Empires Into Sand

UKポスト・パンク×アンビエント孤高の伝説、まさかの40年振り新作スタジオ・アルバムが登場!

1980年代、UKより研ぎ澄まされたアティチュードを鳴らしていたノーミル・ハワイアンズ。ポスト・パンクを軸にエクスペリメンタルやアンビエントを摂取する活動に驚愕した人も多い中、ここに来て40年振りとなるスタジオ・アルバム『EMPIRES INTO SAND』をリリース!

キッカケは1985年～86年録音で幻となった『RETURN OF THE RANTERS』をリリースする為に再集結した2015年。このアルバムの編集作業や発売記念の再結成ライブを行った事により、メンバーのヤル気がアップ。勢いが出たバンドはスコットランドの小さな村へ機材を持ち込みレコーディング合宿を敢行!80年代当時に出たアイデアも盛り込みながら完成した本作は、リード曲"EXILES"のゴリゴリなアンビエント感を筆頭に、バンドが現在進行形である事を示す最強盤!スポークン・ワードに則ったヴォーカル・スタイルはバンドが持つヒリヒリ感をこれでもか!と表現しています。

バンド史上初めて制作活動をコントロールし切ったという自信も漲る本作、40年分の試行錯誤と突き抜け具合を確かめて!

Experimental group Normil Hawaiians reunited around the time Return of the Ranters, their shelved third album from the mid-80s, was finally given an official release during the 2010s. Eventually their older recordings were all reissued, and the group performed at festivals and avant-garde venues like Londons Cafe OTO. The reactivated groups first recording, the single "In the Stone," appeared in 2020, and the full-length Empires into Sand arrived in 2024. Seven bandmembers traveled to Tayinloan, a remote seaside village in Scotlands Kintyre peninsula, and set up a home studio to record the album. Further recordings from other locations were subsequently added, shaping the record into a surreal, collage-like work. Normil Hawaiians had already evolved past their punk beginnings into an improvisatory collective by the time they recorded their first album, so its no surprise that Empires into Sand is heavier on atmospheric explorations rather than concise, structured songs. Opener "Exiles" artfully reflects on poverty-stricken upbringings, with spoken reminiscences, a voice from a numbers station, and ethereal chanting set to haunting ambient drones. "Ghosts of Ballochroy" is a gruff, rootsy memoir, complemented by the cosmic, angelic poetry of "Back Home to the Stars." The rockier, more guitar-driven "Waterfalls : Bedford 300" celebrates life and the natural world, and the slower-paced "Big City Sky" seems to express relief at being removed from city life. Two mixes of "In the Stone" are included, with one similar to the abrasive 2020 single version, and the other cold, airy, and drumless, like much of the rest of the album. "Where Is Living?," the singles B-side, laments societys contamination and pollution of the environment. Empires into Sand generally has a glum, weary tone, but it still expresses a fascination with being alive and hope for the future. ~ Paul Simpson