Fairyland Codex

2021年『DEEP STATES』、2024年ライヴ・アルバム『TROPICAL FUCK STORM'S INFLATABLE GRAVEYARD』と作品を出す度、サイケデリック具合と熱狂度が増していくオーストラリア発TROPICAL FUCK STORM。インディ名門FIREに移籍後初であり4年振りとなるフルアルバム『FAIRYLAND CODEX』をリリース!

リードシングル"Bloodsport"のトリッキーなようで横ノリのツボを押さえたグルーヴ感、脈打つハイテンションなリズムに今まで以上のアグレッシヴさを感じられるはず。"Dunning Kruger's Loser Cruiser"のアヴァンギャルド的ギターのうねりと歪みには、彼等のトレードマークが更なる進化を遂げている事が分かり、4年分の前進をしっかり聴かせてくれます!

Australian art punk band Tropical Fuck Storm have long been agents of chaos, but their chaotic sound reaches new levels of intensity and catharsis in ways both loud and soft on their fourth album, Fairyland Codex. The prolific and hard-touring group reached a difficult impasse when bassist Fiona Kitschin was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer, which led to the cancellation of tours in 2023 and a slowdown in recorded output for a band that had locked into a groove of releasing new material just about every year. After Kitschin underwent successful treatment programs, TFS returned with a vengeance to both the stage and the studio, creating the pummeling and simmering songs of Fairyland Codex. The album starts in high gear with "Irukandji Syndrome," a swirl of dissonant riffing, overblown drums, and Gareth Liddiards shout-spoken lyrics painting scenes of danger and fantastical takes on societal decay. The midtempo tumble of "Goon Show" is similar, sounding like a muddy noise-rock update to the exploding aggression of the Birthday Party, while "Dunning Krugers Loser Cruiser" reconfigures funk grooves into the most anxiety-ridden form possible, with shifting time signatures and eerie backing vocals just adding to the songs disorienting energy. TFS bring the tempo down for a moment on the slithering "Teeth Marche," but even this slower tune crackles with a certain tension that keeps it from ever really relaxing. This hidden intensity also shows up on "Joe Meek Will Inherit the Earth," a tune built around a repetitive groove that vibrates uneasily before breaking into full-on dissonant clutter with the jumpy electric piano riffing that ends the song. Fairyland Codexs great trick is Tropical Fuck Storms ability to present their slower, would-be mellower songs as understated counterparts to the more overt ragers. Upon deeper listening, however, it becomes clear that some of the albums most overpowering moments are those that first come on as slight and retiring but reveal their anger, disappointment, and frustration by way of a slow, steady boil. ~ Fred Thomas