Even The Good Days Are Bad

While Swedish indie rock project Last Days of April gradually shifted its sound over the years from its 1990s emo/hardcore origins to more reflective, college rock-evoking pop forms, the bands songs never lost the raw, passionate stamp of singer and songwriter Karl Larsson. At the same time that it returns the rhythm section from 2015s alternative country-rock diversion Sea of Clouds, Last Days of Aprils tenth studio album, Even the Good Days Are Bad, operates much like a continuation of the alternative singer/songwriter trajectory Larsson established with 2010s Gooey, which was essentially a solo album. Sporting a fragile, idiosyncratic rock voice and amphitheater-sized melodic instincts, he delivers a cathartic eight-track set of buzzy, bittersweet tunes. Building tension in the opening seconds with sustained, echoing guitar tones and escalating noise effects, Even the Good Days Are Bad soon launches into orchestral-fuzz melodic unison over a midtempo rock groove that finds Larsson repeatedly wondering, Is it worth it? I dont know. He continues to reflect on past decisions, the passage of time, and the state of life in existential fashion through a series of hooky, head-bobbing tracks that have him checking his phone to see if anyones trying to get in touch and realizing Its been so long since Ive had some fun. Songs like Turbulence and punky earworm Alone dial up the distortion a notch without ever forsaking tunefulness. Approximating Fleetwood Mac more than guitar pop, the Dreams-esque Downer closes the album with an eight-plus-minute, self-aware outlier that stresses Some things never change amidst more sticky melodic phrases. ~ Marcy Donelson

通算10枚目のアルバムは、ハイヴスやマンドゥ・ディアオも愛する地元スウェーデンのグレンダール・スタジオにてレコーディング。アナログ録音にこだわった音作りで、生々しく刺激的なサウンドが十二分に楽しめる内容だ。作風は90年代のオルタナ・ロックを思わせるが、ただ懐かしいだけではなく、すべてにおいて〈熟練〉を感じさせるところが良いですね。バンドとして良いキャリアの重ね方の一例を示す快作。
bounce (C)赤瀧洋二