Guided By Voices - Half Smiles Of The Decomposed

Half Smiles Of The Decomposed

Matador

Joel McConvey (CHARTattack)

08/24/2004 1:38pm

He could probably go on forever (and might still as a solo artist), but the venerable, wily Robert Pollard has decided to close the book on his iconic indie juggernaut, Guided By Voices. A coherent, grandiose statement of farewell would be out of character, so instead, GBV’s swan song is more of what Pollard’s given us for the past 20 or so years — a simple collection of jovial, catchy pop songs. As is the case with every GBV release, there are hits and misses, but here, the former outweigh the latter by half. "Window Of My World" is as fine a proof as any of Pollard’s uncanny talent for making a sweet, simple melody sound revelatory and "Asphyxiated Circle" recalls the melancholic sweep of "Echos Myron." Rarely perfect and always contentious, Pollard may yet be recognized as the Bob Dylan of the late 20th century. Half Smiles Of The Decomposed is a spry, energetic reminder of why he should be.