Detail of The Kennel Maid by Fred Whiting, 1924
Another month, another Robert Pollard album. 2009 has already seen the release of The Crawling Distance and The Planets Are Blasted, but the Dayton-based songwriter's discography is scheduled to grow by at least three more major releases before year's end. Since putting Guided By Voices to bed, Pollard's work has become increasingly compartmentalized as he develops different projects as outlets for different musical impulses. Circus Devils is an ambitious music project involving Pollard and the Tobias brothers, former GBV bassist Tim and former GBV producer Todd. Occupying a space I call circus-horror-prog, Circus Devils music has always been experimental and non-linear, using scorching guitars, weird sounds, and ominous Lynchian keyboards. Pollard then adds melodies to these skewed compositions, typically taking a less "pop" approach than his usual hooky melodic choices.
I stopped following the Circus Devils releases a while ago - I found the debut Ringworm Interiors borderline unlistenable and, although I liked the more song-oriented sequel The Howard Pig Memorial, some of the sonic choices didn't work for me. Four Circus Devils releases have been issued since then - why is album #7 the one that reawakened my interest in Circus Devils? The Devils decided to try something new - early news of their 2009 concept album Gringo made me curious. An acoustic-guitar-based record of summery pop songs? From Circus Devils? I would never have believed it if they hadn't released "Every Moment Flame On" as a preview track. With a pop-and-clatter percussion line and picked acoustic guitar, it's one of the poppiest things Pollard has released in recent memory.
So I decided to give Circus Devils another chance. And Gringo is pretty much what I hoped it would be - the Circus Devils' idea of a summery pop record. The Twin-Peaks spooky keyboards and weird found sounds are still there, and the songs still have names like "Monkey Head" and "Letters From a Witch", but it's a gentler kind of odd. It's easily the most appealing thing they've done for fans on the "pop" end of the Pollard-fan spectrum, with full-on pop songs like "Every Moment Flame On", "Easy Baby", and "In Your Hour of Rescue". Gringo also has several excellent acoustic ballads that maintain the Circus Devils vibe and a couple really out-there tracks like "Ants" that throw you back in the deep end of the Circus Devils pool (with a chorus of "ANTS! ANTS! ANTS! ANTS!")
It's good to see that, at this point in his solo career, the Pollard's compartmentalization is breaking down a little in favor of some good cross-pollination. His eclectic tastes and encyclopedic knowledge of rock history are what drew many fans to his work in the first place. Gringo is supposed to be a set of songs about an actual dude named Gringo, but I haven't really figured out how his story goes yet. Not that it matters - the important thing is that Gringo is a more laid-back and accessible guy than previous Circus Devils characters like Harold Pig and Sgt. Disco, and his story is fun to listen to. I'll be listening to it at least until June, when Pollard's next project, Cosmos (with Richard Davies), releases its debut album.
"Every Moment Flame On" by Circus Devils
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