(Guided By Voices Inc)

www.robertpollard.net

To be honest, if you own less than ten Guided By Voices (or GBV-related) albums, there's no need to start or continue building here; Bob Pollard's bi-annual solo releases of late are pretty much completists-and-mega-fans-only affairs. And completists and mega fans will rejoice: The Crawling Distance boasts "The Butler Stands For All of Us," a chiming guitar and bounce-along popper that's one of Pollard's finest post-GBV songs, maybe up there with any Under The Bushes, Under The Stars classic (don't have that album? get it instead!).

Choppier than last year's surprisingly consistent Robert Pollard Is Off To Business, the beauty is in the little things. "Faking My Harlequin" finishes strong with a churning garage-rock outro, pounding it out on floor toms, and "Cave Zone" recovers with a pint-raising false ending. It's evident that Pollard's aware that his cult audience will keep his indulgences afloat. That he still cranks out decent British Invasion-inspired drink-along anthems, so true to his roots, is more than any of us could hope for. Just no more stand-up albums, please.

Standout Tracks: "The Butler Stands For All of Us," "It's Easy" ZACHARY BLOOM