海外碟评 | Everything Is Noise: 沼泽至今最出类拔萃的作品

【翻译】

沼泽乐队以一张40分钟的后摇作品回归，此音乐作品不仅制作精良而且创意有机。

沼泽每次发行的新作都似乎越来越优秀。他们最新的唱片是一首长达43分钟迷人的音乐，创造出出色的氛围以及令人赞叹的作曲。《争鸣》是一首单曲，运用了多种的形式构架使音乐不断延伸。沼泽再次使用中国传统乐器，为他们的音乐增添了独特的品质。我第一次接触沼泽的音乐是他们2016年发布的沉醉不知处，被我同公司的同事所推荐的。这张唱片风格丰富交融，给人以灵巧、情绪化的感觉，充满收获，深深吸引了我。

《争鸣》建筑在一个沼泽从《沉醉不知处》那时就已打造好的地基上，且不仅仅是音乐性的。

乐队在比利时森林录制了这张专辑，并由此带来一层覆盖着的让人难以置信的宁静气氛。穿过这份平静，情感激流汹涌而至，这难免令其被放在与其前身（乐队以前的创作）相比较的位置。但与此同时，也不要被欺骗了，以为这专辑只是搭乘了后摇的最后一道曙光；其实截然相反。专辑的一些部分是相当重型的，有着强悍的鼓声和绝妙的失真。比方，特别是在音乐一开始，大概10分钟左右，在逐渐滑向另一个更ambient（氛围化）的乐曲段落之前。

到了钢片琴的部分，由鼓手海逊演奏，加入了此元素，演奏出一个柔和又充满希望的旋律，并随着时间推移旋律逐步堆砌。你能够在背景声音中，听到树叶的沙沙声和鸟儿的鸣叫声，正如前面所提到的，这是增加了声轨的魔力。接下来介绍由乐队领军人物海亮所演奏的中国乐器“箫”，将这首歌引向两个精彩而有力的高潮，然后又深深地沉入了柔和的宁静之中。

乐队驾轻就熟地来回运用各种的乐器，最为明显的是当电古琴响起时——我最喜爱的乐器。海亮演奏绝伦，他的手指像是在琴弦上跳舞，创造出我从未听过的实验性声音。他所使用的效果从混响到完全失真都不一样，而且拉扯着你的心弦。站在舞台中央的还有海逊非凡的鼓声，震耳欲聋，像是与古琴抗衡。

我必须承认，我听到第三遍时，还是觉得奇怪，他们为何以整轨（而不是分开几首曲子）的形式发行这个专辑，毕竟有好几次声音都完全消失了，甚至也没有了鸟鸣声。然而，我同意，这个作品只有作为一个整体被聆听时，才能展示出它的最佳之处。它的梦幻几乎让你觉得自己身处于大卫林奇的森林里，而你也自然会把这张专辑post-rock的那一面，与Mono、惘闻等乐队做对比。

乐队在他们音乐的每个部分所营造的气氛非常的融合，如果你在放松时或者完成任务时听，就会觉得时间飞逝。当我一边练习太极的时候一边听《争鸣》，我觉得这十分有帮助。即使当节奏加快，你仍然感到集中和放松，这就是我所希望的音乐家，他们试图运用乐器传达的东西。我希望有一天沼泽能够为此制作一部纪录电影，甚至把他们的专辑变成双媒体的艺术作品，像是Bell Witch的Mirror Reaper，或是 Nordic Giants的现场演出。

这首歌/专辑是最令人印象深刻的，对我来说，这是沼泽至今最出类拔萃的作品。不仅这张专辑有让人称赞不绝的作曲，而且会让你觉得它近乎心目中的年度之最。极致的混音和演奏，让美妙的音乐在我的扬声器和耳机里传出。 你会先被前奏氛围紧紧环绕着，随之在前中段的部分被深深拽入乐器演奏的漩涡中。这张唱片起到了宣泄的作用，能释放你的压力，此时此刻与乐队一起摇滚。《争鸣》是一张非凡的专辑，并在一年中最合适的时刻发行，我强烈推荐给你们。

作者：Pete Overell / 翻译：Tammy

【试听】《争鸣》专辑

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【原文】

Zhaoze - Birds Contending

By Pete Overell (Everything Is Noise)

December 17, 2018

Zhaozereturns to the fray with a single forty-minute piece of post-rock art that not only manages to be beautifully crafted but organic at the same time.

