Just like clockwork, the new year arrives and Robert Pollard is ready to unleash another slew of releases to the faithful. With upcoming collaborations with former GBVer', Doug Gillard on the forthcoming Lifeguards LP and Mars Classroom, in an almost too good to be true line up that fetures Big Dipper's Gary Waleik, and Pell Mell's Robert Beeman, to be released this March. Not to mention the next Circus Devils or Boston Spaceships album that he'll write this weekend or next. But, first up on Pollard's 2011 docket is the release of an 18 track solo offering, Space City Kicks.
The material found on Space City Kicks treads the line between charming pop experimentations and fully realized rock anthems. From the brash punk of the albums opener, Mr. Fantastic Must Die! to the perfect power pop of Touch Me in The Right Place at The Right Time, Space City Kicks is the ideal album for those still coming down after the recent GBV reunion and proof that Bob's got plenty of tricks left in his bag. He achieves perfect balance with seemingly, off the cuff skeletal snippets and fist pump inducing pop rock, the likes of, we haven't heard since, Alien Lanes or more recently on 2006's superb,From A Compound Eye.
Once again Robert Pollard recorded the tracks at Waterloo Sound in Kent,OH with assistance from frequent collaborator, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Todd Tobias. Space City Kicks continues the tradition of Pollard solo albums by offering enough immediately satisfying tracks to hook us in on first listen, but the real pay off comes after repeated listens when the albums best moments reveal themselves. Pollard sounds as loose as we've heard him in a while especially after last years reflective and poignant, Moses on a Snail. Space City Kicks incorporates the best of Bob's post-GBV output; marrying the abrasion of Circus Devils with the big hooks of Boston Spaceships and the melancholy of quieter moments found on past solo releases. Space City Kicks is a superbly crafted pop record riddled with memorable hooks abundant melodies and to our ears the first great record of 2011.
[MP3/Stream] Robert Pollard - Touch Me in The Right Place at The Right TimePre-order Space City Kicks, released on January 25th on Guided By Voices, Inc.
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