Palomine (30th Anniversary Matador Revisionist History Edition) ［LP+7inch］＜数量限定盤/Orange Vinyl＞

90年代オルタナ・マニア垂涎!!
伝説のダッチ・インディー名盤がボーナス7インチ付カラー盤で再発!!

紅一点キャロル・ヴァン・ダイクのアイコニックな佇まいと、ポップでエモーショナルなバンド・アンサンブルで人気を博したアムステルダムを代表するオルタナ・バンド、ベティ・サーヴァートの1stアルバムが発売30周年を記念してカラー盤リイシュー!!
哀愁感、疾走感、甘酢感を揃えたタイトル曲「Palomine」やシングル「Kid's Allright」、「Tom Boy」に加えてセバドーのカバー「Healthy Sick」をはじめ、90年代USオルタナ～エモ・シーンとリンクした良曲ぞろいのデビュー作。
〈Matador〉の再発シリーズ"Revisionist History"の一環としてリイシューされる本作は、〈4AD〉傘下のオフシュート・レーベル〈Guernica〉から当時リリースされたボーナス7インチ付仕様で、さらに数量限定透明オレンジ・ヴァイナルでの復刻。
中古市場でもあまり見かけないオルタナ・マニア垂涎の再発盤!!

Bettie Serveert's charm, as established from the get-go on their debut album, wasn't any kind of new radicalism but the members' way around well-known rock styles to unexpected effect. Everything from third album Velvet Underground and Neil Young's furious electric heights to the Wedding Present's bruised romanticism (the production especially calls to mind some of Steve Albini's work for that band) has an echo here. What makes it all connect isn't simply the considerable abilities of the group, especially guitarists Visser and van Dijk, but van Dijk's strong singing and lyrics both. Combining both a low-key sass and a slightly distanced, concerned tone, her voice cuts directly through the arrangements, the most upfront thing in the mix. Comparisons aren't easy to make; early Chrissie Hynde makes a certain amount of sense, but van Dijk is no clone. As for her subject matter, small details of everyday life, especially concerns of identity and dealing with others, form the basis of her sharp, sometimes painfully close to the heart images. "Brain-Tag," with her plaintive refrain "Have I ever laid my hands on you before?" and "Healthy Sick" are two of the standouts on that level. When she stops to let the music fully take over, the transition is often perfect -- "Kid's Allright" is a good example, the instrumental breaks carrying the forceful feel of the words into the nonverbal. "Tom Boy," the surprise U.S. minor radio hit from the album, shows the quartet's mix of skills quite nicely. A mid-paced but lovely number with a descending chord riff a la T. Rex (if not as glammy otherwise) and van Dijk's multi-tracked vocals claiming the term for herself, "because only a tom boy could rise above it," make Palomine a quietly addictive number from this fine album. ~ Ned Raggett