Their much-lauded DIY and punk sensibilities still shine through, but old favourites like “Younger Us” and “Adrenaline Nightshift”, which portray the duo as reckless college boys lamenting their loss of youth, aren’t apparent here.
Sonically, Near to the Wild Heart of Life is an album that feels apart from the rest of Japandroids’ canon thus far. Songs like “North East South West” and “Morning to Midnight” continue the theme set by the album’s opening track, with King and Prowse taking turns singing about the push-pull of sojourning throughout the USA and Canada, as well as driving countless kilometers to be back with the ones they love. It’s fitting, then, that so much of Near to the Wild Heart of Life is spent ruminating on travel and relationships (while still saving some space to discuss the ever-important topic of getting fall-down drunk). The dichotomy has been made more real with King and Prowse having settled down and gotten on with “real life” in the time between “Celebration Rock” and their newest release, with the former splitting his time between homes in Toronto and Mexico City, as well as trips to Vancouver to record and rehearse. The titular track ensures their message is clear from the outset: “The future is under fire / The past is gaining ground / A continuous cold war between my home and my hometown.” A tendency to tour endlessly has often left Japandroids far from home, an experience they love and lament seemingly in equal measure. Instead, Near to the Wild Heart of Life presents Japandroids reborn - a little older, a little wiser, but still ready and willing to tear your shit up.
After playing over 200 shows in support of 2012’s Celebration Rock, Brian King and David Prowse’s three-year hiatus and almost total radio silence seemed to signal that they might not return at all. For a band that came to prominence on the back of two raucous and in-your-face albums, Japandroids have always had a knack for self-reflection.
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