Robert Pollard is as well-known for the length of his career as the brevity of his songs. The former leader of Guided By Voices has recorded over 40 albums in 25 years, but crucially, most of these sported at least 20 tracks. The band’s high point, ‘Alien Lanes’, had 28 tunes, several under 30 seconds, and nothing conforming with the traditional three minute template for a pop song. Despite that, even the shortest of his songs is guaranteed to come with a whistleable hook.
Pollard, now solo, hasn’t quite sold out, but several of the tracks here are prog rock epics by comparison. The extended pop jangle of ‘What A Man’ could be a hit in anyone’s language, but it’s the woozy 90 second sprawl of ‘The Real Wilderness’ that shows where Pollard’s real talents lie.
(This review originally appeared in the Burnley Express)