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ポーティスヘッドのジェフ・バーロウ率いる3ピース・バンド、ビーク＞が6年振り3作目となる待望のスタジオ・アルバム『＞＞＞ (※通称ビーク3)』をリリースする。
本作は2017年に制作を行い、その大部分は地元ブリストルにあるインヴェーダー・スタジオにてレコーディングされた。有数の楽器や機材が揃っているこちらのスタジオはポーティスヘッドが20年以上使用してきたジェフ・バーロウ所有のSOAスタジオを改装して運営されている歴史的名盤製造工場。
2012年の前作『＞＞ (※通称ビーク2)』リリース以降、精力的な世界ツアーを行い、2017年に開催したHOSTESS CLUB ALL-NIGHTERではジェフ自身もキャリア初とな初来日公演を行い会場中を歓喜の渦へと呑み込んだ彼等。大規模な海外音楽フェスやイベントへの出演経験により、本作では前2作品を凌駕する高いクオリティーと中毒性のある作品が完成した。

"You dont like our music cuz it aint up on the radio," Beak>s Geoff Barrow sings on Beak 3 (also known as >>>) with something approaching pride. This contrarian attitude defines the bands third album: Barrow and company could have easily made another album of sinister motorik-driven instrumentals like Beak 2, but this time, they blow up their music. Since Beak> havent released a full-length in six years and now include Moon Gangs Will Young among their ranks, some evolution was inevitable. Even so, Beak 3 reveals some drastic changes. The lock grooves that powered Beak>s first two albums are almost entirely absent, freeing them to double down on their distinctively murky, eerie moods and express them in new ways. The vocals that served as texture on the bands previous work come to the fore on Beak 3, bringing with them more structured songwriting. However, the closer Beak> get to conventional notions of pop music, the stranger they sound. "RSI," the only song here with a motorik beat, comes the closest to what listeners might expect from a more accessible version of Beak> as it hurtles along on its lock groove toward a starscape of synths. More often, Beak 3s vocal-driven tracks are fascinatingly damaged, hinting at something dark looming in the past or on the horizon. "The futures kinda sketchy so the people gotta get along," Barrow mutters on the skulking "Brean Down," an unlikely but winning collision of Cans intricate rhythms and Nirvanas gloom. "Harvester" is even stranger, setting lyrics that teeter between ominous and philosophical ("Gotta choose your battles if you wanna get home") to syrupy guitars and lunging strings. "When We Fall," a standout track from 2015s BEAK>s unease get under listeners skins faster, but >>> also boasts some of the bands most gripping instrumentals. "Alle Sauvage" combines the heat of Barrows drumming -- which has never sounded better -- and icy synth arpeggios into a track that stakes its own territory within techno, jazz, and sci-fi disco. Its adventurousness still doesnt prepare listeners for the hair-raising "Abbots Leigh," which begins with a nightmarish crescendo and slowly morphs into a funereal anthem that reaffirms just how fearless Beak> are in their pursuit of disturbing sounds. Some of the bands most entertaining and most challenging music, Beak 3s eclectic experiments prove that the greater-than symbol at the end of Beak>s name isnt just for show -- they keep pushing forward, and its thrilling to go along on the ride with them. ~ Heather Phares