【译】叉婊Pitchfork评Ciara 2018年单曲《Level Up》

翻译：Nomanlandever

A fact that will make you feel ancient: Ciara’s “Goodies” came out almost 15 years ago. That’s a testament to just how improbably resilient Ciara’s career has been. Though she’s never quite regained that initial “princess of crunk-n-B” level of mainstream stardom, she has sustained a cult fanbase and delivered a remarkably consistent run of songs to back it up. Ciara has spent the last decade in a whirlwind of genres, but is at her best when her work is physical—from two-step anthems like “1, 2 Step” to her futuristic dance music in the early 2010s to the more sensual meanings of “physicality” on career standout “Body Party.”

一个让你感到古老的事实：Ciara出道作《Goodies》已发行近15年。这充分证实了Ciara事业非同寻常的坚韧性。尽管她之后从未恢复到出道时被冠以“Crunk-n-B公主”炙手可热的级别，但她一直积攒了很多死忠粉，Ciara也不间断地持续发布一系列歌曲来稳固粉丝群体。过去十年里，Ciara辗转于不同的音乐流派——但她最好的作品从来都是涉及“身体”的——从两步舞曲“1, 2 Step”到2010年代初期的未来主义舞曲，再到进一步展现出Ciara性感魅力的职业生涯高光曲 “Body Party”。

Her first single since 2015’s Jackie, “Level Up” is custom-engineered for virality. The track’s named for a micro-feud she started over an Instagram hashtag on a post with her new husband Russell Wilson, and it’s built on the turbo-shaking bones of DJ Telly Tellz’ “fuck It Up” a Jersey club workout to which hundreds of people heeded the spoken intro: “No matter where you at, no matter where you from, no matter what dance you’re doing, just make sure you fuck it up to this song right here.” Ciara does, reproducing the countdown intro and hook (“fuck it up” becomes “level up”); it’s as instantly effective a sample as “My Boo” in “Body Party,” and producer J. R. Rotem mostly stays out of its way besides inserting a couple of plush bridges for a break.

自2015年专辑《Jackie》后的首支回归单曲“Level Up”力图引起病毒式传播效应。歌名源于她和她的新婚丈夫Russell Wilson在Instagram上发布的一个话题标签而引发的一场小争议，歌曲在DJ Telly Tellz激情澎湃的歌曲《fuck it Up》的基础上再创作，在泽西俱乐部的一场健身活动中，数百人留意到了《fuck it Up》的开场歌词：“No matter where you at, no matter where you from, no matter what dance you’re doing, just make sure you fuck it up to this song right here.”。Ciara也留意到了，重新制作了原曲《fuck it Up》的倒计时开头，将原曲hook(“fuck it up” 替换为“level up”)，如同在“Body Party”里采样 “My Boo”，此次采样效果也立竿见影，制作人J. R. Rotem除了在歌曲中添加了几段间歇的bridge，也把歌曲《Level Up》提升了一个高度。

Not that Ciara needs a break, judging by how she near-effortlessly keeps up with the track’s frenetic pace and with Parris Goebel and her ReQuest Dance Crew’s relentless choreography in the video. It’s also a defiant statement along the lines of “I’m Out,” with nonchalant delivery and a not-super-subtle dig at the somewhat generic, Dr. Luke-led production on Jackie: “Thank God I never settle/This beat is so much better.” Hard to argue with that.

倒不是说Ciara该歇会儿了，从她在MV视频里的表现便可看出，她不费吹灰之力地跟上了这首歌狂热的节奏，和舞者Parris Goebel和她的舞蹈团队(ReQuest Dance Crew)超强度的编舞。如同“I’m Out”里的歌词，《Level Up》也是一种挑衅性的表态，高傲冷漠，对由Dr. Luke主导的前作《Jackie》进行了不太深入有些普通的挖苦。“Thank God I never settle/This beat is so much better.”这一点很难反驳。