Album review: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Hypnotic Eye

For nearly 40 years now Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have been a bone fide rock and roll institution, a rare constant in an industry that thrives on change and “the next big thing”. The problem with always being around (so to speak) is that it's very easy to forget that these acts exist in the present tense. 2010's Mojo was a great reminder that these old hands still had some new tricks up their sleeves. If they could continue that momentum into their next album that would help to reestablish them as a top act in their genre. Which brings us to Hypnotic Eye, the band's brand new thirteenth album. Hypnotic Eye has to pull off the difficult task of sounding both new and old at the same time. Any new Petty material will have to be able to stand next to 'Into the Great Wide Open' and 'Mary Jane's Last Dance' to be considered worthy. But at the same time, the fans don't necessarily want tired retreads of these classic radio rock staples. Luckily this new album is up to the task.

If you've come to hear those big rusty guitar leads and stomping blues look no further than opening track and lead single 'American Dream Plan B'. It is so Petty through and through that it could have easily been a lost cut from the 70s or 80s. Indeed these new tunes make Petty and co sound positively revitalized. The Heartbreakers have a endless reserve of their easy chemistry but the moments that stand out the most on Hypnotic Eye are those that hijack a familiar formula. 'Fault Lines' has that classic Southern rock swagger that they built their reputation upon, an organ-friendly boogie with enough energy that it sounds as though it'd been made by a band half their age. It's not all youthful belly-fire: these veterans know how to switch up their style on a dime. Tunes like 'Full Grown Boy' and the epic closing track 'Shadow People' have a playful, nocturnal air to them. Subtle keyboard vamps, brushed drums, and moody basslines dominate some of the set, which gives off a slick jazz club vibe. Perhaps this isn't your speed and you're pining for the honky tonk? Never fear. There's always a dusty harmonica-fuelled rocker just around the corner.

In spite of these diversions this is a tight record and part of that streamlinedness comes from this simply being leaner than we have been used to. “Classic rock” acts (for lack of a better term) often become overstuffed as they grow older. Their records become bloated messes as everything gets thrown down on wax with little regard for momentum or the self-editing process. Hypnotic Eye has shaved off a lot of the fat, leaving behind a shorter but over-all more satisfying listening experience. Tom Petty has always been a proponent for good times rock music that can appeal to both the head and the heart. On Hypnotic Eye he does not disappoint. It has all the urgency, charisma, and tight execution we have come to expect. But underneath the rock star bravado beats that same rebel heart that made the world fall in love with them all those years ago.

Rating: B

Recommended tracks: Fault Lines, Shadow People