Divide And Exit (10th Anniversary Edition)

おっさん2人が打ち鳴らすローファイ・エレクトロ・ヒップホップ・パンク!
UK労働者階級の代弁者Sleaford Modsによるセカンド・アルバムがリイシュー!

イギリスのSleaford Modsによる時代を捉えたアルバム『Divide and Exit』が発売10周年を記念して再発される!
2014年5月にリリースされたAndrew FearnとJason Williamsonによる「正式な」セカンド・アルバム(初期のCD-R作品まで遡れば6枚目)は、イギリスの腐敗政治が社会に及ぼしていた憂鬱感を捉えただけでなく、力強い言葉とミニマルなエレクトロニクスの融合によって、必要とされていた激情や怒り、痛みや希望をフレッシュな声で露わにした作品だった。〈Rough Trade〉からリリースされる『Divide and Exit』の新装版には、フロントマンの Williamson が書き下ろした新解説が掲載されるほか、左派加速主義を代表する批評家Mark Fisher が2014年に行ったバンドへのインタビューも全文再掲される。
Williamssonによる切れ味のあるスポークン・ワードとFearnが仕込むミニマルなトラックーSleaford Modsの憤怒とエレクトロの爆発に再び酔いしれる時が来た!

It took Sleaford Mods nearly eight years to make their breakthrough album, but what a breakthrough: Divide and Exit doesnt just build on the momentum Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn began with 2013s Austerity Dogs, it kicks down the door and announces Sleaford Mods as one of the most truly punk outfits of the 2010s. Fearn and Williamson take aim at the stupidity in music, politics, and culture like theyre lancing a festering boil, and while the results arent pretty, theyre pretty cathartic. What would be rough edges or even mistakes in other bands work make up the heart of their music; theyre so insistent on getting their message across that theres no time for second takes. As on Austerity Dogs, Divide and Exits sound is stark and blunt: Fearns clattering beats borrow from industrial and hip-hop, while the gurgling basslines on Air Conditioning and Strike Force sound like theyre part garbage disposal. These grimy backdrops are set ablaze by Williamsons rapid-fire wit, which shows no signs of fading after nearly a decade. If anything, hes become an even more masterful conduit of anger, channeling it through highly quotable lyrics full of crude outbursts and scathing eloquence, often at the same time. Toilet imagery abounds on Divide and Exit: Williamson expresses his disgust for a clueless liberal frenemy (and himself) by wanking in the loo on Youre Brave and begins Tied Up in Nottz with pungent opening line The smell of piss is so strong it smells like decent bacon. After venting their spleens on the albums first half, Sleaford Mods take a brainier, arguably more potent approach on the rest of Divide and Exit. With its ghostly backing vocals, Tweet Tweet Tweet conjures images of Fearn and Williamson surrounded, Shaun of the Dead-style, by complacent, social media-fixated zombies, while Smithys helicopter samples put a finer point on the albums claustrophobic paranoia. Liveable Shit borders on performance art in the way Williamson, his doubled vocals falling somewhere between hype man and nagging conscience, connects the dots between Jim Morrison, Gary Oldmans Dracula, and everyday injustices while shouting down canned laughter. While parts of Divide and Exit are extremely English, for every reference that flies over the heads of listeners outside of Blighty, many more connect. Tiswas takes its name from a British childrens television show from the 70s and 80s, but Williamson and Fearns frustration is palpable -- and universal. Though they delivered more nuance on their other 2014 releases (particularly the Tiswas EP), Divide and Exit is the brilliant gut-punch that began a momentous year for Sleaford Mods. ~ Heather Phares