The Endless Coloured Ways: The Songs Of Nick Drake

今もなお、新たなファンを増やし続けるレジェンドSSW、NICK DRAKEのカヴァー・コンピレーション・アルバム『THE ENDLESS COLOURED WAYS: THE SONGS OF NICK DRAKE』がCDリリース!
CHRYSALISのCEOであるJEREMY LASCELLESと、NICK DRAKEのエステート・マネージャーCALLY CALLOMONがセレクトしたしており、そのメンバーも超豪華!「シカゴのオルタナ・クイーン」 LIZ PHAIRや、BEN HARPER、アイルランドのダブリン出身のポストパンク・バンドFONTAINES D.C.、カナダの女性シンガーソングライターFEIST、UKロンドンのインディー・ロックバンドBOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB、JOHN PARISHとALDOUS HARDINGによるデュオ、ニュージーランドの実力派シンガーソングライターNADIA REID、そしてJOHN GRANTなどなど、NICK DRAKEの時代を超えた名曲たちのカヴァーをタップリと収録しています。

The relatively scant body of work English folk singer Nick Drake created in his short life has proven to be one of the more lastingly influential in music history. Though plenty of artists have impacted the sound and vision of those that followed, the painful obscurity of Drakes music while he was alive, the incredible power he harnessed in just three studio albums, and the mysterious air that touched everything he did all contribute to the unique spell he has continuously cast over generations of fans and music makers. The Endless Coloured Ways is one of several various-artists compilations paying tribute to Drakes catalog, but this one has an interesting angle in that the acts involved were instructed to ignore the original version of the song they covered and instead reinvent it in their own way. This concept yields a better mix of results than might be expected. Lets Eat Grandmas soft electro-pop take on "From the Morning" doesnt lose any of the originals gentle joy, despite completely replacing its fingerpicked guitars with vibrating synth pads and the static sway of an archaic drum machine. AURORAs beautiful electronic take on "Pink Moon" is similar. A hazy duet on "Harvest Breed" by Skullcrusher and Gia Margaret builds on Drakes spare arrangement with cloudy ambient textures and layers of haunted vocal harmonies. Theres a gnawing post punk-rendition of "Cello Song" from Fontaines D.C., a rearrangement of "Northern Sky" from Karine Polwart and Kris Drever that pairs jazz inflections with traditional folk vocal styles, and a fairly faithful cover of "Time Has Told Me" from Ben Harper -- all ear-catching standouts. Due to the nature of the compilations prompt, The Endless Coloured Ways lacks continuity, and some of its unmoored stylistic experiments clash with one another. The strongest submissions make it worth the listen, however, as its wonderful to hear yet another generation of artists doing interesting things inspired by Drakes evergreen presence. ~ Fred Thomas