Stellar Drifting

パンダ・ベア、ソーク、ロンドン・グラマーら参加!エレクトロニック・プロデューサーのジョージ・フィッツジェラルドが最新作を〈Domino〉傘下の〈Double Six〉からリリース!

イギリス出身で長きにわたりベルリンを拠点に活動してきたエレクトロニック・プロデューサーのジョージ・フィッツジェラルドが4年ぶりとなる最新作『Stellar Drifting』を〈Domino〉傘下の〈Double Six〉よりリリース!!
ジョージ・フィッツジェラルドは、スキューバ主宰の〈HOTFLUSH〉より華々しくデビューを飾り、フロアヒットを連発、ディープでモダンなハウスミュージックを自身のレーベルでも数多く発表し、ボノボとも共作を行うなど更に活躍のフィールドを広げてきた。
本アルバム『Stellar Drifting』は、美しいメロディーと繊細なエレクトロニック・サウンドで満ち溢れた作品で、ダンスフロアに向けたものであるのと同時に、フロアからかけ離れた場所でも聴かれる"アトモスフェリック・エレクトロニック・ミュージック"として革新的なスタイルを提案している。
また本作は、自分の内面と向き合い、制限された感覚から逃れる必要性を訴えるものであり、ジョージ・フィッツジェラルド自身、完全に自由なサウンドを追求している。
作品には、マーキュリー賞にノミネートされたソーク、パンダ・ベア(アニマル・コレクティヴ)、ロンドン・グラマーら豪華ゲストが参加している。

British producer George FitzGerald began releasing melancholic post-dubstep club singles in 2010, appearing on labels like Hotflush and Aus Music. Some of his most melody-rich material was featured on Fading Love and All That Must Be, two full-lengths which reflected various changes in his life, from a breakup and disillusionment with the club scene to a return to London and the birth of his daughter. After forming the duo OTHERLiiNE with Lil Silva and issuing a self-titled debut in 2020, FitzGeralds third solo album, Stellar Drifting, appeared in 2022. Drawing the title from research about the movement of stars, FitzGerald also incorporated celestial bodies into the music itself, translating telescopic images of stars and planets into oscillations through the usage of techniques such as granular synthesis. Even though its creative process makes it seem like a heady experiment, Stellar Drifting is actually FitzGeralds most accessible work yet. Much like his previous album, this one is bold and bittersweet, melding bright melodies with turbulent emotions, coming a bit closer to the work of indie electronic artists like Dntel than any of FitzGeralds U.K. club peers. Panda Bear guests on "Passed Tense," a deceptively chipper-sounding tune describing bloodshed as a relationship crumbles and crawls toward its end. The following few tracks continue to blend wistful vocals with choppy beats, and if it comes off as a formula, its a successful one, as the busy, glimmering "Rainbows and Dreams" (featuring SOAK) and the skipping, wide-eyed "Setting Sun" are among the albums highlights. The wave-like slow-motion flow of "Retina Flash" and the relaxing trip-hop ballad "The Last Transmission" (featuring London Grammar) are the only downtempo moments, and theyre no less emotional than the rest of the tracks. FitzGerald saves one of the albums most exhilarating tracks, the cheerful, vibrant "Ultraviolet," for last, and its skittering beats and leaping melodies seem worlds away from the devastated sorrow of Fading Love, even if its recognizably the work of the same artist. ~ Paul Simpson