【搬运】【译】叉婊Pitchfork评Dixie Chicks 2020年单曲《Gaslighter》

搬运自：微信公众号【评论搬一堆】（在原文基础上添加了英语原文与排版调整）

翻译：Peter D

审译：Whitney.L

排版：Ryan-Chopin

The last time the Dixie Chicks reinvented themselves, it was hard to know what would come next. On their most recent album, 2006’s Taking the Long Way, the country trio wrote about being spurned by their industry, faced with uncertainty at the point when most bands on their level are finding career equilibrium. “They say time heals everything,” Natalie Maines sang in the mammoth single “Not Ready to Make Nice,” “but I’m still waiting.” They would continue waiting: After the tour for that album, they took a decade-plus hiatus from releasing new music together, during which their influence loomed larger than ever and their fight against a misogynist industry was echoed by a new generation of singer-songwriters.

上次Dixie Chicks的回归，她们彻底突破了自己；没人能猜到下一次她们还能玩出什么新花样。这支乡村三人组合在她们最近的一张专辑，也就是发行于2006年的《Taking the Long Way（漫漫长路）》中写下了被自己所在的这一行业所激励鞭策的故事，当大多数达到了她们这样的高度的乐队都在寻求职业的平衡和稳定时，她们却面对着种种的不确定性。“They say time heals everything,（他们都说时间会抚平一切伤痛，）” Natalie Maines在获得了巨大成功的单曲“Not Ready to Make Nice（决不妥协）”中如是唱道，“but I’m still waiting.（但我还依然在苦苦等待。）”她们还将继续等待：在结束了上面这张专辑的巡演后，她们进行了长达十余年的休整，没有一起发行任何新作；但在这段日子里，她们的影响力却日渐凸显出来，她们奋起反抗这整个排斥女性的行业的行为更是为新一代唱作人们所呼应。

“Our last album was the most personal and autobiographical we’ve ever been,” Maines said in 2019. “And then this one is 10 times that.” She was talking about Gaslighter, the group’s long-awaited comeback record, co-produced with Jack Antonoff. Like so many of their best songs, from “Goodbye Earl” to “Truth No. 2,” the title track gets to the heart of matters by getting personal. Its references to broken promises and Hollywood homes suggest that Maines is addressing her recent divorce from an actor husband, but its larger points speak to the same belief that has driven the group’s work from the beginning. “You liar,” Maines concludes each chorus. In their world, there is no stronger indictment.

“我们的上一张专辑是我们最私人化、最具自传性质的一张专辑，” Maines曾在2019年这么说过。“而这一个将会是它的10倍。”她所说的正是这首“Gaslighter（煤气灯）”，这是在人们经历了漫长的等待之后组合发行的回归首单，由Jack Antonoff联合制作。这首新专辑的同名曲目和她们以往最好的那些歌曲，比如“Goodbye Earl（再见了Earl）”以及“Truth No. 2（第二号真相）”一样，通过把矛头对准某一个人，直击事情的核心。歌曲中提到的被违背的誓言、好莱坞的生活都暗示着Maines是在讲述她最近和演员丈夫婚姻的破裂，但其更重要的目的依然是与从始至终推动着组合创作的信念保持着一致。Maines在每段副歌的最后都会总结：“You liar.（你这个大骗子。）”在她们的世界里，这就是最严厉的控告。

With its buoyant rhythm and singalong chorus, “Gaslighter” merges the open-road optimism of their early records with the sharper power-pop ofTaking the Long Way. Other than their vocal harmonies—still radiant and seamless, like different strings on the same instrument—banjo player Emily Strayer and fiddle player Martie Maguire accompany Maines in subtle ways, weaving the confrontational verses into the rallying cry of a chorus. The songcraft is so compact, and their trademark sound so welcome and familiar, that its message of empowerment comes across equally jubilant and defiant. And while it may soften the heavier implications of the title, their breezy mix of emotions makes its own statement. The Dixie Chicks know that history has been good to the battles they’ve fought. So now they’re working on their own time, answering to no one.

“Gaslighter”用轻快的节奏和朗朗上口的副歌，把他们早期专辑中开阔的乐观主义和《Taking the Long Way》中更犀利的power-pop风格融合在了一起。除了她们的和声——依旧那么闪闪发光、毫无瑕疵，紧密的配合让她们的声音就好像同一件乐器上不同的弦——班卓琴手Emily Strayer和小提琴手Martie Maguire也用非常巧妙的方式配合着Maines，把挑衅的主歌和副歌中振奋人心的呼喊紧密衔接在一起。歌曲的编排非常紧凑，组合标志性的声音也是那么的悦耳和熟悉，以至于歌曲中争取权利的信息能同时表现得令人欢欣雀跃，又轻蔑高傲。清风般的交织情感可能某种程度上削弱了标题本身更深层次的隐喻，但它依旧有力地传达了讯息。Dixie Chicks清楚地知道历史会铭记她们之前所做的斗争。因此现在她们只是自由地为自己创作，而无需回答任何人。