Japandroids

Lyrics: Are they necessary? Not always — and a little can go a long way. "The Boys Are Leaving Town," the first song on Post-Nothing, the Polyvinyl Records debut by Canada's Japandroids, boasts just two lines: a sentence featuring the same five words as the title (and in the same...

By Michael Roberts

July 16, 2009

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Lyrics: Are they necessary? Not always — and a little can go a long way. "The Boys Are Leaving Town," the first song on Post-Nothing, the Polyvinyl Records debut by Canada's Japandroids, boasts just two lines: a sentence featuring the same five words as the title (and in the same order), as well as the query "Will we find our way back home?" That's not even enough material to construct a decent haiku — but thanks to the dark rain of riffage that falls from Brian King's guitar, chaotic pounding courtesy of drummer David Prowse, and their impassioned sorta-but-not-really harmonies, mighty few listeners will complain. The band's highest-profile tour to date suffered from a severe case of gigus interruptus thanks to emergency surgery for King's perforated ulcer. But the duo's back at full power and ready for action: In "Wet Hair," they repeatedly declare, "Let's get to France/So we can French kiss some French girls." 'Nuff said.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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