(By 袁志聪)《Too True》分别在纽约的公寓和好莱坞的两个地方录制完成，并由Richard Gottehrer（Blondie, the Go-Go’s）和Raveonettes乐团的Sune Rose Wagner担任制作人。关于新专辑，乐团女主唱及词曲创作人Dee Dee解释这张新专辑的灵感是来自于Nick Cave在1996年写信给MTV台，表示他拒绝被MTV台提名入围奖项。 　　 　　Dum Dum Girls：黑色魅惑 　　 　　来自美国加州洛杉矶的Dum Dum Girls在这个1月底出版其第三张专辑《Too True》，即使大家都知道她们是由女创作歌手Dee Dee Penny发起与领军的独立摇滚乐队，然而看到唱片封面是摆出意态撩人模样的Dee Dee、主打单曲〈Lost Boys And Girls Club〉跟H&M Life合作的音乐录像裡只见她一人与众妖女型男演出，连这次发佈的宣传照片也只有她的独照。也许你会不禁问道：Dum Dum Girls不是四人全女班乐团吗？其余三位女生去了哪里？ 　　 　　我就是抱着这个疑惑，而在YouTube搜寻一下Dum Dum Girls近期的现场演出片段，看到她们岂止四位女生上阵(其他三位女成员看来阵容没改变)，还要多加一位男结他手协力。只是今次Dum Dum Girls在形象上乃有意把焦点集中回近年已移居纽约市的灵魂人物Dee Dee身上——但，我还是喜欢看到Dee Dee与Jules、Malia和Sandy一行四位女将站出来的队型吧。 　　 　　《Too True》是Dum Dum Girls继前作《Only in Dreams》后三年来的全新专辑，期间她们在2012年9月发表了一张《End of Daze》EP。在《End of Daze》出版前那个夏天，Dee Dee已开始在纽约市的寓所闭门造车为新专辑写歌，同年12月她找来合作无间的老牌监製Richard Gottehrer(Blondie / The Go-Go's)及丹麦独立摇滚乐队The Raveonettes的Sune Rose Wagner担任监製下于荷里活为专辑进行录音，可是那时Dee Dee的嗓音却唱坏了，而令到灌唱部分停工。最后，Dee Dee就在她的细小睡房录音室、用她的私家咪高峰完成了专辑的灌唱工作，也是何解《Too True》要较迟面世。 　　 　　「停工」那段日子，成为Dee Dee作沉淀的良机，看了很多书。所以我们能察觉到Dee Dee在《Too True》裡的演绎，都比以往为多了一份内敛而冷豔的情感。有别于2010年首张专辑《I Will Be》的初生之犊Lo-Fi独立流行乐声音，以及《Only in Dreams》的摇滚取向，今次她们试图捕捉一种迷惑幽暗氛围，呈现出80年代Post-Punk的黑暗摇滚美学——当然那是经过了修饰的Post-Punk。所以今次Dum Dum Girls带来的声音会叫人联想到Siouxsie & The Banshees，而多于Patti Smith。 　　 　　专辑开场曲〈Cult of Love〉宛如The Cure的浪漫化Gothic流行乐遇上Ladytron的Synth-Pop，先行单曲〈Lost Boys And Girls Club〉勾勒出是80年代Post-Punk之音的幽幽魅惑感觉，向19世纪法国诗人阿瑟•兰波(Arthur Rimbaud)致敬的〈Rimbaud Eyes〉是有着Post-Punk之扑朔迷离的新浪潮摇滚，〈Evil Blooms〉不难令人联想起Echo & The Bunnymen的明快Post-Punk歌曲，〈Under The Hands〉更被Uncut的碟评形容为有如Echo & The Bunnymen为Madonna伴奏，还有凄美空灵的Dream-Pop Ballad曲目〈Trouble Is My Name〉。 　　 　　如沐春风的〈In The Wake of You〉来得甚有80’s Pop的情味，而〈Are You OK〉这首中板Ballad亦较接近《Only in Dreams》时的正路曲风。 　　 　　Making good on their promise to fans, indie pop outfit Dum Dum Girls have announced details for their latest LP. 　　 　　The new LP follows their 2012 End of Daze EP, and is called Too True. The album was produced with Blondie producer Richard Gottehrer and the Raveonettes Sune Rose Wagner. 　　 　　In a press release, frontwoman Dee Dee shared much about her writing process. "Do you hear Suede? Siouxie? Cold-wave Patti? Madonna? Cure? Velvet and Paisley Undergrounds? Stone Roses? Cuz I did," she said of Too True. 　　 　　Those werent the only names she dropped, however. Discussing the downtime she had after experiencing some vocal troubles, she offered the following statement: 　　 　　Truly one of those disguised blessings — the extra time was a gift. What initially felt like a retreat became a reawakening. These songs werent done at all! And so I worshipped at the tall pile of books Id bought in Los Angeles, on topics and imagery Id been consumed by and words that had resonated so deeply with me they felt like artistic collaborators: Rainer Maria Rilke, Anaïs Nin, Arthur Rimbaud, Paul Verlaine, Charles Baudelaire, Sylvia Plath; the punk poet singers Patti Smith and Lou Reed (who, like many I consider to be my spiritual parents); and finally, an admittedly unhealthy obsession with the Surrealists manifesto of desire. 　　 　　Too True will be available on January 28 via Sub Pop. A video for album track "Lost Boys and Girls Club," which doubles as an H&M ad, can be seen below.