Wall of Eyes

トム・ヨーク×ジョニー・グリーンウッド×トム・スキナー
ザ・スマイル2ndアルバムをリリース!!

トム・ヨーク×ジョニー・グリーンウッド×トム・スキナーの3人からなるバンド、ザ・スマイルが2ndフル・アルバムを〈XL RECORDINGS〉からリリース!!
サム・ペッツ・デイヴィスがプロデュースを手がけた本作は、OxfordとAbbey Road Studiosでレコーディングされ、ロンドン・コンテンポラリー管弦楽団がストリングスのアレンジを担当している。
また、先行曲「Wall Of Eyes」は、映画監督のポール・トーマス・アンダーソンがミュージック・ビデオを手がけている。

With the release of their second full-length, the Smile are moving beyond being "just" a side project, establishing themselves as a force in their own right with Wall of Eyes. That being said, comparisons to Radiohead are unavoidable with Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood at the helm alongside drummer Tom Skinner. Viewing Wall of Eyes and its relationship to predecessor A Light For Attracting Attention, one might travel back to the turn-of-the-millennium sibling pair, Kid A and Amnesiac: whereas their debut as a trio felt like a blockbuster declaration, this younger sibling takes a less immediate route, playing on mood and atmosphere that demands more focus from the listener. And like Amnesiac, the meandering, experimental feel of Wall of Eyes can be more spiritually nourishing than its elder, in a nebulous, cant-quite-put-your-finger-on-it kind of way. A beautiful haze is tempered by existential discomfort bubbling at the edges of "Teleharmonic," as the rhythm section kicks in amidst the clatter to reveal warmth in the chaos. Tension is cranked high on the lurching "Read the Room," a noisy racket sprinkled with dream dust; its a snarling thrill that sounds unlike anything theyve done. Likewise, the epic "Bending Hectic" is a sprawling eight-minute journey with evocative lyrics fit for the big screen and a crushing cacophony at the close that mirrors "Read the Room" as the heaviest cut on this side of the album. The guys get funky on the head-bobbing exploration of "Under Our Pillows," while lush strings provided by the London Contemporary Orchestra swell on the title track, "Friend of a Friend," and the sweeping "You Know Me!" Having proven themselves with Light, the Smile takes more risks with this follow-up, resulting in a gorgeous, sometimes difficult trip into the unknown that, if only briefly, can make you forget about their main gig. ~ Neil Z. Yeung

レディオヘッドのトム・ヨーク&ジョニー・グリーンウッド、ドラマーのトム・スキナーによるバンドの2作目。パンキッシュな前作とは異なり、ニック・ドレイク的な美しさを湛えたジャジー・フォークの表題曲、ヒプノティックな"Teleharmonic"、シカゴ音響派のポスト・ロックを思わせる"Read The Room"など、序盤から柔らかな音に魅了される。クラウトロックやグランジに接近した激しい演奏も聴かせつつ、オーケストラや鍵盤を中心に作られた空間は優雅で居心地が良い。ソングライティングの質にも磨きがかかっており、あえて別隊の作品を出すならば『In Rainbows』と並べたいアルバムだ。
bounce (C)田中亮太