Sleepy Eyed (Expanded)

1995年に発表された5thアルバム『Sleepy Eyed』
30周年記念盤が〈Beggars Banquet〉よりリリース。

1995年に発表された『Sleepy Eyed』は、Buffalo Tomにとって転機となった作品。
その前作『Big Red Letter Day』(1993年)はBillboardチャートにランクインし、彼らの名を大きく広めるブレイク作となった。シングル「Late at Night」が、90年代半ばのカルト的TVドラマ『My So-Called Life』で使用され、バンド自身が劇中で演奏する姿も放送されたことで、当時は一躍注目を集めた。

2枚組LP、CD、デジタルで発売される本作には、今回のために発掘された6曲のデモ音源が追加収録される。その中には、これまで未発表だったホームレコーディング曲「Hold Me Up」と「Don't Blow Your Wind」が含まれており、デモとして眠っていたものの、美しい楽曲として存在感を放地、さらに「Tangerine」「Summer」「Kitchen Door」「Clobbered」のデモは、これらのBuffalo Tomのクラシック曲がどのように生まれたのかを物語っている。さらに未公開写真や当時の資料、そしてバンドとプロデューサーのJohn Agnelloによるレコーディング回顧のライナーノーツが収められている。

Put Sleepy Eyed in your CD player, hit play, and prepare to be amazed -- "Tangerine," the lead-off cut, signals the brief but welcome return of "Dinosaur Jr. Jr." with two-and-three-quarters minutes of charging neo-grunge guitars and galloping drums, the likes of which you haven't heard from this band since Birdbrain. But, of course, Buffalo Tom sound a lot tighter, stronger, and more confident when they dig into the big shaggy dog rock than they did five years previous, and while they never get quite as rollicking as "Tangerine" again on Sleepy Eyed, cut for cut it's a far more direct and straightforward rock album than anything they'd managed since their creative breakthrough on Let Me Come Over. To some listeners, Sleepy Eyed might sound like a regression, moving back into noisy power trio mode after the more polished surfaces and intricate arrangements of Let Me Come Over and Big Red Letter Day, but play Sleepy Eyed back to back with Birdbrain and you'll be pleasantly surprised by the differences. Sleepy Eyed decisively proves Buffalo Tom write better hooks and better melodies, write smarter lyrics, and even rock harder than when they were still trying to find their way out from under J. Mascis' shadow, and they sound like they're having a great time just turning up the amps and letting rip, especially Bill Janovitz, whose rock-dude guitar outros are a hoot (and this is one band who I cannot begrudge for enjoying themselves every once in a while). On Sleepy Eyed, Buffalo Tom go back to the old neighborhood and show everybody how much bigger and stronger they've become -- it's sorta like a high school reunion, but louder and a lot more fun. ~ Mark Deming