Near to the Wild Heart of Life is the third studio album by the Canadian rock duo Japandroids, released on January 27, 2017, by ANTI-. Described by the band as their first attempt at making a "proper studio album", it features a more polished aesthetic than their previous releases.Stolworthy, Jacob. Japandroids interview: 'This new record is our first attempt at making a proper studio album', The Independent, 31 January 2017. Retrieved on 05 February 2019.
With band members living in separate cities for the first time, the album was written over the course of a year during sessions in Vancouver, Toronto, New Orleans, and Mexico City.Adams, Gregory. Japandroids still deliver plenty of distorted guitar hooks and drum damage, The Georgia Straight, 26 December 2016. Retrieved on 05 February 2019. It was recorded by longtime engineer Jesse Gander and mixed by Peter Katis. The album produced three singles: “Near to the Wild Heart of Life”, “No Known Drink or Drug”, and “North East South West”.
Background Japandroids toured for nearly two years in support of their second album, Celebration Rock (2012). Following the end of the Celebration Rock Tour, the duo decided to take an extended break from the band. In an interview with The Independent, King cited exhaustion as the primary motivation:
In late 2014, the band reconvened in New Orleans to begin writing new material: "We rented a house and spent about five weeks there, with all the gear in the living room, just playing every day. We hadn't written anything in a long time, so it took a minute just to get the ball rolling again."Tedder, Michael. "Q&A: Japandroids Remain On Brand With Near To The Wild Heart Of Life", Stereogum, 2 November 2017. Retrieved on 7 February 2017. The duo, now living in separate cities, would spend the next year writing together via similar sessions. The album was recorded in the fall of 2015 with longtime engineer Jesse Gander, but wasn’t mixed until the following spring. The band attributed wanting to work with Peter Katis as one of the primary reasons for the album's delayed release: "We really wanted Peter Katis, who’s well known for working with bands like The National and Interpol, to mix our record, but we had to wait around a little while in order to work with him."
Recording The album features a more polished aesthetic in comparison to its predecessors Post-Nothing (2009) and Celebration Rock (2012). King explained:
The band allowed themselves more time in the studio than usual in order to experiment with overdubs, as well as guitar effects, loops, and synthesizers. Prowse explained, “We wanted to make a more sonically diverse record, to explore different sounds. There was a lot of talk about having greater dynamic range on this album, like quieter parts vs louder parts. Same thing with tempos, having some songs that were a little slower and not just balls to the wall the entire time.” The band has described every song on this album as having its own “sonic world”. Prowse elaborated, “There are different guitar tones and textures from song-to-song, and the drum sound changes a fair amount among other things. There’s a lot more care put into arrangements and a lot of sonic flourishes that we'd never experimented with before.”Trefor, Cai. Japandroids' David Prowse on the shift in mentality on their latest LP, Gigwise, 30 January 2017. Retrieved on 05 February 2019.
Near to the Wild Heart of Life continues the band's tradition of having eight-song albums, with King noting, "We did actually try to do more this time. It wasn't like, 'Oh we'll just do eight again.' We wrote and recorded more songs, but when it came time to put it all together, it was the same thing as before. You take one off here, another one there, and it just kind of glues itself together.”
Writing and composition
Beginning in 2014, King and Prowse lived in separate cities for the first time, with King splitting his time between Toronto and Mexico City, while Prowse remained in their hometown of Vancouver.Berman, Stuart. "Synths! Ballads! Acoustic Guitars! Welcome to Japandroids 2.0", Pitchfork Media, 3 February 2017. Retrieved on 12 December 2017. According to the band, living in separate cities "totally transformed the way [they] write and work." They began the writing process by sending each other song ideas via Dropbox: "It was a pretty profound change for both of us and the band was basically forced to figure out a new way of writing. [...] We would spend time apart and be communicating via email and stuff like that, then meeting in whatever city we decided to work on it and put it together. A very, very different writing style than our first two records."
Music Critic Stuart Berman described Near to the Wild Heart of Life as Japandroids' "most accessible record to date", commenting "At their core, Japandroids are still very much a band that writes valorous songs about living for the moment and loving for a lifetime. But the anxious, slash-and-burn abandon of old has matured into a steadier hand and confident poise; the gritty surface buffed away for a radio-ready polish; the duo’s minimalism blown open to absorb the infinite possibilities of the recording studio. For the first time on a Japandroids record, there are prominent acoustic guitars. And synthesizers. And a shoegaze ballad. And, in centerpiece track 'Arc of Bar', a seven-minute, Haçienda-bound psych-disco epic." On the evolution of the band's music, Prowse stated:
Lyrics King has repeatedly cited both Tom Waits and Townes Van Zandt as major influences on the album: "Lyrically, this album was heavily influenced by both Tom Waits and Townes Van Zandt, as they were the two artists that I listened to the most during the past few years, and whose sense of storytelling I tried to emulate in my own songwriting."Blackstock, Patrick. "Japandroids' Austin connection led to tour kickoff here", Austin American-Statesman, 3 February 2017. Retrieved on 12 December 2017. Regarding their influence, he stated: "When you're listening to great songwriters, who know how to build a story and have characters in songs that you care about, you can't help but be influenced by it and I definitely noticed a shift in the way I wrote lyrics on this record."
