Disappearing Coin

2018年作『UTOPIA TEASED』も好評だったUSオークランドのSSW STEPHEN STEINBRINK。5年もの歳月をかけて誕生した最新作『DISAPPEARING COIN』をWESTERN VINYLからリリース!
前作リリース後、燃え尽き症候群に陥ったSTEPHEN。自分自身を取り戻す為、音楽以外の興味がある事柄としてガラス職人や修道士を経験。そこから段々と心身が回復し、本作のタイトルになった高校生に声をかけ、コインを消滅させるストリート・マジシャンの短いYouTube動画を鑑賞。アイデアの元をゲットしたSTEPHENは、"OPALESCENT RIBBON"、"CRUISER"と前よりも力強くしかし繊細さは失わないインディ・ポップ×フォークを誕生。近年のマック・デマルコにも似た煌びやかな中にズシッとくるアレンジがたまりません!
シーンにカムバック第1弾としては完璧過ぎる1枚です!

Stephen Steinbrinks songs make him sound like the kind of person who is good at looking happy as long as youre not looking too closely. Since the mid-2000s, hes been making cool indie pop records in his bedroom studio, and has been releasing a steady stream of homebrewed recordings that wrap languid and pleasing pop melodies around themes of disappointment and regret. Steinbrink reached the apex of this approach with 2018s Utopia Teased, which he wrote and recorded in the wake of the fire at the Oakland, California D.I.Y. venue Ghost Ship, a blaze that killed 36 people. While the music was often lovely, Utopia Teased was an act of public mourning driven by anger and loss, and while 2023s Disappearing Coin doesnt approach the lyrical darkness of that album, pay some attention to the lyrics and youll hear a litany of letdowns and dashed hopes in Steinbrinks voice. In spite of that, the easy, bittersweet drift of Steinbrinks melodies is the sugar that helps the medicine go down; largely driven by vintage keyboard patches and his own multi-tracked harmonies, this feels like perfect listening for a Sunday afternoon with some clouds on the horizon. Theres a dash of 70s soft rock in his graceful indie pop, along with a touch of the emotional resonance of the singer/songwriter movement that ran concurrently with the dawn of Yacht Rock, and even though the sadness and confusion of Steinbrinks songs make themselves known after repeated plays, his gift for tunes, the elegance of his craft, and the occasional bursts of musical playfulness (such as the runs up and down a marimba in "Steps Disappearing Coin") make it music worth going back to. Its tempting to imagine what Stephen Steinbrinks work would be like if he suddenly cheered up, but judging from Disappearing Coin, hes capable of creating beautiful and compelling music even on his bad days. ~ Mark Deming