Song Review - The Wombats - Everything I Love is Going to Die
Review By: Harry Hartney
Photo credit: Tom Oxley
“The Wombats still have a talent for creating absolute bangers” - CLASH
“‘If You Ever Leave, I’m Coming With You’ is a thumping new song” - NME
“ just as crucial now as they were when they first broke-out” - 1883
“The songs are made for big stages” – Gigwise
Liverpool indie royalty, ‘The Wombats’ have released a new single, titled ‘Everything I Love Is Going To Die’. The track is the band’s fourth teaser toward the drop of new album Fix Yourself, Not the World, scheduled to be launched on 7 January 2022.
This new-wave influenced song is different from their other releases this year (‘Ready For The High’/‘If You Ever Leave, I’m Coming With You’/‘Method to the Madness’), particularly in its tonality. ‘Everything I Love Is Going To Die’ is upbeat and driven, to the point where it could almost be considered a dance-track, while focusing on the importance of living in the present, particularly in the world we live in today.
Bassist, Tord Øverland Knudsen, dominates the track, providing the central riff that ‘Everything I Love’ is formulated around. His bass-lines cement a certain heaviness, but also give way to the dance-oriented rhythm that runs through to the chorus.
Dan ‘The Man’ Haggis’ drums are methodically propelling, and this steadiness allows for other segments of the song to really come to fruition. Additionally, Haggis’ open snares give the rhythmic backing to ‘Everything I Love’ a sense of depth, which slides in seamlessly with Knudsen’s thumping bass notes.
Matthew Murphy’s lively lead guitar soars over the track, and while not the central feature by any means, provides the perfect upper layer, but it is his vocals and lyrics that really come to the forefront on ‘Everything I Love Is Going To Die’. Murphy’s delivery of catchy melodies almost hide the subject matter of his lyrics, in which he calls on all of us to remember the impermanency of life around us, providing the solution to which as being to live life to its fullest.
In the chorus, Murphy calls to the Greek myth of Icarus, who he calls his “best friend” and promises to “make him proud in the end”. It’s hear that we can understand the gravity and importance these lyrics have in a modern context, particularly given the references to the pandemic and its ensuing lockdowns in the second verse: “What a crazy pranged out year/And we spent most of it kissing teeth/Locked in a quarantine”.
‘Everything I Love Is Going To Die’ rounds out a successful album promo for ‘The Wombats’, and puts on display the band’s diverse range that certainly has created some excitement for the release of their new album in early 2022. The single is available on all streaming platforms now.
CATCH THE WOMBATS LIVE AT:
JUNE 5 2022 – HBF Stadium, PERTH, WA
JUNE 7 2022 – City Hall, HOBART, TAS
JUNE 9 2022 – Entertainment Centre Theatre, ADELAIDE, SA
JUNE 10 2022 – John Cain Arena, MELBOURNE, VIC
JUNE 11 2022 – Hordern Pavilion, SYDNEY, NSW
JUNE 15 2022 – UC Refectory, CANBERRA, ACT
JUNE 17 2022 – Riverstage, BRISBANE, QLD
