The Wildhearts have always been musical magpies, a band that pinched elements from a plethora of genres and lovingly reconstructed them into something more than the sum of its parts. On this, their first release since 2003’s frustratingly erratic The Wildhearts Must Be Destroyed, the quartet eschew the softer approach of the previous album and rediscover the hybrid of vocal harmonies, pop melodies and gargantuan riffs with which they made their name.
The nine-minute opener Rooting For The Bad Guy exemplifies everything which still makes The Wildhearts a unique proposition: a thrashy verse and an infectious hook, given substance with prog-metal riffing and a Pink Floyd-style instrumental passage that recollects their early track Dangerlust. The album’s first single, The Sweetest Song, is more succinct. With a bubblegum chorus and relatively straight structure, it represents what 80s pop-metal could’ve reached, had it been… well, good. The New Flesh, a punk-fuelled marriage of Billy Joel’s We Didn’t Start The Fire and Rush’s You Bet Your Life, represents yet another highlight.
With troubled bassist Danny McCormack missing from the original line-up, this album lacks the personality and raw suburban feel that made Earth Vs… a classic debut. But undeniably, The Wildhearts are still a thrilling talent.
