The Decline of British Sea Power＜限定盤/Colored Vinyl＞

The first two songs on Sea Powers remarkable 2003 debut The Decline of British Sea Power, Men Together Today and Apologies to Insect Life, come crashing out of the gate with such a wealth of frantic, chaotic, over-the-top energy that it comes as something of a surprise when the album shifts into contemplative, more atmospheric form a few tracks down the line. While some bands are eager to create a distinct and lasting image of themselves on their first album, Sea Power seemed determined to jump from one mood to another, confounding expectations before they had a chance to take root, and if The Decline of British Sea Power is an album possessed by multiple personalities, all of them are compelling and have fascinating stories to tell. Remember Me and Favours in the Beetroot Fields are dominated by Martin Nobles scrappy, all-over-the-road electric guitar and Scott Wilkinsons breathless vocals, but Something Wicked shifts gears into a bigger, grander sound that lives up to the majestic tone of the bands name. The Lonely and Carrion are brilliantly crafted, cinematic pop constructed on the grand scale and full of resonant emotions. And the penultimate track, Lately, is a 14-minute epic that sails from evocative beauty past a valley of noise and havoc into a final squall of madness, in many ways an ideal summation of Sea Powers strategy on this album. But for a first public gesture, The Decline of British Sea Power is tremendously powerful, and the band is more than up to the challenge of its vast creative ambitions; Scott Wilkinson is a singer of no small talent and range (and his lyrics are clever and often blazingly eccentric in the great British tradition), his brother Neil Hamilton Wilkinson and Martin Noble are multi-instrumentalists with both the skills and the vision to conjure this albums vast sonic palette, and drummer Matthew Wood is strong enough to hold the many pieces firmly in place. The Decline of British Sea Power is a wild musical ride that never stops delivering surprises and rare pleasures, and it was a fittingly remarkable debut from what would become one of the most interesting U.K. acts of their day. ~ Mark Deming

注目の新人バンドが登場。UKはブライトン出身の4人組、狂気の渦に巻かれて暴発中。イメージを定着させない広い音楽性、自在に変化するヴォーカル・スタイルが異色。“Favours In The Beetroot Fields”はもろにペル・ウブ、デヴィッド・トーマスの歌い方／曲調なのに、デヴィッド・ボウイやイアン・カーティスっぽく聞こえる瞬間も。ストレートなUKロック、ポスト・ロック、優しい歌、すべてが不規則に並ぶ狂気劇!
bounce (C)米田 貴弘