Balloon Balloon Balloon

アメリカはシカゴを拠点に盟友HORSEGIRLと共鳴しながら、USインディのノイジーで悶絶する部分を鳴らす期待の新星LIFEGUARD。バンドを象徴し頭脳であるカイ・スレーターはソロユニットとしてこのSHARP PINSも動かし、2つの世界観でインディリスナーを虜にする離れ業を披露。この度リリースされるSHARP PINSとしての新作『BALLOON BALLOON BALLOON』は、カイ・スレーターそのものな名盤!

SHARP PINSの名を広げた前作『RADIO DDR』と地続き且つ進化した本作。K RECORDS印のローファイ×スラッカー・ロックを熟成させ研ぎ澄ませた方向は、まるでレーベルの屋台骨になる事を決意したかのような逞しさ。シカゴにあるカイの自宅とワシントン州オリンピアのスタジオで出来上がった音は、先行シングル"(I Wanna) Be Your Girl"で結実! 素朴で剥き出しな録音に宿る青春時代に過ごした夢見心地柔らかさは、LIFEGUARD作品と紙一重なクオリティです!

BEAT HAPPENING、PAVEMENT、MAC DEMARCOに続くインディヒーローになるか!?

Sharp Pins third album, Balloon Balloon Balloon, is clearly a labor of love for Kai Slater and is extremely easy to love for fans of lo-fi, high-hook guitar pop reminiscent of the greats like Guided by Voices, Big Star, and the Beatles, not to mention lesser-known but still important groups like Milk N Cookies and the Rubinoos. Hes clearly done his homework, learning about how to put together a perfectly crafted pop song, how to get just the right amount of jangle out of a 12-string guitar, how to balance punk attitude with bubblegum sugar, and above all, how to make a sound that could easily fall into pastiche turn into something that sounds brand spanking new. Credit the intensely sharp hooks that could cut through chainmail or his yearning vocals. Marvel at the no-fi production that never lapses into cuteness; he makes technical limitations work for him. The sound somehow sparkles despite the murk, the melodies coming through like a flower through a concrete sidewalk. The songs themselves are really strong, too, with a nice mix of heart-tugging ballads, super-jangly midtempos baths of melancholy, and the occasional snappy rocker. Hes equally proficient at all three, never stealing too much from his idols and even doing at least one of them better. Unlike in the case of GBV, his lyrics are direct and untroubled by obscurity, and theres never any doubt hes singing a love song -- love lost mostly, which should appeal to anyone who ever had their heart bruised. Even if one has somehow made it through life unscathed emotionally, its hard not to get a contact bummer from songs as bloodied as "I Dont Have the Heart" or "Gonna Learn to Crawl," the latter of which shows Slater is a dab hand at vocal harmonies too. Other songs have glimmers of hope and light: the stately "(In a While) Youll be Mine" is a lovely tune that Gene Clark would have been glad to call his, the nostalgic "Talking in Your Sleep" mixes 50s chord changes with early beat group simplicity and the mix puts Slaters voice out front for a change, and the peaceful "Queen of Globes and Mirrors" is a drifting slice of pocket psych that finds Slater completely owning yet another style. Its all incredibly listenable, and the 21 songs go by in a flash, ready to be spun again and again. Some tracks -- like the super-catchy, super-sad "Stop to Say Hello" -- stand out from the heady environs and beg to be perfect-world hit singles. Balloon Balloon Balloon is pure pop music for now-and-then people, skillfully crafted from bits and bobs of the past, then melded together into a sound that is exactly what the smoothed-out, homogenous mid-2020s need. ~ Tim Sendra