Nothing Lasts Forever

If theres an overriding sentiment that runs through all of Teenage Fanclubs work and which has taken on a deeper resonance since at least 2010s Shadows, its that the beloved Scottish group are journeyman pop bards crafting beautiful anthems about everyday life. Its a poetic, introspective vibe and one that illuminates all of their gently intoxicating 12th album, 2023s Nothing Lasts Forever. Their second effort since the 2018 departure of bassist/singer Gerard Love, Nothing Lasts Forever is a softly textured production anchored by songwriting of the remaining founder members, Norman Blake (guitars/vocals) and Raymond McGinley (guitars/vocals). Together, along with their longtime touring ensemble featuring Francis Macdonald on drums, Dave McGowan on bass, and Gorkys Zygotic Mynci founder Euros Childs on keyboards, theyve crafted an album that finds them ruminating on growing older and coming to a place of peace with ones life. Explicitly, where Endless Arcade was written during a time of turmoil for Blake as he wrestled with the break-up of his marriage, here he seems to have found an acceptance and even hopefulness that life has more to offer. Its an uplifting vibration they conjure on the opening "Foreign Land," in which their slinky, fuzztone psych-guitar riffs frame Blakes lyrics about moving on from the past. He sings, "My heart was like a stone/But now its beating brightly/The pasts a foreign land/I did my best, you understand." The song nicely evokes the groups late-60s Laurel Canyon folk-rock influences and perfectly sets up the tone of whats to come. Equally soft focus and organic textures follow, as on the Todd Rundgren-esque "I Left the Light On," the piano-driven "Self Sedation" with its Paul Williams-meets-the Beach Boys vibe, and the shimmering "Middle of Mind" whose poetic melody and spectral synthesizers bring to mind Pink Floyd ballad. We also get the crunchy guitar sparkle of "Tired of Being Alone" and "Back to the Light," both of which recall the bands classic Grand Prix and Songs from Northern Britain albums. With Nothing Lasts Forever, Teenage Fanclub have made a poignant, delicately rendered rumination on the passing of time and the enduring promise of love, throwing their lyricism into relief. ~ Matt Collar

英国ロックの聖地・ロックフィールドにて録音された、グラスゴーの良心による通算12作目のアルバム。今作もスコティッシュらしい切ないメロディーを緩やかでグルーヴィーなバンド・サウンドに乗せて歌っている一方、いままでにはない哲学的で何かを悟ったような清々しさを感じさせる作品だ。CSNを彷彿させる、いつも以上に多用されたコーラスも最高に良い。
bounce (C)赤瀧洋二