Contraband＜完全生産限定盤＞

ヴェルヴェット・リヴォルヴァー 2004年発売『Contraband』発売15周年を記念したアナログ盤(レッド&ホワイトヴァイナル)

スラッシュ、ダフ・マッケイガン、マット・ソーラム(元ガンズ・アンド・ローゼズ)、スコット・ウェイランド(元ストーン・テンプル・パイロッツ)、デイヴ・クシュナー(元デイヴ・ナヴァロ・バンド)による新世紀のスーパー・バンドが放った鮮烈のデビュー作。全米アルバム・チャート初登場1位を獲得。シングル・カットされた「Slither」がグラミー賞ベスト・ハード・ロック・パフォーマンス賞を受賞するなど世界中を席巻。5人の歴戦の勇士たちだけが生み出せる豪快なロックンロールが詰まった奇跡の1枚。

Rolling Stone (p.153) - Included in Rolling Stone's Top 50 Records Of 2004 - "[V]icious, unapologetic Sunset Strip glam-metal classicism..." Entertainment Weekly (pp.79-80) - "Like a refurbished Corvette tearing down Sunset Strip, they're determined to rock, dammit, and they go about their job with a revved-up efficiency." - Grade: B- Q (p.127) - 4 stars out of 5 - "An old-school arena rock album enlivened by Weiland's Beatles-esque melodies and chameleon delivery." Mojo (Publisher) (p.107) - 4 stars out of 5 - "CONTRABAND is a guilty pleasure....Velvet Revolver shoots for the sky and erupts in fireworks."

Contraband features Slash, Duff, and Matt Sorum (as well as additional guitarist Dave Kushner) cranking out an updated version of Guns N' Roses swagger behind Scott Weiland's glammy, elastic vocals. With STP's vocalist and such a high percentage of ex-Gunners, Velvet Revolver really is a supergroup. "Went too fast I'm out of luck and I don't even give a f*ck," Weiland spits on "Do It for the Kids," and a peel from Slash's arsenal backs him up. Maturity has clearly come at a price for both parties. Weiland still mugs and sings like a florescent lizard king. But his appetite for the spotlight has somehow become more voracious even as he fights cynically against it, and longs for an escape. For their part, Slash, Duff, and Co. like stirring up their old demons -- check the explosive entrance on "Set Me Free" to get things a-tingling like the old days. But they're not running a nostalgia show, so there are new tricks and sounds, too, and plenty of choruses that shift into STP-style layering and vocal phrasing. The bass-heavy throb of "Big Machine"'s verses surges into a hard-charging '90s alt. rock chorus; "Headspace" alternates representative chunks of both bands' sounds with veteran skill; and "Superhuman" rants about illegal substances in language everyone can understand. Overall, Contraband sounds pretty much like you'd expect of such a collaboration. Lead single "Slither" is an immediate highlight, its gasoline-drinking cocaine strut staining it as the offspring of "Big Bang Baby" and "Nightrain", while the album's detours -- "Fall to Pieces", the gorgeous "Loving the Alien" -- are painted in dusty reds and browns, like idealized fever dreams of escaping to the desert with the one you love. These mediations point to the pain behind Weiland's cynical veneer, and perhaps the entire band's veteran hope for a head-clearing open space. Remember, between them they've probably seen it all. With Contraband, Velvet Revolver pull off something tidy - their music manages both hedonism and maturity. ~ Johnny Loftus

最強バンドがついに秘密のヴェールを脱いだ!　すでに話題となっている元ガンズ&ローゼズの3人らによる新バンド、ヴェルヴェット・リヴォルヴァーのアルバムが完成!　タイトなドラム、唸るベース、リフ一直線のギター。そして自信の現れなのだろうか?　異常なまでのハイテンション。今作にかけるヤツらの意気込みはハンパない……というか、予想を遙かに上回る極上のロックンロール作品である。ふたたび世界制覇はなるか?
bounce (C)山口 晃司