You’ve seen the billboards, you’ve watched the teasers, and you may have even called the 1800 number to complete the package. Yes, new music from Gang of Youths is on the way, nearly four years after their world-conquering second album, Go Farther in Lightness. A lot has changed for band since that record came out – they relocated to London, lead guitarist Joji Malani exited the fold, and former Noah & The Whale multi-instrumentalist Tom Hobden entered the picture. Anything else? Throw in a mass of sold-out shows, festival appearances, ARIA Awards, Hottest 100 spots and arena supports for the likes of Foo Fighters and Mumford & Sons. It’s a lot to take in, which may be why, lockdown regardless, the band have taken their time to reemerge.
With ‘The Angel of 8th. Ave’ on the horizon, it’s an opportune time to revisit some of the band’s key cuts thus far – either as a timely reminder of one of Australia’s greatest hopes in contemporary music, or as a quick catch-up for those who didn’t catch their astronomical ascent to begin with.
1. ‘Vital Signs’, The Positions (2015)
A logical entryway into the band’s body of work is side-one, track-one on their debut studio album. ‘Vital Signs’ is a song of lofty ambition and direct intent – two elements of the band’s music that would go on to become expected. The song burns slowly but brightly, driven by a drop-D guitar lick and marching drums as a glockenspiel glistens atop lyrical turmoil swinging between hope and despair. By the time it boils over into a wash of ‘woah-oh’s and an explosive double-time dash to the proverbial finish line, Gang of Youths have well and truly arrived.
2. ‘The Overpass’, The Positions (2015)
Let’s cross now to the end of The Positions for what has become one of the band’s most under-appreciated efforts. A blend of low-end cello and a cycling synthesizer line lays down a remorseful tone, with high-pitched guitar serving as a lone shining light off in the distance. This plays into one of singer David Le’aupepe’s most aching, Springsteen-esque choruses: “I don’t have a coat/And we don’t have a car/But honey, if you’re patient/The city isn’t far.” It’s a song of time and place, light and dark, desperation and hope. It wanders headlong into the abyss, on a quest for answers.
3. ‘Strange Diseases’, Let Me Be Clear (2016)
For all intents and purposes, ‘Strange Diseases’ is Gang of Youths’ first in-earnest attempt at a baroque rock song. The string section serves as the centrepiece of the song rather than an additional flourish – think of it like Electric Light Orchestra with a bit more millennial attitude. Its wordless vocal refrain is one of the more accessible the band have ever committed to record, with a swell of violins melodically mirroring it note for note as a stroke of compositional genius.
4. ‘Benevolence Riots’, Benevolence Riots (2014)
Gang of Youths’ king-size ambitions predate The Positions, and if their pre-album singles indicated anything it’s how prepared the band were for a steady ascent to the top of the food chain. A straightforward rock song on the surface, ‘Benevolence Riots’ also serves as an early insight into Le’aupepe as an imagery-driven provocateur. The crunch of the guitars bristle against a lyric sheet detailing “a get-out-of-jail-free card in the eyes of God,” before swinging its way into a defiant, rousing chorus. It might not be fully-realised potential for the band, but the tantalising mix of ingredients is simply too great to ignore.
5. ‘What Can I Do if the Fire Goes Out?’, Go Farther in Lightness (2017)
In a manner antithetical to its title, this propulsive cut from the band’s platinum-selling second record arrives in a pipe-bomb of fire and brimstone. The guitars churn and snarl, and buzz-saw strings soar. Charging up from the rear is drummer Donnie Borzestowski, who earns man-of-the-match status with a stick-breaking flurry that’s equal parts drum-and-bass, punk, and arena rock. As a lyrical crisis of faith unravels amidst the maelstrom, the urgency builds to a point of total exhaustion.
6. ‘The Deepest Sighs, The Frankest Shadows’, Go Farther in Lightness (2017)
You can enjoy this track without the accompanying music video – they’re not OK Go or anything – but taking them in at the same time helps you feel the sheer emotionality on show in both. Another resplendent single from an album that seemingly has them on tap, ‘The Deepest Sighs’ weaves bookworm intellectualism with the beaten chest of someone who’s seen a million faces and rocked them all. It’s borderline archetypal: the most Gang of Youths song by Gang of Youths to ever Gang of Youths.
7. ‘Kansas’, The Positions (2015)
Having discussed The Positions‘ opening and closing moments, ‘Kansas’ sees us take on its centrepiece. While much of this list has focused on the band’s penchant for maximalism, it’s also worth noting their power when everything is collectively stripped to the bare bones. This might be most present on ‘Kansas’, which has been known to send even the rowdiest of the band’s audiences into reverential silence. Part Wizard of Oz escapism and part harsh reality, the song’s sombre cello-lead arrangement makes for one of the more stirring parts of a discography that’s never short on unbridled emotion.
8. ‘Let Me Down Easy’, Go Farther in Lightness (2017)
Of course, of course, of course. What has gone on to be the band’s signature song was as inevitable a feature on this list as it was on the 2017 Hottest 100 – where it ended up being the silver medalist, mind you.
It also cannot escape the links of visual accompaniment – in this case, the hip swivel heard ’round the world in the video filmed at the band’s now-iconic Splendour in the Grass set. Plus, it’s the only Gang of Youths song to drop both Journey and Whitesnake references. Oh, and the word “solipsism.” Need more be said?
It’s a heady mix, but well worth putting the pieces together.
9. ‘Say Yes to Life’, Go Farther in Lightness (2017)
Gang of Youths ended their first album battered, broken, and beaten down upon facing unspeakable tragedy and turmoil. One thing they never were, though, is entirely defeated. Their second album saw even more hardships come their way, but they still stood tall at the end of it, as if to say to the heavens, “Is that all you’ve got?”
The closing song of Go Farther in Lightness has become a phrase synonymous with the band and its fans – a mantra that is a testament to the band’s resilience, vitality, and universality. The song itself serves the same purpose, bursting with a defiant fist held high.
10. ‘Magnolia’, The Positions (2015)
June 3 is Magnolia Day – a date on which lyricist Le’aupepe could have ended his life but was ultimately pulled back from the brink. It’s committed to record forever in stark honesty, where Jung Kim’s synth strings and jaunty piano playing add a hop, skip, and jump to the otherwise tragic circumstances. The song may playfully shake its arse and flip you the bird, but it’s hiding something much darker beneath it. Still, there is a crack in ‘Magnolia’ where the light gets in. This song has to be here because Gang of Youths literally do not exist without it.
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Gang Of Youth’s new song ‘The Angel Of 8th Ave.’ will arrive at 2am AEST on Wednesday, 16th June.
