Japandroids
21st July 2017
The Kings Arms Tavern, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Lauren Sanderson. Photography by Connor Crawford.
Having freed themselves from the tentacles of touring three years ago, The Japandroids return to the stage to do what they do best, rocking ‘n’ rolling. After capturing New Zealand’s hearts in 2013, the Canadian duo, David Prowse (drums/vocals) and Brian King (guitars/vocals), made their long-awaited return to NZ shores last night at the Kings Arms to showcase their highly-anticipated third album, Near to the Wild Heart of Life.
Who better to kick off the night than support act Kiwi rockers Yukon Era, who certainly got the crowd geared up for the exhilarating night ahead. They may be young but they know how to command a stage.
On the topic of age, Japandroids may be in their mid thirties but they have the energy of two 18 year olds. The energy grew with each song they performed, which made for a lively crowd and an epic atmosphere. No introduction was needed, it was evident by the screams and the yells that everybody knew the mighty Japandroids. The Vancouver duo jumped straight into it with The House That Heaven Built, a favourite from their second album Celebration Rock. King’s guitar skills were on point, whereas Prowse’s drumming technique stole the show, taking it to a whole new level.
The two-piece band earned their reputation on raucous and raw live performances. Their previous albums Post-Nothing and Celebration Rock are very loud, high-energy records. Japandroids have stripped down their third album Near to the Wild Heart of life, redefining the tone of their music to create a wider range of sonic sounds. You can’t quite make out this change while listening to their new album, but it is evident in their live performance that a lot more thought has been put into the arrangement. Now I realise why Japandroids disappeared off the music scene for a while, to create an album of pure genius.
The title track to this year’s Near to the Wild Heart of Life was certainly a crowd pleaser, taking us on a magical sonic voyage. It sums up Japandroids new musical ability while staying true to their rock ‘n’ roll ways. The catchy rhythms of True Love and a Free Life of Free Will echoed through the room followed by chants of ‘All life long, til’ I’m gone.’
As the crowd bid farewell to the rock gods, the closing lyric by King ‘til I’m gone’ was embedded into our minds as we begged and pleaded for the duo to stay.
Their music is certainly infectious and their arrangements sound like they should be coming from a five-piece band. They’re loud, catchy and boy, do they know how to rock ‘n’ roll!
Japandroids:
Yukon Era:
Were you there at the Kings Arms Tavern for this superlative rock gig? Or have you seen Japandroids perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!