Label: Opposition Declic
Catalog#: BSD 012-2
Format: CD, Album
Country: France
Released: 1990
1 The Man Who Almost Shaves 4:56
2 Calling Home 4:03
3 Do You Know How That Feels ? 4:08
4 Crawl To Me 3:27
5 War Cries 3:03
6 Deep Down Blue 5:28
7 Her First Migraine 4:36
8 Digging For Water 3:54
9 Blue To Grey 2:27
最近出会って愛聴している一枚。アートワークの雰囲気から2000年以降のインディポップ作品かなと思いましたが、そうではなく1990年リリース。英サウスロンドンを拠点に80年代初頭のポストパンク期から活動を続ける3人組ロックバンドThe Opposition（ジ・オポジション）の通算5作目。ポッププロジェクトSo名義の活動を経て、バンド再始動後初のアルバムなのだそうです。シングル向きの軽快なオープニングから、ギターカッティングが印象的な「Calling Home」、ミドルテンポの佳曲「Do You Know How That Feels」や「Her First Migraine」など、聴き込むほどに味わいを増すメロウな楽曲ばかり。80年代後期から90年代初頭にかけて成熟したAOR系ネオアコースティック・サウンドの魅力が詰まっていて、聴きどころが多い好盤ですが、The Bible「Eureka」やThe Big Dish「Creeping Up On Jesus」に通じる渋好みな作風ゆえ、当時のシーンでは商業的に苦戦したであろうことも容易に想像できます。リリースされたのは本国イギリスではなく、フランスとポーランド。このフランス盤は自主制作とみられます。
An album I recently discovered and have been enjoying quite a bit. Based on the vibe of the artwork, I thought it might be an indie pop release from the 2000s or later, but it was actually released in 1990. This is the fifth album by The Opposition, a three-piece rock band based in South London that has been active since the early ’80s post-punk era. Apparently, this was their first album after reviving the band following their activities under the pop project name “So.”
From the breezy, single-ready opener to “Calling Home” with its striking guitar cutting, and fine mid-tempo tracks like “Do You Know How That Feels” and “Her First Migraine,” the album is filled with mellow songs that reveal their depth the more you listen. While it is a fine record packed with the charm of the mature, AOR-inflected neo-acoustic sound of the late ’80s and early ’90s, it’s also easy to imagine that it struggled commercially at the time due to its understated, connoisseur-appealing style—reminiscent of The Bible’s Eureka and The Big Dish’s Creeping Up On Jesus. It was released not in their home country of the UK, but in France and Poland. This French pressing appears to be a self-released edition.
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