Omnion

伝説のディスコ、パラダイス・ガレージの熱狂とグルーヴを彷彿させるようなレトロ・フューチャリスティックなサウンドと、彼で妖艶なライヴ・パフォーマンスで独特の存在感を放つHERCULES&LOVE AFFAIR。ザ・ホラーズのファリス・バッドワン、アラブ世界で最も影響力のあるレバノンのインディー・バンド、マッシュロウ・レイラ(Mashrou' Leila)、ニューヨークのシンガー・ソングライター、シャロン・ヴァン・エッテン、アイスランドの姉妹グループSisy Eyなど豪華ヴォーカリスト参加した新作『OMNION』完成!

Hercules & Love Affair's Andy Butler has always had a flair for setting complex emotions to a four-four beat. Even so, he's never sounded quite as inspired as he does on Omnion, a stunning mix of style and vulnerability that reflects his struggles with substance abuse in the wake of the project's early success. Indeed, the emotional realness and rawness that course through this album haven't been heard quite so clearly in Hercules & Love Affair's music since the project's self-titled debut. Reflecting its all-encompassing title, Butler approaches Omnion's themes from many angles and expresses them with many voices. Aside from returning vocalists Gustaph and Rouge Mary, the album boasts a largely new cast of singers. Chief among them is Sharon Van Etten, whose graceful performance on the title track, as she asks a higher power for help, introduces the intimacy that continues even after the album's tempos pick up. Faris Badwan of the Horrors and Cat's Eyes contributes some of his finest vocals to two of Omnion's highlights: he's seductive on "Controller," a slinky distillation of the allure of giving up responsibility, and pleading on "Through Your Atmosphere," which captures the reality of ever-changing relationships. Here and throughout the album, Butler masterfully balances poignancy and urgency, and swagger and soul-baring, within Omnion's introspective pop and kinetic house, techno, and disco. Butler delivers potent reminders that the dancefloor can be a place of rescue and redemption as well as sweaty exhibitionism with "Running," which features Sisy Ey and expresses the liberation of knowing when it's time to change in rousing and real ways, while "Rejoice" gives gospel disco a gritty update as it celebrates living -- and dancing -- in the moment. On the other side of the spectrum, Butler saves one of the album's gentlest moments for himself: "I'm a fool when I drink/I'm glad that I didn't today," he sings over synths that sound like raindrops on "Fools Wear Crowns," a moment of sparkling catharsis echoed by "Epilogue," where a children's choir adds a mystical, sci-fi dimension to the album's journey. Richly layered and emotive even by Hercules & Love Affair's standards, Omnion is equally committed to moving hearts and bodies. ~ Heather Phares

NYの地下シーンで暗躍するアンディ・バトラーのプロジェクトによる3年ぶり4作目。近年立ち上げたみずからのレーベルからのリリースであったり、主要メンバーのグスタフによるヴォーカル・トラックが減っていたり、その一方では"Fools Wear Crowns"ではアンディ自身が初めてヴォーカルを務めるなど、パーソナルで内省的なムードが漂う反面、アーティスティックな側面での成長を窺い知ることもできる作品だ。
bounce (C)藤堂輝家