Aprender a Ser (Extended)

ドリームポップ/シューゲイザーとトリップホップを耽美的&スピリチュアルにブレンドしたメキシコシティ発デュオ

ドリームポップ/シューゲイザーとトリップホップというDEARYらとも共鳴するユニークなブレンドに耽美的な世界観、スピリチュアルでさえあるサイケデリアを加味したメキシコシティのデュオMINT FIELD。元々はダブル・アルバムとしてリリースする予定だったという最新作『APRENDER A SER』に収まりきらなかったトラックを収録したミニ・アルバム『APRENDER A SER: EXTENDED』をリリース! 最後を飾る"EL MAR ME VEIA"には古くからの友人でもあるグアテマラ出身のSSW/アヴァン・チェリスト、MABE FRATTIが参加しています。

Mexican dream pop group Mint Field began recording their third album, Aprender a Ser, before 2020s Sentimiento Mundial was released, and continued working on material until the beginning of 2023. A bit more spacious and mysterious than their other records, it drifts further from the noise-pop and Krautrock influences of their debut, embracing more electronics and ambient textures. "El Suspiro Cambia Todo" is a somnambulant introduction about how sighing is a subconscious form of release. "Sueno Despierto" has fluttering saxophone that makes the song feel like an ethereal flashback. Trippy effects and wavy rhythms seep their way into other tracks, and "Moronas" is a stirring, drum machine-driven song about missing the past but accepting the present. "Respiro Profundo" has more aggressive guitar distortion as well as crunchy, almost breakbeat-like drums, and is easily one of the albums most stunning moments. "Orquidea" has a post-punk drive to the rhythm, but its all about the heavenly reverb on the vocals. Nostalgic pianos ring out from the daydreaming swirl of "Cinco Dias." The drum machine returns for "Antes de Que Se Acabe el Ano," a sweetly melancholy tune with glimmering keyboards and angelic yet intimate vocals. Like the previous two Mint Field albums, Aprender a Ser explores different sonic spaces from track to track but largely manages to stick to a unified mood, one that feels lonesome and slightly disoriented but still has a sense of wonder. ~ Paul Simpson