i, i

After the fractured electronic textures of Bon Iver's 2016 album 22, A Million successfully took the project to the outer limits of where their sound could go, Justin Vernon pulled back from the edges of the avant-garde for something more familiar and less jaggedly experimental on 2019's I,I. With the help of a skilled cast of musicians robust enough to field five baseball teams and then some, Vernon uses every color in his paint box in crafting a record that takes in all the elements of past records and swirls them into something somber, expressive, intimate, and expansive all at the same time. The songs are built on convoluted rhythms and subtle washes of synths with stabs of horns and massed vocals surrounding Vernon's tortured wail and mumbled ramblings. Some of the tracks lean more in the direction of the small-scale electronic explorations of 22, A Million, with Vernon zeroing in on a tender feeling and transmitting it faithfully. Featuring the smooth vocals of Velvet Negroni, "iMi" is late-night R&B twisted into a heartbreaking knot, and "Marion" is an expanded take on the backwoods sound of early Bon Iver, with gentle strings caressing the melody. These quiet, intricate arrangements provide the perfect backing for Vernon's poetic lyrics and restrained vocals. ~ Tim Sendra

〈破壊衝動〉や〈新しさ〉を求め、アグレッシヴなサウンドでリスナーを驚かせた前作『22, A Million』から早3年。稀代の音楽家が新作を上梓した。コラージュ的なジャケや記号的なタイトルが多いことからもわかるように、前作の延長線上にあるような編集感覚、コラージュ感覚を擁しながらも、よりヴァラエティーに富んだ多様な〈歌〉を感じさせる作風に。ジェイムズ・ブレイクなども参加し、万華鏡のような音世界を描き出す"iMi"、クワイア的な昂揚を感じさせる"Naeem"、ビートレスで浮遊感漂うシンセ音のみで歌を紡ぐ"Jelmore"など、大衆性と先進性とのバランスの取り方が見事だ。ファースト・アルバム=冬の季節から始まり、春、夏を経て円熟の秋へ。ひとつのサイクルが完結したのかもしれない。
bounce (C)保坂隆純