Versions of Modern Performance＜Purple Vinyl/数量限定盤＞

全オルタナ・ファンの琴線直撃宣言。
噂の3人組バンド、ホースガールが名門〈Matador〉よりデビュー・アルバム発売!!

2021年にリリースしたシングルが世界中のオルタナ・ファンの間で話題を呼び、NMEを筆頭に海外メディアでも規格外の新人アーティストとして大きな注目を集める若きシカゴの3人組バンド、ホースガールが遂に名門〈Matador〉よりデビュー・アルバムをリリース!!
先行シングルの「Billy」や「Anti-glory」を筆頭にかつて"カレッジ・ロック"と呼ばれていたスカスカしたメロディズム、90年代ラウンジ・ミュージックのようなレトロ・フューチャーな光沢、シューゲイズの暖かい轟音、ポスト・パンク由来のミニマルなフックとリズムなどを見事にバンドの血肉としてアップデートした全11曲を収録。
ソニック・ユース、カート・ヴァイルを手がけてきたジョン・アグネロを共同プロデューサーに迎え、スティーヴ・アルビニのエレクトリカル・オーディオでレコーディングが行われた本作は、脈々と受け継がれてきたオルタナティヴ・ロックの遺伝子を色濃く受け継ぎながらも、再びその歴史に新たな息吹をもたらす記念すべき作品となった。

Its no surprise that the Chicago-based trio Horsegirl made their debut album, Versions of Modern Performance, while the members were all in the late stages of the high school experience. There is a youthful sense of discovery and exploration in the way they mix and match genres, gleefully pureeing them into something familiar to anyone well versed in the history of indie rock, while at the same time reminding listeners about what makes the style so thrilling when done right. The band definitely are doing it right here as they take all the knowledge gained from attending concerts, trading favorite songs, exploring new genres, and generally being open-minded fans, and come up with something close to perfection. Instead of relying on tired tropes or plugging in influences wholesale as many bands are wont to do, Horsegirl seem to have swallowed them whole along the way to transcendence. The guitars are jagged and bright like Gang of Four, but the band dont sound like Gang of Four. They rely on shards of distortion and noise like My Bloody Valentine at their most abrasive, but Horsegirl arent shoegazers. They take from the dreaminess of Yo La Tengo, the tenderness of the Pastels, and the lo-fi chug of Flying Nun groups, but its impossible to pin the band down as imitators here, either. Maybe most impressively, they delve into lost corners of the 1990s instead of going for showy grunge trappings. Large parts of the record are reminiscent of the scrapheap noise of bands like 18th Dye or the restrained desperation of Seam, groups who operated on the fringes but were crafting music that had real impact. Whats remarkable about Horsegirl isnt just that they did their homework, its that they put all these influences and inspirations into a tidy package of memorable songs that can soar gracefully ("Beautiful Songs"), kick up some staticky ruckus ("Anti-Song"), ramble and roll like Pavement in their prime ("Dirtbag Transformation [Still Dirty]"), pay sweet tribute to indie pop forebears ("Worlds of Pots and Pans"), and even shred speakers as they do with the help of Sonic Youths Lee Ranaldo on the album closer, "Billy." The vocal interplay between Nora Cheng and Penelope Lowenstein is almost telepathic, and their guitars play well off each other. Cheng makes the jangling, clangy noise and takes the leads, while Lowenstein holds down the bottom with melodic strength. Behind them, drummer Gigi Reece is a low-key powerhouse who can beat the drums into submission when needed but never drags things down. The hours spent working on their sound definitely paid off, and the choice to keep the production streamlined and simple works. The lack of studio glop helps keep the record grounded and very real sounding, and Horsegirl are nothing if not authentic. Theyve tapped into the source of indie rocks greatness like few bands have been able to, and Versions of Modern Performance isnt merely a homage or a neat trick, its another very strong, very satisfying link in the chain connecting past to present. ~ Tim Sendra

名門マタドールからのリリース、カート・ヴァイルやダイナソーJrらを手掛けたジョン・アグネロの共同プロデュース、そして奇才スティーブ・アルビニが所有するエレクトリカル・オーディオで録音……ともうオルタナティヴ・ロック・ファンにはたまらないワードが並ぶ。シカゴ出身の3人組ロック・バンドによるデビュー・アルバムは、それらの期待を裏切らないヴェルヴェッツやソニック・ユース直系のノイジーなパンク・ロックを鳴らすが、一方で90年代のシューゲイザーやポスト・パンクも通過しており、その佇まいはゆるさと暴力性が同居する2020年代のオルタナ・ロックと言っていい。演奏は決してお世辞にも上手いとは言えないが、生まれた音には間違いなくマジックが存在する名盤だ。
bounce (C)赤瀧洋二