Bon Jovi - Because We Can (Single Review)
 |
|
|
|
|
Wednesday, 16 January 2013 |
Written by Simon Ramsay
|
|
The first single to be taken from the mega-selling New Jersey veterans forthcoming album won't change anyone's opinion of the band. Seasoned haters will undoubtedly loathe it, but how will their long term fans react? Aside from blindly devoted sycophants, the response to Bon Jovi's post millennial output has been mixed, with many bemoaning a lack of swaggering, guitar driven rock & roll tracks in favour of country infused ditties and U2 influenced anthemics. In contrast, others love the way they've welded their endless optimism to a more contemporary sound, refusing to be a one trick nostalgia act. 'Because We Can' will only intensify that divide as it's easily the most commercial piece of pop candy Bon Jovi have ever written, with it's chirpy chorus and minimal guitar work a world away from the blue collar raunch of 'Bad Medicine'.
 With over 130 million albums sold JBJ and the guys are definitely a musical anomaly. Whilst their contemporaries from the 'Slippery When Wet' days were wiped out as a commercial force by the early nineties Grunge revolution, the Jovi boys battled on. Then, in the face of prevailing trends, the stars aligned and 1994's hugely popular power ballad – 'Always' - sent their popularity stratospheric. Since then they've made sold out stadiums their second home, releasing a steady stream of new material in the process. And so their 12th studio album - 'What About Now' - arrives on March 25th and marks the band's fourth collaboration with producer John Shanks. 'Because We Can' is the first taste of that new record and it's nothing if not an ambivalent listen.
Those hoping for an old school slab of commercially charged rock will be left scratching their heads at best and waving their fists at worst, for this is the purest pop the guys have ever released. Shanks' production sparkles as the tune pivots around a delightfully catchy chorus that's well written and tailor made for concert goers to sing along to when the guys hit the road later this year. It's also hard not to commend them for trying to be the voice of positivity in these cynical, troubled times. Few bands do uplifting feelgood music for the masses like Bon Jovi.
On the flip side, the vivacity of old is badly lacking and the most talented singer and musician in the band – Richie Sambora – continues to recede into the background. Aside from a melodic refrain and a strangely clunky lead lick, the powerhouse behind their best songs is still MIA. Over the last decade there have only been a few tracks per album where Jon lets him off the leash, like he's worried too many guitars will alienate the ballad loving housewives who joined the Jovi bandwagon post 'Always'. But continually underusing his considerable talents is frustrating. After all, you wouldn't go into a war zone in a tank and shoot at the enemy with a water pistol would you? If you have big guns – bloody well use them!
That's not to say they should deliver a ceaseless onslaught of guitar based numbers, as one of their best albums was 1995's 'These Days', a record low on trademark rock aesthetics but full to the brim with musical invention and genuine soul. Therein lies the problem with 'Because We Can; it just feels like Bon Jovi by numbers. It's the sound of a band who have have a formula and are running on auto pilot. The delivery has changed, but the song remains the same. Only this time devoid of tangible passion. Even verses like 'Our love can move a mountain' are cringeworthy without the heart and commitment given to similar efforts like 'Livin' On A Prayer'. What happened to the lyrical growth witnessed on 'These Days'? What happened to those Springsteen like storytelling aspirations? Thematically speaking, they've done this song many times before. Only much better.
Overall, 'Because We Can' feels like a solid album track rather than a knockout lead single from a forthcoming record. It doesn't whet the appetite like 'You Give Love A Bad Name', 'Keep The Faith, 'It's My Life' and 'Have A Nice Day' did, and if it's the best example of their new material it doesn't bode well for the rest of 'What About Now'. As far as pop songs go it's a decent listen, not bad not brilliant. But the band are capable of so much better. It's just a shame they don't want to leave their successful musical comfort zone to really knuckle down and create something fresh and exciting.
'Because We Can' is available now. Bon Jovi return to the UK this summer for a stadium tour.
Bon Jovi UK & Ireland Tour Dates are as follows:
Sat June 8th 2013 - Etihad Stadium, Manchester
Sun June 9th 2013 - Villa Park, Birmingham
Wed June 12th 2013 - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff
Thu June 13th 2013 - Stadium Of Light, Sunderland
Sat June 15th 2013 - Slane Castle, Slane
Wed July 3rd 2013 - Hampden Park, Glasgow
Click Here to Compare & Buy Bon Jovi Tickets at Stereoboard.com.
Leave A Comment!