Zhaozeseems to get better with each and every release. Their latest record is an enchanting 43 minutes of music, thanks to brilliant use of ambiance and sublime composition.Birds Contendingis a single track, which takes many shapes and forms over its length.Zhaozeyet again employs the use of traditional Chineseinstruments, which have added a unique quality to their music. I first came to knowZhaozefrom their 2016 release,Intoxicatingly Lost,after it was recommended by myEverything Is Noisecolleagues. This record captured me thanks to the rich blending of genres, which came across as deft, emotional, and highly rewarding.

Birds Contendingbuilds on the platform they carved out onIntoxicatingly Lost, and not just musically. The band recorded the album in a Belgium forest, and with that comes this unbelievable layer of tranquil ambiance. Through that peacefulness comes a torrent of emotions, which really puts this album on a pedestal compared to its predecessors. Yet at the same time, do not be fooled into thinking this album is on the light end of post-rock; quite the contrary. Parts of the album are quite heavy, with huge drums and fantastic distortion. This is particularly the case at the start of the track, in the first 10 minutes or so, before the band begin to edge out into the more ambient part of the album.

Here the celesta, played by drummer Seasean, comes into its element, playing a soft, hopefulmelody that builds progressively over time. You can hear the rustle of leaves and tweets of the birds in the background, as mentioned earlier, which only adds to the magic of the track. Next, the xiao, a Chineseflute instrument played by frontman Hoyliang, is introduced, and leads the song to two brilliantly powerful climaxes, before again sinking deep into softtranquility.

The band effortlessly move between instruments, which is apparent when the electric guqin is picked up – my favorite instrument in the mix. Hoyliangplays it beautifully, his fingers dancing over the strings and creating experimental sounds I’ve not heard before. The effects he uses vary from reverb-heavy to full distortion, and it pulls your heartstrings back and forth. Also taking center stage was the exceptional drumming of Seasean, the drum kit sounding crisp and punchy against the guqin.

I must admit, I did find it strange that the record was released as a single track by my third listen, as the sounds do dip away completely at times, not even filled with birdsongs. However, I abide, as the record does sound its best when listened to in full. Its dreaminess almost makes you feel like you’re in a David Lynch-likeforest, and you’d certainly put the post-rock side of the album up against bands likeMonoandWang Wen.

The atmosphere that the band builds in each segment of their track is really encapsulating and makes time blast past if you are either relaxing to it or using it to get through a task. I practiced some Tai-Chi toBirds Contending, and found it incredibly helpful. Even when the pace picks up you still feel centered and relaxed, something I hope the musicians were trying to convey in their instrumentals. I’d love to hear Zhaoze score a movie one day, or even turn one of their albums into a dual-media artwork, like Bell Witch‘s Mirror Reaper, or Nordic Giants‘ live show.

This track/album is most impressive and is for me the standout work of Zhaoze so far. Not only is the musical composition of the album sublime, but the way this record makes you feel puts it right near the top of the pile for me this year. The mix and master are sublime; it plays marvelously over my surround sound speakers and headphones. You find yourself surrounded by ambiance in the foreground, with the instruments gripping you front and center. This record is cathartic, allowing you to let go of your stress, yet still rock out at points with the band.Birds Contendingis an exceptional record, released at the perfect time of year and I thoroughly recommend you try it out.

Pete Overell

原文网址：http://everythingisnoise.net/reviews/zhaoze-birds-contending/