Candid

Following their second album, 2019s Forever Turned Around, by a year, Candid reimagines songs by other artists that have inspired and connected emotionally with Whitney founders Julien Ehrlich and Max Kakacek. It was recorded live in the studio in early 2020 with their complete touring lineup, including no less than three guitarists and brass. Although sourced from a variety of styles, Candid, like Whitneys first two long-players, locks into a warm, late-summer tranquility that puts their trademark pastoral spin on contemporary R&B material like Kelelas Band Head and even synthesized dance-funk in the case of David Byrne and Brian Enos Strange Overtones. Band Head opens the ten-track set by translating the originals percussion and subtle electronic hooks into elemental guitar, keys, and bass drum, as Ehrlichs flaxen-toned falsetto delivers lines about physical attraction and moving slowly. Another R&B inspiration, SWV, appears later in the track list (Rain). Elsewhere, a relatively loyal cover of the Roches Hammond Song again softens textures in a live performance that is later overdubbed by only horns and a slide-guitar solo. (It comes advertised as a Whitneys longest track to this point, at five minutes.) Covers of more like-minded artists, like Damien Jurado and Labi Siffre, are also included here, as is a memorable, earnest take on John Denvers Take Me Home, Country Roads that sees Ehrlich joined on vocals by Waxahatchees Katie Crutchfield. Candids mellow transcriptions and restrained approach may or may not draw praise from admirers of the source material, but theyre a must for fans of the groups distinctly reflective demeanor and bubble-wrapped ambiance, which, guided by Ehrlichs soothing presence, succeed in making each version their own. ~ Marcy Donelson

ライヴでもカヴァーを披露していた彼らだが、バンドに影響を与えたアーティストの楽曲のカヴァー・アルバム制作にまで至るとは想像しておらず、〈商業主義みたいだな……〉と思ったが、聴いてビックリどの曲もホイットニーのオリジナルと言われても頷けてしまう程の仕上がりで、楽曲へのリスペクトを感じた。また何よりヴォーカルの持つ唯一無二の声がすべての楽曲をホイットニーのものにしてしまう魔法ったらない!
bounce (C)人與拓馬