Caos

グラミー受賞の実力派R&Bシンガー=ミゲル
混沌へと誘う通算5枚目となるスタジオ・アルバム『CAOS』

メキシコ系の父とアフリカ系の母をルーツに持つ実力派R&Bシンガー/ソング・ライター=ミゲル。通算5枚目となるスタジオ・アルバム『CAOS』は、自身が40歳の誕生日を迎えリリースされる。今作は制作に8年を費やし、ジャンルの枠を超え、変化の美しさと不安定さを捉えており、破壊が創造へ、痛みが成長へと進化する様子を描いている。

アルバムのタイトル曲「CAOS」をソーシャルメディアと自身のプラットフォーム「S1C.LA」を通じて公開した。この楽曲は、スペイン語による生々しく実存的なモノローグで始まり、再誕をテーマにした実験的な瞑想へと展開した楽曲だ。

「再構築するためには、自分自身を破壊しなければならなかった。それが『CAOS』の核心的な対峙だ。自分自身の進化を通じて、変化とは暴力的なものだと学んだ。『CAOS』は、その暴力を普遍的に感じられるものへと曲げた音の表現なんだ」とミゲルは語る。

彼はリスナーにパーソナルかつ普遍的な"混沌"を提供し、音楽とビジュアル・ストーリーテリングを通じて、リスナー自身が自らの人生の中の混沌と向き合い、それを活かすよう促した作品となっている。

2012年発売のセカンドアルバム『Kaleidoscope Dream』に収録されたシングル「Adorn」はグラミー賞「最優秀R&Bソング」を受賞。以降も『Wildheart』(2015年)、『War & Leisure』(2017年)といったアルバムで全米R&Bチャート1位を獲得するなど輝かしい経歴を持つ。『CAOS』によって、ミゲルは自身のレガシーを再定義し、ジャンルや文化を超えたアーティストの進化の新たな基準を打ち立てようとしている。

Miguel released his first four albums within a span shorter than the interval between his fourth and fifth, but intermittent singles and EPs, soundtrack contributions, and featured appearances ensured that the singer never seemed distant after 2017s War & Leisure. He also saw "Sure Thing," a Top 40 hit for him in 2011, nearly crack the Top Ten in 2023, after it went viral through TikTok. Caos, his first album in eight years, is packed with the type of carnal slow jams -- freaky wordplay and pining vocals, sludgy rhythms, scorched guitars, liberal reverb, etc. -- that can be traced back to the debuts "Teach Me." A new station in life is indicated in the section of "Angels Song" where Miguel sings to his daughter, and in "Nearsight [SID]" when he laments that "I want to rage like I used to, but I never have time." Moreover, the urgent and resolute Spanish verses that start the album feel like an act of resistance in 2025. Still, Caos is mostly familiar sounding with its high percentage of crepuscular ballads. A couple numbers further show that acid rock and psychedelic soul can mingle with trap-styled production. Theres much more menace than before, most explicitly so on "The Killing," "Triggered," and "Perderme," sadomasochistic fantasies in which Miguel sounds not just aroused but also pent up, itching to "rage" or "rip," as he puts it in a few additional songs. Perhaps its an effect of the "governments playing Hunger Games" and other fraught modern conditions to which he alludes. "New Martyrs (Ride 4 U)" even paints a Bonnie and Clyde or Robin Hood scenario where Miguel reasons that "The love cant be silent when the system isnt equal." This is less about hooks and more about mood. The mood is heavy and only begins to lift in the George Clinton-assisted finale. Even in the dark moments, Miguels voice remains a marvel. ~ Andy Kellman

Miguel released his first four albums within a span shorter than the interval between his fourth and fifth, but intermittent singles and EPs, soundtrack contributions, and featured appearances ensured that the singer never seemed distant after 2017s War & Leisure. He also saw "Sure Thing," a Top 40 hit for him in 2011, nearly crack the Top Ten in 2023, after it went viral through TikTok. Considering the eight-year gap between LPs, Caos seems oddly routine. Its packed with the type of carnal slow jams -- freaky wordplay and pining vocals, sludgy rhythms, scorched guitars, liberal reverb, etc. -- that can be traced back to the debuts "Teach Me." A new station in life is indicated in the section of "Angels Song" where Miguel sings to his daughter, and in "Nearsight [SID]" when he laments that "I want to rage like I used to, but I never have time." Moreover, the urgent and resolute Spanish verses that start the album feel like an act of resistance in 2025. Still, Caos is mostly familiar sounding with a high percentage of its crepuscular ballads blurring the line between slow-burning and torpid. A couple numbers further show that acid rock and psychedelic soul can mingle with trap-styled production. Theres much more menace than before, most explicitly so on "The Killing," "Triggered," and "Perderme," sadomasochistic fantasies in which Miguel sounds not just aroused but also pent up, itching to "rage" or "rip," as he puts it in a few additional songs. Perhaps its an effect of the "governments playing Hunger Games" and other fraught modern conditions to which he alludes. "New Martyrs (Ride 4 U)" even paints a Bonnie and Clyde or Robin Hood scenario where Miguel reasons that "The love cant be silent when the system isnt equal." This is less about hooks and more about mood. The mood is heavy and only begins to lift in the George Clinton-assisted finale. Miguels voice remains a marvel, commanding enough to enliven substandard material. ~ Andy Kellman

前作『War & Leisure』から8年という長いブランクを経ての5作目だが、その間に生じた精神的な迷いや生活の変化を昇華した作品となっている。ギターが響くロック・サウンドに乗せて怒りや痛みを表現しつつ、我が子に捧げる"Angel's Song"では静謐な美しさを示し、甘美なスロウ"Always Time"にはミゲルらしいドリーミーさもあって、掲題通りにカオスな感情を吐き出したような内容だ。ラストの"Comma/Karma"はジョージ・クリントンの語りをフィーチャーした、プリンスの姿が見え隠れするような妖艶な一曲。R&B/ロックスターの帰還とこれからの展開を予感させる転機の一作。
bounce (C)池谷瑛子