Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 06/12/2007
Run Time: 34:16
Although
Robert Pollard (
Guided by Voices, etc., etc.) rarely displays a clear comical side in his musical endeavors (though as of 2007 he had released two albums of his hysterical drunken stage banter), his sense of humor is evident on
Bad Football, the second alliance with
Chris Slusarenko (also of the departed
GBV). There are numerous self-referential and self-deprecating lyrics here, including "I got a fake British accent" from the catchy
"Pretty Not Bad" (which contains this amusing backhanded complement of a chorus: "I've got a girl and I like her/'Cus she's pretty not bad") and the uproarious faux-fitness anthem
"Kicks at the Gym." Even the throwaway
"The Jester of Helpmeat" is more entertaining in this context.
Pollard is also more visibly affectionate, such as on the heartfelt
"I Can See My Dog" and the life-affirming
"Father's Favorite Temperature." His critical contempt of "new
rock" is obvious on those
comedy records, and here he makes that disdain apparent in the sardonic ode
"Music for Us." For those looking for a nod to his past, there are a couple of tunes that resemble mid-period
GBV, a case in point being the fist-pumping finale,
"My Will," which could be an
Alien Lanes outtake. The first few post-
Guided by Voices releases found
Pollard indulging in one of his favorite genres,
prog rock, but there's a whole lot more
psych here, with
Slusarenko's steady foundation of
post-punk and
psychedelic indie rock paving the way for
Pollard's most rocking album since
Isolation Drills (2001). The former
GBV principal is more flippant than usual here (though his prose can still be mysterious and there are a couple of references to suicide), contributing to a record that is both laid-back and exciting while somehow remaining consistent throughout.
~Bart Bealmear, All Music Guide
;)
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