搬運譯Pitchfork評10年代最佳單曲第200名:Avicii: “Levels” (2011)
搬運自:微信公眾號【評論搬一堆】(在原文基礎上添加了英語原文與排版調整)
原文鏈接:https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-200-best-songs-of-the-2010s/
翻譯:Ryan Xiang
校對:Whitney. L
推送:Lynn Liu


As sampled in Avicii’s “Levels,” Etta James’ relatively modest claim that “Oh, sometimes I get a good feeling” felt impossibly aspirational for a generation of entry-level millennials dumped into an indifferent economy. In 2011, good feelings were rare and expensive, but it was possible to get one for free via a sparkling EDM hook. “Levels,” with its monumental synths and jetstream?whooshes, took that potential and conquered the world with it.
In hindsight, its sheer scale still feels staggering, but there’s a sinister undertone to it. Tim Bergling, who took his own life in 2018, at age 28, got his stage name from?Avici, the hell-like realm in Buddhism where dead sinners are reborn. There is something punishing about “Levels,” which, like the office drone pushing a boulder up a mountain in its?music video, seems to climb and climb without actually going anywhere, an illusion of transcendence that’s actually just plain old limbo. Electronic pop music of the early 2010s, from “Harlem Shake” to “Turn Down for What,” was punctuated by images of people in their boring jobs and dumpy apartments exploding into uncontrollable, spasmodic dancing—half joyful release, half exorcism. “Levels” is the sound of a generation hell-bent on having a good feeling, reality be damned. –Emily Yoshida
正如被采樣于Avicii的“Levels(水平)”中的那樣,Etta James那溫柔的陳述——“哦,有時我會感覺很好”,讓深陷殘酷經(jīng)濟形勢的新千禧一代感到難以企及的渴望。2011年,盡管好的感受常常難以企及,但通過這樣激情四射的舞曲卻可能實現(xiàn)?!癓evels(水平)”以其不朽的合成音和噴射流的呼嘯聲,抓住了這一潛力并用它征服了世界。
如今看來,盡管這首歌有陰暗的隱喻,但它的影響仍讓人嘆為觀止。Tim Berling于2018年自殺,享年28歲,他的藝名來自Avici,是佛教中地獄般的國度,在這里死去的罪人獲得重生。“Levels(水平)”帶著一絲懲罰意味,就像MV中無人機推著一塊巨石上山那樣——它一直在長途跋涉,卻從未到達任何遠方,僅僅是老套的卻令人身陷幻境。20世紀10年代初的電子流行音樂,從“Harlem Shake(哈林搖)” 到“Turn Down for What(為什么拒絕)”,不時會出現(xiàn)人們在枯燥的工作和逼仄的公寓里爆發(fā)出情不自禁而又時斷時續(xù)的舞蹈,這一部分是快樂的釋放,一部分是驅趕內心的邪惡?!癓evels(水平)”是一代人追求美好、詛咒現(xiàn)實的宣言。
