Gang Of Youths Make ‘Time’ For New Single

Four years after the album angel in realtime., Gang of Youths have returned — and, somewhat improbably, they sound like they’ve stopped worrying so much. The Australian band today (Aug. 18) released “Things Take Time,” its first new music in four years, following a triumphant return to the stage earlier this month with a Sydney Opera House residency.

Written by David Le’aupepe, Tom Hobden, Donnie Borzestowski and Jung Kim, “Things Take Time” retains the cinematic sweep that has long defined Gang of Youths while embracing something simpler and more direct. The song, the band says, is about “the endless loop of birth, growth, death and rebirth which encases all matter and energy.”

More from Spin:

• ZZ Top’s Frank Beard, Texas Shuffle’s Steady Hand, Dies At 77
• Tyler Teases Future, Turnstile For Camp Flog Gnaw
• Madonna, Taylor Swift Highlight MTV VMA Noms

That idea grew from a rather less grandiose prompt: Kim jokingly told Le’aupepe to write a song about plants while the two were sitting in one of their backyards. Le’aupepe eventually connected the idea to the band members settling into homes, starting families and watching their gardens grow — a metaphor for putting down roots and reaching a surprisingly radical place for a band historically prone to emotional maximalism.

As Le’aupepe tells The Guardian, the song is about “things growing and dying, but also what happens if somebody’s just overwhelmingly OK.” That last part may be the biggest surprise. After years of wrestling with fame, self-doubt and songs weighted with existential meaning, Le’aupepe says he approached the new material with a different mindset. He wanted to write actual songs rather than what he jokingly describes as “moods with a bunch of fucking moody lyrics,” and to condense his ideas into something closer to a three-minute pop tune.

“Things Take Time” became that experiment. Hobden calls it “an exercise in restraint,” with the band consciously leaving room for Le’aupepe’s voice rather than piling on the layers. The recording was made in Hobden’s backyard studio in London, where Le’aupepe apparently pursued perfection to the tune of 389 vocal takes.

Gang of Youths played “Things Take Time” plus fellow new songs “Major Arcana,” “Riverlands” and “YeYu” during their Sydney shows, which marked their first Australian performances in four years. Looking ahead, the band will play Aug. 30 at the U.K.’s All Points East before returning to Europe for four headline dates in November and December.

To see our running list of the top 100 greatest rock stars of all time, click here.