Clouds Forming Crowns — Clouds Forming Crowns

Mimicking the humble four-track beginnings of now-defunct Guided By Voices, former GBV members Todd and Tim Tobias patch together a fine lo-fi pop-rock debut that would make Poppa Pollard proud. The Tobias’ haven’t ripped off his playbook though, even if "Accidents Of Air" leads off the album with an unmistakable Beatles-via-Bob veneration. The bulk of their music feels like a cross-pollination of early ‘90s DIY production, classic rock signatures and Soft Boy Robyn Hitchcock’s lyrical vagaries. Of course, GBV flirted with all these at various stages, but the Tobias brothers can say they’re the first of the gang to make them gel.

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