搬運自：微信公眾號【評論搬一堆】（在原文基礎(chǔ)上添加了英語原文與排版調(diào)整）

翻譯：Peter D

審譯：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的回歸，她們徹底突破了自己；沒人能猜到下一次她們還能玩出什么新花樣。這支鄉(xiāng)村三人組合在她們最近的一張專輯，也就是發(fā)行于2006年的《Taking the Long Way（漫漫長路）》中寫下了被自己所在的這一行業(yè)所激勵鞭策的故事，當(dāng)大多數(shù)達到了她們這樣的高度的樂隊都在尋求職業(yè)的平衡和穩(wěn)定時，她們卻面對著種種的不確定性。“They say time heals everything,（他們都說時間會撫平一切傷痛，）” Natalie Maines在獲得了巨大成功的單曲“Not Ready to Make Nice（決不妥協(xié)）”中如是唱道，“but I’m still waiting.（但我還依然在苦苦等待。）”她們還將繼續(xù)等待：在結(jié)束了上面這張專輯的巡演后，她們進行了長達十余年的休整，沒有一起發(fā)行任何新作；但在這段日子里，她們的影響力卻日漸凸顯出來，她們奮起反抗這整個排斥女性的行業(yè)的行為更是為新一代唱作人們所呼應(yīng)。

“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.

“我們的上一張專輯是我們最私人化、最具自傳性質(zhì)的一張專輯，” Maines曾在2019年這么說過。“而這一個將會是它的10倍。”她所說的正是這首“Gaslighter（煤氣燈）”，這是在人們經(jīng)歷了漫長的等待之后組合發(fā)行的回歸首單，由Jack Antonoff聯(lián)合制作。這首新專輯的同名曲目和她們以往最好的那些歌曲，比如“Goodbye Earl（再見了Earl）”以及“Truth No. 2（第二號真相）”一樣，通過把矛頭對準(zhǔn)某一個人，直擊事情的核心。歌曲中提到的被違背的誓言、好萊塢的生活都暗示著Maines是在講述她最近和演員丈夫婚姻的破裂，但其更重要的目的依然是與從始至終推動著組合創(chuàng)作的信念保持著一致。Maines在每段副歌的最后都會總結(jié)：“You liar.（你這個大騙子。）”在她們的世界里，這就是最嚴(yán)厲的控告。

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”用輕快的節(jié)奏和朗朗上口的副歌，把他們早期專輯中開闊的樂觀主義和《Taking the Long Way》中更犀利的power-pop風(fēng)格融合在了一起。除了她們的和聲——依舊那么閃閃發(fā)光、毫無瑕疵，緊密的配合讓她們的聲音就好像同一件樂器上不同的弦——班卓琴手Emily Strayer和小提琴手Martie Maguire也用非常巧妙的方式配合著Maines，把挑釁的主歌和副歌中振奮人心的呼喊緊密銜接在一起。歌曲的編排非常緊湊，組合標(biāo)志性的聲音也是那么的悅耳和熟悉，以至于歌曲中爭取權(quán)利的信息能同時表現(xiàn)得令人歡欣雀躍，又輕蔑高傲。清風(fēng)般的交織情感可能某種程度上削弱了標(biāo)題本身更深層次的隱喻，但它依舊有力地傳達了訊息。Dixie Chicks清楚地知道歷史會銘記她們之前所做的斗爭。因此現(xiàn)在她們只是自由地為自己創(chuàng)作，而無需回答任何人。