Monday sees the release of I Am The Avalanche’s third album, ‘Wolverines’ to celebrate we asked front man Vinnie Caruana to take us through the album track by track. If it wasn’t clear from listening to the record, the below explanations go a long way to showing just how much of a personal record this actually is. You can read our review of the record here
‘Wolverines’ is released on March 18th so put on the stream, and enjoy!
Two Runaways
Stylistically, I wrote this song thinking about what if Tom Petty listened to more punk. After the guitars were written, I knew the word ‘American’ would have to be in the chorus a la his song ‘American Girl’. This was one of the last songs I wrote for Wolverines.
177
Two very good friends of the band got engaged (and eventually married). This song is about the night Conrad proposed to Katie. We were there and involved with putting on the surprise. 177 is their address and a lot of great times have been had there.
The Shape I’m In
I suffered a really serious back injury before the writing process for Wolverines began, so needless to say I was in a place of extreme physical pain throughout. It’s the anthem for hard times written during one of my hardest. Mike Ireland wrote the music before he left the band.
Young Kerouacs
Another killer riff from Mikey here. The song is about getting out of the dark ages of your life and entering your Renaissance. Prime living, positive output, constant elevation, relentless progress…regardless of the horse shit life throws at you.
Wolverines
This song is written in halves: the worst and best day of your life. So the music takes a sharp turn between those two days. It was an idea I had after an amazing day spent with friends that I had to leave early so I could go into a writing session.
Anna Lee
The verses are a direct homage to my friends and the people who inspire me with their love and lust for life and creativity. The chorus is an afterthought about my divorce: walking around smiling, oblivious to the fact that your whole world is going to change. I was the last to know she felt that way.
Save Your Name
There is always room for self-improvement. Selfishness is something that’s nearly impossible to stop exhibiting until you become a man. A man can admit when he’s wrong and try his best to make it right.
Where Were You
I can’t always be there for my friends and loved ones. I’m away from home more than half the year and miss a lot of stuff. So this song is a letter to myself. The lyrics stem from being in California when Hurricane Sandy hit. I wrote the words looking at the devastation out my window.
My Lion Heart
This goes back to the injury I sustained. Halfway through that hell, I felt like a warrior and started thriving creatively in spite of the pain. I wrote this song messing around on the piano on my iPad. I don’t actually play piano.
One Last Time
I wonder if I sabotage my life for the sake of art so that I have more content to write about. I’ve had this conversation with other songwriters and most of us aren’t convinced that we don’t. The whole conversation going on in the song takes place while standing in the “Bombed Out Church” in Liverpool.