Reviewed :: Lifeguards - Waving at the Astronauts

Q: Can someone with a nom de plume of Echos Myron contribute a negative review of a Robert Pollard project for a blog called The Ash Gray Proclamation?

Dropping today (February 15th),via Serious Business Records/Ernest Jennings Recording Co. Lifeguards Waving at the Astronauts is the second Robert Pollard album of 2011, and again pairs Pollard with ex-Cobra Verde, ex-Guided by Voices 2.0 guitarist Doug Gillard. While we assume Pollard is good for 3 or 4 more releases this year, (Mars Classroom, his highly anticipated collaboration with ex-Volcano Suns and Big Dipper ax man Gary Waleik is due in March) Pollard is off to a great start in twenty-eleven with January’s excellent solo release Space City Kicks, and this thoroughly rewarding merger of Prog and Pop by Lifegards. Pollard and Gillard have paired up before, on 1999’s magnificent Speak Kindly of Your Volunteer Fire Department and again on 2003’s solid Mist King Urth. While Speak Kindly, arguably one of the best Robert Pollard records of the post classic lineup GBV cannon, sounded more like a Pollard solo record, Astronauts sounds like more of a collaboration record in the vain of his work released under Airport 5 with long time foil Tobin Sprout and Go Back Snowball, his collab with Superchunk’s Mac McCaughan. Like those records, Astronauts is the product of Pollard (deftly in this case) applying lyrics and melodies to music already recorded, at least in demo-form, by Gillard. What separates this record from its piece-meal predecessors is that on Astronauts, the listener can hear Pollard apply his tremendous gift for melody and uncanny ability to write hooks –to fairly straightforward guitar riffs.

While nowhere on Astronauts does Gillard deliver Pollard a pure meatball like Pop Zeus, although the stellar lead track Paradise Is Not So Bad comes pretty close. Uncle Bob hits Gillard’s compositions to all fields with power, knocking (Doing The)Math,You’re Gonna Need A Mountain, andThey Called Him So Much right out of the ballpark. While many of these tracks are more rhythmic than melodic, and fairly standard-rock instrumental tracks, the fact that Pollard transforms the other 6 compositions into memorable, hum-able pop songs, is a testament to his unparalleled pop chops, and what makes Waving at the Astronauts such a enjoyable listen.

~Echos Myron

LIFEGUARDS - Paradise Is Not So Bad by seriousbusiness

Reviewed :: Robert Pollard - Space City Kicks

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 Time

Pre-order Space City Kicks, released on January 25th on Guided By Voices, Inc.

This Weeks Short Bursts::
Lifeguards, Telekinesis, & Hallelujah The Hills

With two solo releases and a Circus Devils album already issued this year and an upcoming release from Boston Spaceships due next week, one things clear, the reunion of the Guided by Voices' classic line up has not altered Bob Pollard's hyper prolific release schedule. Come February Pollard will release Waving At The Astronauts with Lifeguards, a collaboration with former (late era) GBV guitarist Doug Gillard. We'll get our first listen to the forthcoming album when Serious Business Records releases the Product Head 7" b/w Naught Windsor on October 5th. Waving At Astronauts is the follow up to Lifeguards debut LP, Mist King Urth.

[MP3/Stream] Circus Devils - Bam Bam Bam from Mother Skinny

Telekinesis a.k.a Micheal Benjamin Lerner has teamed up with Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin for a 15 city tour that kicked off this week at Firebird in St. Louis and makes a stop in the Boston area next Tuesday at TT The Bears. Lerners' Telekinesis' will come armed with songs off the bands excellent 2009 debut as well as the just issued Parallel Seismic Conspiracies EP. The new 5 song EP will be officially released on October 26, however the digital version is on sale now at the bands label, Merge Records. The EP compiles the Dirty Thing 7" as well as a couple of covers, including a damn fine version of GBV's Game of Pricks.

[Video] Telekinesis - Dirty Thing

Boston's indie pop giants, Hallelujah The Hills premiered a new video for Put The Gurus in Charge earlier this week which led to us revisiting their ace sophomore release, Colonial Drones. It's no wonder it placed so high on our year end list. The band have announced a fall tour with two local dates that bookend the upcoming trek, including an appearance at this years Allston Village Street Fair. Also in a message posted last month Hallelujah The Hills lynchpin, Ryan Walsh asked bands to send him instrumental tracks that he can provide lyrics, melodies, and vocals for. The goal being a free download album to be posted at the bands site, sometime in the not too distant future. More information on the experimental recording project can be had at the bands site.

Update- 4:15 PM: Hallelujah The Hills will play a free show tonight at The Distillery Gallery in South Boston.

HTH Live Dates:
September 12, 2010 Allston, MA Allston Village Street Fair
September 16, 2010 New Haven, CT Lilly's Pad
September 17, 2010 New York, NY The Mercury Lounge
September 18, 2010 Charlottesville, VA Tea Bazaar
September 19, 2010 Philadelphia, PA The M Room
October 14, 2010 Danbury, CT Cousin Larry's
October 15, 2010 Rochester, NY The Bug Jar
October 16, 2010 Youngstown, OH Lemon Grove Cafe
October 17, 2010 Pittsburgh, PA Garfield Art Works
October 30, 2010 Allston, MA Great Scott