Fiction Man
(2004, Fading Captain Series)
SIDE B:
Pollard's fourth solo LP before the first official dissolution of Guided by Voices in 2004, Fiction Man finds Pollard in full prog-mode with this one. Produced by mainstay bud and instrumentation wizard Todd Tobias, Fiction Man feels like a pile of over produced leftovers, tailored with oddity blips and layered avant-crunch that don't quite fill out these ho-hum tracks. Half-Pollard uneven pop, half Circus Devils spill-over. The LP isn't without its bright spots, but those are more few and far between considering this was during a period that saw Pollard becoming progressively proggier and arena-force anthemic over a slew of his solo LPs to come and surrounding Guided by Voices outings (see The Pipe Dreams Of Instant Prince Whippet EP).
SIDE
A:
Run
Son Run- 3
Mid-tempo, and
uninspired opener. A potentially decent chorus, unfortunately
mucked up by Tobias
production.
Essentially, the tune
is a few rearranged Pollard ideas made into an awkward sounding
rendition of a few offerings you know you've heard before in the
Pollard playpen, but can't quite place.
I
Expect a Kill- 2
Dated, proggy programmed noises and guitar strums. Unmemorable
Pollard vocals, although the vocal effort isn't without its merits.
Oh, and more of Tobias fucking around.
Sea
of Dead- 2
Dark balladry with moody snyths, akin to East River Pipe. However,
unlike a chunk of East River Pipe classics, the song is wholly
uninspired and unmemorable.
Children
Come On- 4
Acoustically led, uplifting song with a great natural reverb on
Pollard’s voice. Lack of studio tricks, sans some harp
plucks or whatnot. Simple and quite effective, if not bordering on
some sentimental cheese.
The
Louis Armstrong of Rock And Roll-
3 Plodding
rocker with some strange sound effects, and some bullshit
synths. Luckily, Pollard’s hazy, relaxed vocals carry the song
and provide a few croons worth your while.
Losing
Usage- 2
Acoustic track with slapdashed vocals dropping in and out. Some
off-timey guitar parts drop
by for a visit but never really get comfortable to take a shit in
your bathroom. Hold on while I sip this coffee.
Built
to Improve- 1
Some potential is here waiting to break out into a decent
rock song. Instead, this takes a sharp turn into an apocalyptic, acid dirge pit surrounded by a mote moody bullshit. Most definitely music fit for a soundtrack, but this
movie sucks.
SIDE B:
Paradise
Style- 5
The Who
inspired guitar starts and stops with some jungle drumming. Excellent
vocal melodies destroy! This track serves as such a needed breath of
fresh air after some aural asphyxiations.
Conspiracy
of Owls- 3
Twisting pianos lead
into lush synth arrangements. Balladry in 4/6 that’s rather
catchy. Avant-piano-rock-ballad? Maybe. This is some of the
Pollard/Tobias solo weirdness I can hang a hat on.
It’s
Only Natural- 3
Hard rocker with big starts and stops. Lacks any great vocal
melody, and contains these
lyrics “Shit and check out the camel toe website, It's only
natural.” Catchy enough to sing along with at least, if you're not
mortified by saying those cringeworthy lyrics aloud.
Trial
of Affliction and Light Sleeping-
2
Urgent and schizophrenic. Modulated vocals in the verses jump-cut
into sci-fi start-stop choruses. Maybe this could have been cool without the studio
bullshit thrown everywhere.
Every
Word in the World- 3
Light acoustic song with
some bellowing vocal strains. Pollard's taking it in the groin and
yelling it back home for the win. What? Oh, this is pretty good stuff
too.
Night
of the Golden Underground-
3 Following
much of the feel and flow of the previous track, but with some
percussive hits thrown in for good measure. Simple, easy listening
pop song with pretty cool lyrics.
Their
Biggest Win- 4
Possibly the song most
sticking to the GBV "playbook"on the record, but the Tobias
drumming is rather rough on this without the charm. The choruses
are fairly grand, but sung with reserve, but still hooky as hell.
Unwittingly, this can sink and remain in your brain, and you’ll be
wondering what all your humming’s about later.
listened to side 1 last night, side 2 this morning. can't really get into it. I think We All Got out of the Army is much better.
ReplyDeleteI seldom listen to this album. listening to it right now. "I expect a kill" has its moments, I guess. It's been lousy weather lately, and my wife's watching a tv show she likes, so I've been spending a lot of time in my den listening to records. I'm trying to play records that fall into the category of, "I've owned this for years, maybe it's time to figure out once and for all if i actually like it."
ReplyDeleteYour comment on "Built to improve" is right on.
ReplyDeleteSomething interesting seems to be going on with "Trial of Affliction..."
ReplyDeletewhat was he going for with this record? there's no full-barrelled rock and roll like on Choreographed Man of War. there's no catchy pop like on Half Smiles of the Decomposed. It doesn't sound like whatever the hell he was doing with the circus devils. Trying to stretch out, I guess. This album's still not a favorite of mine, but it doesn't bore me.
This is a hard one for me. It definitely fails as an album, but it has such great songs. Side B is much better than Side A, which is something quite unique in Pollard's catalogue. I absolutely love "Trials" and the last four tracks make one of my all-time favourite endings of anything Pollard touched so far.
ReplyDeleteI agree that this album is far from great but, having said that, I prefer it to a lot of the formulaic over-produced stuff Pollard and Tobias would start churning out in the years to follow. Anyway, "Every Word in the World" and "Night of the Golden Underground" are beautiful.
ReplyDelete"conspiracy of owls" is good
ReplyDelete