As Joe Coscarelli of The New York Times noted, "Once content to make greasy, direct and triumphant major-chord anthems about girls, drinking and other forms of escape, the band pushes deeper and wider, especially lyrically, in new songs, weighing what it means to have dedicated a life to such pursuits."Coscarelli, Joe. "Japandroids: Shriek-Along Punk. Literary Lyrics.", The New York Times, 27 January 2017. Retrieved on 8 December 2017. On the evolution of his lyrics, King stated: "I'd never say that I'd 'found my voice', but I think that I've discovered a way that I write that I like and I've become comfortable with that. I don't or can't write in the way that a lot of the great artists that I love are able to write. It just comes down to embracing your own personal idiosyncrasies."Gormely, Ian. "Five Surprising Facts About the New Japandroids Album 'Near to the Wild Heart of Life'", Exclaim!, 26 January 2017. Retrieved on 12 December 2017.
Ahead of the album's release, King curated a playlist for Rolling Stone specifically of the album's influences, stating that these were the artists that they were "listening to and thinking about" while writing the album, and that they were particularly influential in terms of the album's lyrics and themes.Fricke, David. "Japandroids on Their Ironclad Punk-Rock Brotherhood", Rolling Stone, 16 February 2017. Retrieved on 12 December 2017. It included songs by Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Emmylou Harris, Gil Scott-Heron, Marianne Faithfull, Patti Smith, Mick Harvey, and Game Theory amongst others.BrooklynVegan Staff. "Japandroids covered The Saints with Craig Finn, made a playlist of influences", BrooklynVegan, 20 February 2017. Retrieved on 12 December 2017.
Regarding the lyrical content of the album's second track, "North East South West", King noted, "Between those four years on Celebration Rock, we traveled the world. We went to a lot of places. We met a lot of people. We had a lot of experiences. Instead of making an album about that, which I kind of did on Celebration Rock, I thought I'm just going to condense it all as best I can into one song. That's what that song is. It's almost getting that part of my writing out of that way. The rest of the album is based in the present."
Title The title Near to the Wild Heart of Life is a reference to the 1943 novel Near to the Wild Heart (Perto do Coração Selvagem) by Clarice Lispector, whose title is itself a reference to the 1916 novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce.O'Kane, Josh. "With new album, Japandroids embrace the slow burn", The Globe and Mail, 20 January 2017. Retrieved on 12 December 2017. In an interview with National Public Radio (NPR), King explained the title:
Release and promotion
On October 31, 2016, Japandroids announced their third album Near to the Wild Heart of Life via a teaser video featuring live footage from their 4-night stand at The Cobalt in Vancouver.Geslani, Michelle. "Japandroids announce new album Near to the Wild Heart of Life", Consequence of Sound, 31 October 2017. Retrieved on 7 December 2017. On November 2, 2016, it was confirmed that the album would be released by Anti- on January 27, 2017, and preceded by a limited edition 7" of the album's title track.Sodomsky, Sam. "Japandroids Detail New Album, Share New Track "Near to the Wild Heart of Life": Listen", Pitchfork Media, 2 November 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2017. When asked about the motivation behind switching labels, King stated:
According to the band, Anti- came to their attention following a chance encounter with one of their staff members at a bar in New Orleans. On choosing to sign with them specifically, Prowse stated:
On January 10, 2017, "No Known Drink or Drug" was released digitally to promote the album ahead of its release.Young, Alex. "Japandroids unleash new song “No Known Drink or Drug” — listen", Consequence of Sound, 10 January 2017. Retrieved on 7 December 2017. On January 19, 2017, Near to the Wild Heart of Life was streamed in its entirety on NPR Music in the United States and on CBC Music in Canada.Thompson, Stephen. "First Listen: Japandroids, Near To The Wild Heart Of Life", NPR Music, 19 January 2017. Retrieved on 17 May 2017.Dekel, Jon. "First Play: Japandroids, 'Near To The Wild Heart Of Life'", CBC Music, 19 January 2017. Retrieved on 17 May 2017. On January 31, 2017, the band performed "Near to the Wild Heart of Life" on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and on May 9, 2017, performed "Near to the Wild Heart of Life", "True Love and a Free Life of Free Will", and "Midnight To Morning" on Later... with Jools Holland.Later... with Jools Holland. "Episode 5 - Series 50 Live", Later... with Jools Holland, 9 May 2017. Retrieved on 7 December 2017. On May 16, 2017, a limited edition 7" of the album's second single "North East South West" was released.Slingerland, Calum. "Japandroids Reveal New 7-inch, Map Out Fall North American Tour", Exclaim!, 8 May 2017. Retrieved on 17 May 2017. On October 11, 2017, the band performed "No Known Drink Or Drug" on Late Night with Seth Meyers.Fu, Eddie. "Japandroids tear through 'No Known Drink Or Drug' on Seth Meyers: Watch", Consequence of Sound, 12 October 2017. Retrieved on 7 December 2017. On October 24, 2017, Japandroids’ show at Massey Hall in Toronto was filmed and recorded for the concert film series Live At Massey Hall.Massey Hall. Japandroids: Live At Massey Hall , Massey Hall, 24 October 2017. Retrieved on 05 February 2019. The film was released on June 14, 2018.Kitts, Natasha. Watch: Japandroids Live At Massey Hall Performance, Indie 88, 20 June 2018. Retrieved on 05 February 2019.
Music video