A Bit of Previous ［LP+7inch］＜Black Vinyl/限定盤＞

グラスゴーの至宝ベルセバ7年ぶり最新作発売決定!

世界中のネオアコ～インディー・ファンを魅了し続ける大人気バンド、ベル・アンド・セバスチャンが実に7年ぶり通算10作目となる最新オリジナル・アルバムをリリース!!
1999年の『Fold Your Hands Child』以来初めて地元グラスゴーでレコーディングされた本作はアップテンポな8ビートとともにオーバードライブのかかったリフとドローンのようなハーモニカが疾走する先行シングル「Unnecessary Drama」、ほろ苦いファンク・ナンバー「Working Boy in New York City」や「If They're Shooting At You」などバンドの新境地を感じさせる様々なアレンジが施された新曲たち、そして「Do It For Your Country」や「Sea Of Sorrow」などベルセバらしい感動的な珠玉のバラードまでバンドの現在地を見事に表現した全12曲を収録。
ブライアン・マクニール、マット・ウィギンズ、ケヴィン・バーレイ、ショーン・エヴェレットといった名匠たちの協力を得て、バンドのカタログにおいて最も多様で、細部まで手が加えられた、刺激的なセルフ・プロデュース・アルバムがここに完成。四半世紀を超えてもなお、バンドがファンにとって特別で不朽な存在であることを約束する帰還作となっている。

The songs on Scottish indie pop architects Belle and Sebastians tenth studio album, A Bit of Previous, wander through various energetic and sunny approaches, but theyre tied together by thematic undercurrents of aging, anxiety, and existential questioning. Recorded and produced by the band at their practice space, every tune sounds comfortable and considered. The production and arrangement choices feel thoughtful rather than labored over, as if the walls of handclaps on "If Theyre Shooting at You" or the unrelenting harmonica thats going for the majority of "Unnecessary Drama" were deliberate choices the group decided on over the course of months. This at-home feeling might also account for how wildly they swing between styles over the course of the albums 12 songs. "Young and Stupid" utilizes violin and bright acoustic guitars to guide sticky melodies, and theres a hint of nostalgia in the kind of chamber-pop sweetness (French horn, Enoch Light-styled backing vocals) that appeared on the bands earliest material 26 years prior. Almost immediately, however, they switch gears for the mellow quasi-soul of "If Theyre Shooting at You," the moody synth pop on "Reclaim the Night," a lush Baroque country-folk waltz on "Deathbed of My Dreams," or a bouncy indie reading of Motown on "Come On Home." The stylistic hopscotch the band play here recalls the staggered but intentional flow of their 2003 album Dear Catastrophe Waitress, and like that record, A Bit of Previous rewards listeners who can ride out the zigzagging with a deeper cohesion that takes a few listens to sink in. At this point in Belle and Sebastians discography, their calling cards are well-established, and the songs are full of their particular brand of soft, smiling melodies, and arrangements that bubble up without feeling too crowded or overwrought. What feels different among the familiar, sometimes self-referential songwriting is an ongoing thread of uneasy, darkly self-reflective lyrical themes. This can be as blatant as lines about increasingly creaky bones and settling into middle age on "Young and Stupid," or as intense as the stark look at anxiety and self-sabotaging patterns on the jittery "Talk to Me Talk to Me." The perky, joyful sounds are always just slightly louder than the swirls of dread that buttress A Bit of Previous. Its in the albums unlikely combination of weighty sentiments and cheerful (if especially diverse) sounds that Belle and Sebastian grow, offering up an honest assessment of what getting older feels like when youre one of the worlds best indie pop bands. ~ Fred Thomas

世界中のネオアコ～インディー愛好家を魅了し続けるグラスゴーの至宝。一昨年には「バグノルド家の夏休み」のサントラも届けてくれたけど、これは実に7年ぶりとなる10枚目のオリジナル・アルバムだ。地元グラスゴーに腰を据えてのレコーディングは何と『Fold Your Hands Child』(99年)以来だったそうで、軽快な先行シングル"Unnecessary Drama"をはじめとする甘くほろ苦いベルセバ節が新機軸も含む多彩なアレンジで楽しめる。
bounce (C)香椎 恵