Life is. . . Marvelous

[Machine Translation] It is neither "empathy" nor "sharing. I felt that this sound was seeking "resonance." I listened to the speakers and felt an unexplainable feeling rising like magma. That is what this album is about. I think that the energy comes from the confusion and perplexity, and that's what drives these young people. They are moving towards a roaring sound, towards more aggressive music. Among the many split albums in the world, this is one of the most extreme works that remind us of the "language" and "era (generation)". Anti-Yokobata is good at live performances in which contradictions and anger through their own band and career, childhood longings and the current situation are all folded up at once with rapid-fire spoken words and melancholy chorus switching, but this album is also full of romantic guitar phrases, and there are glimpses of Schugeser's influence. The instantaneous power of the two-beat guitar, which runs through the song with only two beats, while using a lot of colorful tribal sounds and spatial effects, is one of the best. The audience can imagine the sing-alongs and the fast development of the music, which is Japanese punk at its core. The band's image is more flexible and positive, as they question "their own righteousness (=conflict)" over a 360-degree angle. On the other hand, seth is a band that has attracted attention for their radical words and Japanese hardcore-like roar as a voice for anti-war and confused times, but their guitars are much more romantic than their live performance. Of course, there are groovy and dirty riffs. What I especially noticed this time was how they are "people who wish for simple peace. While they write about their daily life and upbringing in an honest manner, they dare to choose subjects such as wars and killings that are not realistic for our generation. The band's knowledge of hip-hop and poetry reading is evident in their music, and they are able to evoke images in their audiences. The band places a great deal of importance on "words" as a means of creating an image and a straight impact on the audience. The expressive power of the musicians, who give the audience a sense of the unsettled atmosphere, the release from social stress, and the future, and a sense of drama, is sometimes more eloquent than a speech, and as mentioned at the beginning of this article, portrays the confused youth of today itself.

共感"でも"共有"でもない。この音は「共振」を求めている気がしたスピーカーに耳を傾け、マグマの様に沸き上がる得体の知れない気持ち。それこそが、このアルバムの正体だ。動揺や戸惑いがエネルギー源となり、この様な若者達を走らせてるんだと思う。轟音へと、より攻撃的な音楽へと。世に数あるスプリットという形の中でも、ひと際「言葉」と「時代(世代)」を感じさせる極端な作品である。反好旗は自身のバンドやキャリアを通した矛盾や怒り、幼き頃の憧れと現状を連射式のスポークンワードと哀愁のコーラスでのスイッチングで一気に畳み掛けるライブを得意とするが、本作ではギターのロマンティックなフレーズも満載でシューゲーザー辺りの影響も垣間見える。トライバル調の色彩豊な響きや空間系エフェクトを多用しながらもあくまで2ビートで駆け抜ける瞬発力は流石の一言。結局は根っ子がジャパニーズパンクなのだからシンガロングやファストな展開に燃え上がるオーディエンスが頭に浮かぶ。既存の彼らのイメージより更に360度に渡り「自身の正義(=葛藤)」を問いただす為、より柔軟に、よりポジティブに開花した印象を受ける。対するsethは反戦や混迷する時代の代弁者として過激な言葉とジャパニーズハードコアライクな咆哮で注目されるバンドだがこちらもまたライブの印象よりもギターがずっとロマンティックだ。勿論グルーヴィー&ダーティーなリフありき、の話なのだが。今回、特に気付いたのは彼らがいかに「シンプルな平和を願ってる人達」であるかという事だ。日常の風景や生い立ちを赤裸裸と綴りながらもまるで今の僕らの世代にはリアリティのない戦争や殺戮といった題材をあえて選ぶ。確かに彼らは世間的にはハードコアという一部の存在に過ぎないかもしれないが「平和を願うこと」「祈り」という人間本来の姿は決してマイノリティではないはずだ。2バンドを通して聞くとわかるのがヒップホップやポエトリーリーディングの造詣も深そうで、聴衆にイメージさせる、ストレートな衝撃を与える手段として、かなり「言葉」に重みを置いてる。不穏な空気感や社会的ストレスからの解放、そして未来、、1つのドラマを感じさせる演奏隊の表現力は時に演説よりも雄弁であり、冒頭にも書いた様に混迷する現代の若者そのものを描いている。