Japandroids
Near to the Wild Heart of Life
(Anti- Records)
With their third release, and first for the Anti- label, Japandroids prove to be just as relevant as when they first came to notice in 2009. Despite a five-year drought of new music, the duo (Brian King and David Prowse) comes back full bore with eight new offerings, most (but not all) just as compelling as any of their previous tracks.
With the classic rock vibe is still all over Near to the Wild Heart of Life, they are drawing just as much from some of the best punk bands the Midwest ever exported (namely a more melodic Husker Du and The Replacements). The album kicks off with the ferocious title track and rarely lets up for the next half-hour. Even when they turn the distortion down slightly on a track like “North East South West,” they are still running on adrenaline and driving rhythms. The songs lengths are all over the place, running as short as two-and-half minutes (the droning “I’m Sorry”) to nearly eight (the synth-heavy “Arc of Bar”).
The band may have been quiet for the past few years, but if Near to the Wild Heart of Life is any indication, they still have plenty more to say.
Purchase the album here: Physical | iTunes | Bandcamp | Amazon