Related Bon Jovi News & Reviews
Bon Jovi Tour Dates & Tickets
Friday
24th May 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Stockholm Stadium - Stockholm, Sweden | from
£89.00 | Buy Tickets | Sunday
26th May 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Ratinan Stadium - Tampere, Finland | from
£99.82 | Buy Tickets | Friday
31st May 2013 | Bon Jovi Forever Tickets
Henighans Bottom Bull Venue - Bolton, United Kingdom | from
£7.00 | Buy Tickets | Thursday
6th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Parken - Copenhagen, Denmark | from
£93.39 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
8th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Etihad Stadium - Manchester, United Kingdom | from
£12.50 | Buy Tickets | Sunday
9th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Villa Park - Birmingham, United Kingdom | from
£12.50 | Buy Tickets | Wednesday
12th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Cardiff City Stadium - Cardiff, United Kingdom | from
£12.50 | Buy Tickets | Thursday
13th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Stadium Of Light - Sunderland, United Kingdom | from
£12.50 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
15th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Slane Castle - Dublin, Ireland | from
£55.00 | Buy Tickets | Sunday
16th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Isle Of Wight Festival 2013 Sunday Tickets
Seaclose Park - Newport, United Kingdom | from
£82.50 | Buy Tickets | Tuesday
18th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Olympia Stadium Berlin - Berlin, Germany | from
£68.25 | Buy Tickets | Wednesday
19th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
PGE Arena - Gdansk, Poland | from
£32.61 | Buy Tickets | Friday
21st June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Cannstatter Wasen - Stuttgart, Germany | from
£64.84 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
22nd June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
RheinEnergie Stadion - Cologne, Germany | from
£68.25 | Buy Tickets | Monday
24th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Eden Arena - Prague, Czech Republic | from
£74.40 | Buy Tickets | Wednesday
26th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Bela Vista Park - Lisbon, Portugal | from
£49.44 | Buy Tickets | Thursday
27th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Estadio Vicente Calderon - Madrid, Spain | from
£34.13 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
29th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Stadio San Siro - Milan, Italy | from
£25.51 | Buy Tickets | Sunday
30th June 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
STADE DE SUISSE Wankdorf - Bern, Switzerland | from
£89.15 | Buy Tickets | Wednesday
3rd July 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Hampden Park - Glasgow, United Kingdom | from
£12.50 | Buy Tickets | Friday
5th July 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Hyde Park - London, United Kingdom | from
£65.00 | Buy Tickets | Friday
20th September 2013 | Bon Jovi Rock In Rio 2013 Day 5 Tickets
Rock City - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | from
£245.86 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
21st September 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Morumbi Stadium - Sao Paulo, Brazil | from
£114.73 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
7th December 2013 | Bon Jovi And Kid Rock Tickets
Etihad Stadium - Melbourne, Australia | from
£128.95 | Buy Tickets | Sunday
8th December 2013 | Bon Jovi And Kid Rock Tickets
Etihad Stadium - Melbourne, Australia | from
£61.56 | Buy Tickets | Wednesday
11th December 2013 | Bon Jovi And Kid Rock Tickets
AAMI Stadium (Football Park) - Adelaide, Australia | from
£166.29 | Buy Tickets | Thursday
12th December 2013 | Bon Jovi Tickets
Perth Arena - Perth, Australia | from
£193.68 | Buy Tickets | Saturday
14th December 2013 | Bon Jovi And Kid Rock Tickets
ANZ Stadium (Stadium Australia) - Sydney, Australia | from
£61.56 | Buy Tickets | Tuesday
17th December 2013 | Bon Jovi And Kid Rock Tickets
Suncorp Stadium - Brisbane, Australia | from
£154.87 | Buy Tickets |
Follow Stereoboard.com Updates on Twitter & Facebook!
|
|
Latest Confirmed Tour Dates
Competitions
 | Rockness
Win a pair of weekend camping tickets to Rockness Festival 2013
Closes: Mon 27th May 2013 |  | Kodaline
Win a pair of tickets to see Kodaline perform live at Manchester's Hard Rock Cafe
Closes: Mon 27th May 2013 |  | HIM
Win a signed, limited edition HIM 'Tears On Tape' fanpack
Closes: Fri 31st May 2013 |  | Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards
Win two tickets to the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards Party at London's IndigO2
Closes: Fri 7th Jun 2013 |  | The Rolling Stones
Win a paperback edition of the new Philip Norman 'Mick Jagger' biography
Closes: Fri 24th May 2013 |
|
News & Reviews 
