Heart Beats From Its Roots With "Fanatic"

The Wilson sisters of Heart have come full circle. In the 1970s their focus was acoustic, strongly penned rock melodies. In the 1980s they veered towards radio friendly pop rock ditties which helped reignite interests in them when their fortunes began to flag in the early part of the Decade of Decadence. By the mid-90's domestic life called out Nancy and so Heart was taken off life support for a time so she could better focus on the family she was growing with Almost Famous brainchild Cameron Crowe. Once the new millennium reared its uncertain head the sister act again felt that ache to reconnect. In the Twenty Tens Heart has successfully returned to the rootsy no compromise sound for which they seem to hold the patent. "Fanatic" puts the band's ability to both rock out and wax pensively on full display. The title track shows off Ann's combination of sex kitten appeal and snarling "Hands off me poser" mystique. Not that there's a lack of deeply burnished ballad cuts to choose from. Ann paints a vivid picture with "Pennsylvania" as well as "Rock Deep (Vancouver)". On these selections you won't just face an interface that comes naturally to the Wilsons and whatever back up assemblage of cracker jack musicians they have on hand. What you'll get as a bonus is the weather-scarred chronicle of life in Ann and Nancy's shoes that could only be this rich due to a lifetime of sisterly affection. These two had each other's backs long before the term was a regular part of the modern vernacular. In rock 'n' roll a certain amount of snake oil is applied to lube the commerce aspect. You doubt the level of sincerity much of the time. With the Wilsons you can discard the putty knife you'd normally want to use to scrape the bullshit off. You need look no further than "59 Crunch" to find proof that 4 decades into the rock 'n' roll life they still can blast the doors off concert halls like nobody's business. Ann's urgent delivery bolts from the porch in "A Million Miles". This single is a whirling dervish of keyboards and surplus energy. The rapid pulse stemming from her chest is palpable. You're anxious to grab onto her shoulders and hold on tight. It would be a mistake to write off Heart just yet. It would not surprise me one whit if they went off to their graves heads held high, guitar picks lofted skyward as if to say "Yeah...we did it!!"