Recently, I was assigned an article for a feature called “The One After,” which surveys not a band’s classic defining album, but the one that came after it. Needless to say, following that album up was always going to be a massive hurdle for band members Brian King and David Prowse. Intense, rambunctious, and thoroughly life-affirming, Celebration Rock stands in the rearview as one of the surest classics of its era. It was an album about being young, staying up all night, making memories with friends, and drinking way more than could feasibly be deemed “necessary.” Beginning and ending with fireworks, the album raged with pounding guitars, blitzkrieg drums, and shout-along choruses that could put anyone in a party mood. Their last record, 2012’s Celebration Rock, was more appropriately titled than any other album released in the past seven years. In a way, that’s exactly what Japandroids are doing on Near to the Wild Heart of Life, their third full-length album and their first in nearly five years. I suppose you could read it as a lyric about a break up, but I prefer to see it as a vow to let go of the things that used to define your life and build new ones in their place. To me, that line has always been a beautifully apt statement about growing up and moving on. “It’s a lifeless life, with no fixed address to give/But you’re not mine to die for anymore/So I must live.” On the list of the best lyrics of the decade so far, that one-the most climactic line from the Japandroids’ blistering, cathartic “The House That Heaven Built”-has to be near the top.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |