搬运译Pitchfork评Sharon Van Etten/Angel Olsen2021年单曲Like I Used To

搬运自：网易云音乐专栏【Music Online Zine Courier】（在原文基础上添加了英语原文与排版调整）

翻译：Beans_Beans

Two of the most influential songwriters of the past decade, Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen are unafraid of diving headfirst into the red. Think of those climactic howls in “Seventeen” or “Your Love Is Killing Me”; consider the dreamy crescendos of “Shut Up Kiss Me” and “Lark.” While plenty of artists seek inspiration from heroes of emotional abandon like Bruce Springsteen (whom they have each covered excellently), Van Etten and Olsen understand the true power belongs to the listener—when you’ve brought the magic into your own world, and you’re throwing your head back, singing along at the top of your lungs.

作为过去十年中最具影响力的两位词曲作家，Sharon Van Etten 和 Angel Olsen 毫不畏惧地一头扎进红色深渊。想想 “Seventeen” 或 “Your Love Is Killing Me” 中那些风云迭起的嘶吼；想想 “Shut Up Kiss Me” 和 “Lark” 的梦幻高潮。虽然很多艺术家从 Bruce Springsteen（他们都出色地重新演绎过他的作品）这样抛弃情感的英雄们那里寻求灵感，但 Van Etten 和 Olsen 明白，真正的力量——将你自己的世界赋予魔力，甩着头，歌唱着肺腑之语——终将属于听众。

Their first collaborative single, “Like I Used To,” lives up to its potential, plays to their strengths, and still manages to pack a surprise. The verse melody sits squarely in Olsen’s comfort zone—a little bit classic country, a little bit girl-group balladry. And the chorus, which arrives on an ascending wave of glockenspiel, like a golden staircase appearing through the fog, is pure Van Etten: a long string of ribbon she unfurls in the wind, equally ragged and triumphant.

她们的第一支合作单曲 “Like I Used To” 没有辜负其潜力，充分展现了她们的优势，并依旧为我们带来惊喜。主旋律恰好处于 Olsen 的舒适区——有点古典乡村风格，再有点女子组合民谣风格。随着一缕缕上升的钟琴声波，我们迎来了副歌，就像在迷雾中显现的金色扶梯，这才是最纯正的 “Sharon Van Etten”——她在风中飘舞一缕长长的丝带，粗糙褴褛却而光辉耀眼。

The whole thing feels momentous, predestined to be a crowd-pleasing set closer, and the lyrics add to its casual grandeur. “Lighting one up like I used to,” they sing together, “Falling in love like I used to.” Even when the words eschew the directness of previous career peaks (or when they’re straight-up quoting Michael Jordan), the duo makes sure you know they mean it. Produced by John Congleton, the song feels meticulously arranged for them to find the spotlight at any given moment and steal the show, an effect mirrored by Kimberly Stuckwisch’s expertly styled music video. If the good old days are behind us, as they suggest every time the chorus rolls around, the memories have never felt so sweet.

这一整首作品显得十分重大，词作不经意间平添了些许宏伟、同时也有着一个十分贴近人心的尾声。“Lighting one up like I used to/Falling in love like I used to.” 她们如此合唱道。即使歌词不再像她们先前顶峰时期那样直截了当（或是直接引用 Michael Jordan 的话），这一最佳排挡也从字里行间告诉你她们的意图。在这首歌中，John Congleton 精心的排片布局，使她们在任何时候都如同在聚光灯下耀眼辉煌；Kimberly Stuckwisch 所指导的 MV 也精巧地反映了这一效果。正如她们在副歌中唱到的的那样，倘若美好的旧日时光真的已经消逝，那我们的追忆也不会如此甜蜜。