“Near to the Wild Heart of Life” perfectly captures a restless vivacity of youth, overflowing with energy and pleas to live passionately and recklessly.
In 2012, Japandroids dropped the modern rock classic “Celebration Rock.” The band then toured for a bit and promptly disappeared off the face of the planet. Fans have clamored for a follow-up for years, but their hiatus seemed permanent — until now.
Four years later, they’ve finally returned with the single “Near to the Wild Heart of Life” off their upcoming album of the same name. It sounds like the band never left, picking up right where “Celebration Rock” left off. The track opens with a building snare roll and moves straight into a huge rock ‘n’ roll riff courtesy of guitarist Brian King, bringing all the power their classic rock and punk influences carry. The vocals are classic Japandroids, with King affirming, “And it got me all fired up / To go far away / And make some music from the sound of my singing, baby.”
The most noticeable difference is the much cleaner production. While not exactly low-fi, “Celebration Rock” had a very raw sound that made its claims to life feel all the more real. “Near to the Wild Heart of Life” feels much more polished with vibrant guitars that may turn off older fans. Combined with a focus on arena rock anthems, the new sound is a hint of Japandroids possibly positioning themselves to break into the rock mainstream.
Despite this polish, “Near to the Wild Heart of Life” captures the overall spirit of the Japandroids discography. While it won’t go down as the classic life-affirming anthem “The House That Heaven Built” was, it nevertheless promises a worthy return for Japandroids with their upcoming 2017 release.
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