14. Near to the Wild Heart of Life / Japandroids

Life-affirming and towering, Near to the Wild Heart of Life is one of the year’s great rock records.  While it may not touch the same skies as the triumphant punk-pop of instant classic Celebration Rock, Japandroids’ third album crackles with a different kind of intensity, as the Canadian duo of Brian King and David Prowse open up their kinetic sound to shades of The Who, The Boss, and The Replacements.

Thankfully, Japandroids are still wide-eyed and optimistic. You will be moved.  Fists will be raised and anthems will be sung.  Here, however, the guys are more willing to run in new directions, as the additions of synths, acoustic guitars, and mid-tempo strummers offer contrasting textures to their breakneck pace.  The changes showcase promising new song-writing chops, which is a wise transition given the difficulty of reaching the same furious climaxes of tracks like “The House That Heaven Built."  Sometimes you have to climb down and let the rabble-rousing find other places to go.

The title track is a gas.  It details the protagonist’s escape to near the wild heart of life, which is presumably the place where you find rock’n’roll and run down your dreams forever.  His best friend – “with passion and pure provocation” – implores him to “succumb to the city and surrender” because “you can’t condemn your love / to linger here and die / can’t leave your dreams to chance / or to a spirit in the sky.”  So our hero relents with one of the best chorus sing-alongs of the year:

And it got me all fired up

To go far away

And make some ears ring from the sound of my singing, baby

So I left my home

And all I had

I used to be good

But now I’m bad

Fast forward to tracing the country on tour, our hero now rocks the heartland on “North South East West," galvanizing the dream of drums and guitars into something approaching early R.E.M. by way of Thin Lizzy.  “I'm Sorry (For Not Finding You Sooner)” is a fuzzed-out exercise in shoegaze punk; it slowly creeps into a surprisingly effective track.  “Arc of Bar” straddles the album's center with synth reverbs and a more deliberate pace, barely held together by virtue of its fizzy guitar glue.  It is the one album track that has consistently divided critics and fans, but the overall sonics are an interesting exercise albeit maybe the song is a tad too long.

“Midnight to Morning” is more familiar territory but uses acoustic guitars to drive its bleary-eyed paean to the night.  "No Known Drink or Drug" sparkles with adrenaline-building oohs and aahs and is destined to be a rallying cry on the band's concert setlist.  "In a Body Like a Grave" is a killer closer, the band's final metaphor of desire, escape, and transformation, leaping beyond the limitations of the here and now, pouring spirit and heart into something approaching a personal creed.  The message is clear: chase your passions, do not slow down for anyone, and if you need a soundtrack, you will know just where to find it.