This solo album by the ridiculously prolific former Guided by Voices leader, with help from instrumental accomplice Todd Tobias, features another ten songs of standard Pollard-isms — vaguely British, Robyn Hitchcockesque vocals warped by reverb and Echoplex mazes; surrealistic, first-thought-next-thought lyrics; sudden loud crunches of lo-fi guitar; and melodies that soar but never quite achieve the permanence of his best work. One notable change: He’s actually easing up and expanding some songs past the three-and even four-minute mark. Dare we call him a balladeer?
Listen: “Red Cross Vegas Night” (DOWNLOAD MP3)