Information Retrieved＜限定盤/Dark Blue Vinyl＞

PELE、toeと共振するマス・ロック、はたまたHELLA、LITEと重なるエクスペリメンタル・ロック両方を混ぜて打ち出したUSサンディエゴ発PINBACK。今の所最新フルアルバムとなる2012年『NFORMATION RETRIEVED』が再発!

TEMPORARY RESIDENCEに移籍して初めてのフルアルバムとなった本作は、チャートアクション・評価共に絶好調を記録! 初っ端から"Proceed to Memory"でテンションを上げる情熱的バンドアンサンブルを披露。"His Phase"ではマス・ロックの伝統伎とも言える不穏なリフに絡めてキャッチーなメロディを乗せる! 全体的に唄に寄り添う姿勢なのも特徴的!

While it's been five years since their last release, virtually a lifetime in the digital era, the knotty beauty of Pinback's sound makes their fifth album, Information Retrieved, feel as though it could've been released the next day. Existing in a state of both eternal dusk and dawn, Crow and Smith pull off a beautiful balancing act between light and dark, always shifting things here and there so that neither aspect is too dominant. This allows the album to take on whatever characteristics the listener needs it too, readily providing a bit of melancholy to turn to when things are down, or hopeful warmth to keep you riding high, all within the same song. Though this means they pair haven't done a whole lot to innovate over the years, they've created a sound so purely theirs that any significant change would feel disappointing. Pinback's ability to remain so consistent is likely due to indie auteur Crow's penchant for side project (Aspects of Physics, Goblin Cock, etc.), allowing the singer and guitarist to get his other ideas out so that the delicate interplay he and Smith have developed can remain intact. The flipside of this, however, is that Pinback is either a band that you get or you don't, and even though Information Retrieved is an excellent album, it won't do a whole lot to win over anyone who has already decided that Pinback isn't for them. For everyone else, the album delivers plenty of the gloomy/sunny/plaintive/happy pop that has made them one of the more instantly recognizable bands in the indie landscape. ~ Gregory Heaney