whisper. This continues throughout the album with songs like “True Love,” “Rite of Spring” and “Heaven,” all slow building and lyrically simple but catchy songs sharing a similar structure and intensity. These very subtle experimentations work well at times in songs such as “Secret Crowds,” which is the anthem of the album and shows DeLonge is willing to use a bit of his punk-rocker roots this time around.

However, there are also songs that will leave listeners thinking something is a little off. The biggest victim of this problem is the low point of the album, “Breathe.” This song slows things down, and with its overly transparent and simple lyrics, it does not get the job done.

At the end of the day, Angels and Airwaves attempts to dabble in subtle explorations while maintaining their original sound. They succeed in some songs but fail in others. But let’s be honest, as pretentious as DeLonge is, many of his critics are not going to be easily won over, and this album clearly makes no effort to attempt to satisfy them. There are no secrets revealed here and no attempts to outdo the Angels and Airwaves’ many enemies with unforeseen brilliance.

Many may view the band as a failure, but at the same time these guys write catchy and meaningful songs, and they stick to their own style with  unusually strong conviction.

So if you can’t stand the over-the-top and ambitious attitude DeLonge brings to his music, then you are not going to like Angels and Airwaves. However, if you find their unique conviction, sound and attitude refreshing in a pop media market filled with music lacking creativity, then you probably already found their first album intriguing, and you will most likely find I-Empire a similarly worthwhile album.