Cut Me Deep: A Story of Indie Pop 1985-1989

1980年代後半のUKインディー・ロック・シーンを俯瞰する注目のCD4枚組ボックス!ストーン・ローゼスを頂点とするポスト・パンクと60年代ロックという相反するサウンドを指向した有名無名のインディーズ・バンドの作品をコンパイル。チェリー・レッドの人気コンピレーション・シリーズ最新作。

Over the course of four discs, Cut Me Deep: A Story of Indie Pop 1985-1989 tells a tale of what happened when guitar-based bands in the U.K. decided to leave behind the aggressive approach of post-punk in favor of something more melodic and pop-centric. It sheds light on what led to the legendary C-86 cassette and details what happened afterward when the jangling, noisy sound many of the bands exhibited spun off in different directions. It gathers up familiar groups who were pioneers, like the Jesus and Mary Chain and the Loft, along with loads of wannabes, never-weres, and worthy obscurities. Most importantly, its another chance for lovers of the era to dig deep into its sounds, and whether one is on a sepia-toned nostalgia kick or a journey of discovery, its well worth the trip. Each disc delivers a kick of rough-hewn melodic delight that can be psychedelic (the Dentists, Mood Six) or rambling (Happy Mondays), bright and sunny (the Stone Roses, Shop Assistants) or darkly melancholy (the Wedding Present, the Weather Prophets), punkily simple (the Flatmates, Razorcuts), or calmly experimental (Miaow, Revolving Paint Dream). Some of the tracks look back to post-punk in their angular oddness, but more often groups seek to recapture and reclaim the singer/songwriter mantle from the laid-back post-hippies who ruined it in the late 70s or harken back to the early days of punk, only with a trace of the aggression and none of the machismo. The best of the former are those like Biff Bang Pow! or the Servants who add mystery and reverb to their introspective folk-rock tunes; the top tier of the latter inject their sound with humor (the Pooh Sticks), fiery attitude (the Primitives), or empowerment (Talulah Gosh) along the way to reclaiming punk from the mohawk-sporting traditionalists. By the time the decade began to close, the once semi-unified indie pop universe began to head off in all sorts of directions, from spitting noise rock (the Telescopes) and proto-shoegaze (Pale Saints) to genteel pop (the Sundays), glimmering machine-made pop (the Lightning Seeds), and shimmering folk-rock (Milltown Brothers). This is a story thats been told before on numerous other collections -- many of them released, as this was, by Cherry Red -- but that doesnt mean that its not worth telling again. Even if one were to have all the other comps that cover this territory, there are enough left turns, interesting song choices, and context here to make the set worth checking out. It is one of the great eras of pop music after all, and able to stand up to multiple examinations, especially one that is as interesting and well curated as Cut Me Deep is. ~ Tim Sendra