Break Out (Covered by Side Steps)

Break Out (Covered by Side Steps)
さて、そろそろお口直しに。Side Stepsではちょっとシャレ、いやアイロニーっぽくコピー曲をアンコールで演奏する時が時々あります。いずれもフュージョンのコテコテな有名曲になりますが、過去から順にDOMINO LINE (CASIOPEA)、OSHI-TAO-SHITAI (角松敏生)、Japanese Soul Brothers (The Square)、そして「Citiy Gate～Rumble (Chick Corea Elektric Band)」… そして今回はDIMENSION「Break Out」です。演奏はこれまでの「Go Together」と同じ、1997年11月30日の吉祥寺シルバーエレファントでのライブ映像です。音声はマイク録音のためローが収録されておらず、悪しからずご容赦ください。当方は当時、日本のバンドへの興味がまったく消失していた時期にて、DIMENSIONといえばROLAND(BOSS)の4つボタンのコーラスエフェクト(正確にはDIMENSION D)ぐらいしか思い浮かばなかったのですが、これをアンコールで演ると聴いて初めて聴いたのでありました。そのためワタクシは本番中も必死で譜面を追っております。アンコール演奏前のMCで田村リーダー曰く「この前、DIMENSIONのライブを聞きに行ったとき、この曲は”まいう～”(ウマいの逆)と曲名紹介されていて…自分達で(ウマいって)言っちゃう？という感じ」と、メンバーにプレッシャーをかけつつもお客さまの期待値も思いっきり上げているのですが…。この曲は16分ウラのキメが多様されているため、タイム感が合わないと思わずアタマとか8分ウラになって異様にカッコ悪くなる仕組みになっており、失敗しようものなら「アソコのキメ、思いっきりアタマになっていたよね（笑」と一生語り草になりそうです(我が大学サークルは大抵こういう話題で盛り上がるのが常でした…)が、これまたホンモノより速いテンポで弾き倒しています。DIMENSIONと言えばサックスですが、SSには当然サックスがいないのでキーボードのEWIで代用しており、映像をみてもキーボード伊東さんは大変忙しそう。府川さんもいつもより明確に16分を意識して刻んでいるようにも。果たしてホンモノ並みの”まいう～”な内容かどうか、賢明なる視聴者の皆さまにご判断を委ねます。

Break Out (Covered by Side Steps)
Now, for a little palate cleanser. Side Steps occasionally performs cover songs as encores, often with a bit of a joke or irony. These are always famous fusion tracks. In the past, we've covered "DOMINO LINE" (CASIOPEA), "OSHI-TAO-SHITAI" (Toshiki Kadomatsu), "Japanese Soul Brothers" (The SQUARE), and "City Gate ~ Rumble" (Chick Corea Elektric Band). This time, we’re performing "Break Out" by DIMENSION. This performance, like our previous "Go Together," is from our live show at Kichijoji Silver Elephant on November 30, 1997. The audio was recorded via a microphone, so the low end is not captured well; please forgive us for that. At that time, I had completely lost interest in Japanese bands, and the only thing that came to mind when I heard DIMENSION was the four-button chorus effect from ROLAND (BOSS), specifically the DIMENSION D. Hearing we were going to cover this song for the encore was my first time listening to it, so during the performance, I was desperately trying to follow the sheet music. Before the encore, leader Tamura said during the MC, "When I went to a DIMENSION live show, they introduced this song as 'maiu~' (meaning 'delicious,' but with a twist) and wondered if they were praising themselves," raising the expectations of the audience while putting pressure on the band members. This song is full of syncopated 16th notes, and if the timing is off, it ends up sounding awkward, like hitting the downbeat or the eighth note offbeat, leading to lifelong tales of "Remember that time you completely missed the syncopation?" (These kinds of stories were a staple in our university circle...). We played it at a faster tempo than the original. DIMENSION is known for its saxophone, but since SS doesn’t have a saxophonist, Itoh on the keyboard substituted with an EWI. From the video, you can see how busy Itoh was. Fukawa also seemed to be clearly emphasizing the 16th notes more than usual. Whether our performance was as "maiu~" as the original, we leave to the wise judgment of our viewers.