Hopes And Fears (20th Anniversary)＜Colored Vinyl＞

Keaneのデビュー盤『Hopes and Fears』20周年記念リリース!

新たにリマスターされたアルバムに未発表デモ、B面とレアリティ音源を収録したカラー・ヴァイナル2枚組。

The English music press can never let anyone be. Theyre always quick to hail the next big thing, and in this case, the next big Coldplay is Keane. (Lowgold briefly held that title upon its debut release in 2001, but U.K. critics rushed to give that crown to someone else.) Keane havent positioned themselves to be kings of anything, though, let alone the next Coldplay. Sure, Coldplays biggest hit to date, "Clocks," included only pianos, and they released the Safety EP on Fierce Panda, which is also Keanes label, but those are the only things Keane have in common with Coldplay. Alongside their beautiful, emotive dalliance of instrumentation is one thing thatll separate Keane from all the rest, and thats drive. The bands open-hearted ambition on Hopes and Fears is audible on every song. Lead vocalist Tom Chaplins rich vocals are as vibrant as any choir, and track such as "This Is the Last Time," "Bend and Break," and "Cant Stop Now" reflect Keanes more savory, dramatic moments. Confidence bursts throughout, and for a band that has been around seven years and has never released a studio full-length album until now, achieving nearly epic-like status is quite impressive. Keane obviously have the songs and they have a strong voice leading the front; however, Tim Rice-Oxley (piano/keyboards/bass) and Richard Hughes (drums) allow Hopes and Fears to come alive with glamour and without the sheen of slick studio production. Even slow build-up tracks like "Bedshaped" and "We Might as Well Be Strangers" are just as passionate, if not more so, than some of the bigger numbers on the album. Some might find Keanes debut a bit stagy, or too theatrical at first, but thats okay. Listening to "Somewhere Only We Know" alone a few times is more than enough to convince you that Keane stand next to Coldplay -- challenging them rather than emulating -- and its a respectable match at that. ~ MacKenzie Wilson

〈ポスト・コールドプレイ〉の最右翼!　ピアノ主体のアレンジで奏でられる、ソフトだがUKロック・ファンのハートをガッチリ掴むであろう音作りは、耳の奥までスルリと侵入してくる真性美麗ロック。なにしろこのバンド、トリオ編成でギタリストがメンバーにいないという変わり種。しかし、言われてみなければ気付かないギターレスの違和感。至極自然に生み出された異形の、それでいて王道の〈ポップ〉がここにはある。
bounce (C)岩田 真也