Cool It Down

ニューヨークで結成された伝説のトリオ、ヤー・ヤー・ヤーズが復活!シークレットリー・カナディアン移籍第一弾、9年振りとなる5枚目のスタジオ・アルバム『COOL IT DOWN』

それは錬金術と呼ばれるもので、ヤー・ヤー・ヤーズ(Karen O、Nick Zinner、Brian Chase)の3人の波長がスタジオで合った時に起こる魔法だ。彼らのユニークなケミストリーが火花を散らし、ポータルが開かれると、「Maps」や「Zero」、そして新たに加わった「Spit off the Edge of the World」といった曲が生まれ、バンドの美しさとパワーの核心に迫る大きな一撃となる。2013年の『Mosquito』以来となる5枚目のスタジオ・アルバム『COOL IT DOWN』で、この伝説のトリオは復活を遂げる。

Alex Pragerがジャケット写真を手掛けた8曲入りのこのアルバムは、バンドからの最高なギフトで、彼らのカタログの中でも画期的なものとなるに違いない。「伝えるべき熱(fever to tell)が戻ってきた。これらの曲を書くことは、寒気や涙、そして、痛みが和らぎ真実が明らかになったときの幸福感を伴うものだった。私たちは時間をかけた。そして、嬉しいことに、準備ができた。タイトルは『COOL IT DOWN』で、これはあまり知られていないVelvet Undergroundの曲から取った。Alex Pragerには、『あなたのイメージは、音楽の壮大なテーマを物語っていて、この時代における私の心境を要約している』と伝えた」とKaren Oは語る。

ヤー・ヤー・ヤーズは2000年にニューヨークで結成されたインディ・ロック・バンドだ。メンバーはKaren O(Vo)、Nick Zinner(G / Key)、Brian Chase(Dr)の3人。2枚のEPを経て、Interscopeよりデビュー・アルバム『Fever to Tell』を2003年にリリース。その後、『Show Your Bones』(2006年)、『It's Blitz!』(2009年)、『Mosquito』(2013年)と、現在までに4枚のアルバムを発表。『Fever to Tell』、『Show Your Bones』、『It's Blitz!』はグラミー賞のベスト・オルタナティヴ・ミュージック・アルバムにノミネートされ、『Fever to Tell』と『It's Blitz!』は米英、『Show Your Bones』は英でゴールド・ディスクに認定されている。また、目下の最新作『Mosquito』は米チャートの5位、英チャートの9位を記録している。

Yeah Yeah Yeahs only make music when they have something to say. Nearly a decade separated Cool It Down and Mosquito, during which time Karen O made two solo albums including 2019s Lux Prima. She and Brian Chase and Nick Zinner were so established in their individual work (Chase remained a fixture on the experimental jazz scene; Zinner toured with, recorded, and produced artists ranging from the Rentals to Amen Dunes to Phoebe Bridgers) that a reunion seemed uncertain. Luckily for fans, they did get back together, and their fifth album once again switches gears from the one before it. Cool It Down owes less to Mosquitos rock revivalism than it does to Lux Primas lush sonics and, maybe more importantly, its viewpoint. The light touch and generosity of spirit within Os songwriting made itself known as early as Fever to Tells "Maps," but she refined it with her solo work and reintroduces it to the band with transporting results, balancing the experience of age and the wonder of youth in songs that teeter between reflection and elation. The band bookends Cool It Down with songs about childrens perspectives. O has always written tenderly about and for children, and "Spitting Off the Edge of the World," a radiant yet heartbroken meditation on the ecologically broken world left to the next generation featuring Perfume Genius, and "Mars," inspired by a sweetly imaginative moment with her son, are no exception. By contrast, the gorgeous, big-hearted pop of "Different Today" possesses the wisdom to acknowledge the past, accept the present, and look forward to the future even as the world "goes spinnin out of control." Over the years, O has also become a more accomplished and varied vocalist, and she brings more colors to her Cool It Down performances than on Yeah Yeah Yeahs previous albums or even Lux Prima. "Burning" is a driving showcase for all her skills; as the song builds into a soulful inferno, her wails and whispers are forces of nature, and her comparisons to meteors and the river Styx are completely apt. "Fleez," the records brightly funky midpoint, pairs spoken-word verses that hark back to the early gem "Art Star" with a groove thats tautly danceable even if the band doesnt break a sweat. Songs such as this and "Wolf," a piece of shimmering electro-pop seduction where squiggly synths echo Os vibrato, borrow some of Its Blitz!s chrome-plated sleekness and commanding beats and showcase Dave Siteks production. Sitek often felt like Yeah Yeah Yeahs unofficial fourth member, and his chemistry with them remains strong on tracks like the lushly layered "Blacktop." For a band who seemed so impulsive at the outset, Yeah Yeah Yeahs reflection and deliberation has been a surprising strength thats only grown with time. They may never lose all their restlessness -- nor should they -- but its undeniable that Cool It Down is one of their most consistent albums. ~ Heather Phares