Boston Spaceships
Brown Submarine
(Guided By Voices, Inc., 2008)

Is there anyone other than Robert Pollard that can get away with naming his new band the Boston Spaceships, and then naming that band’s debut album Brown Submarine? That’s BS, by BS, if you aren’t used to sophomoric thinking. The Boston Spaceships website even goes so far as to hazard the pun, “Download Some BS,” in reference to a rather appropriate wallpaper image of the band striking a pose outside of a liquor store. (For those not versed in Pollard’s boozy stage antics, check out his live comedy album, Relaxation of the Asshole.)

Humor often works its way into Pollard’s projects, and the Boston Spaceships are no different. There’s even an inherent joke lurking in the band’s name. They are a band of indie vets named after the bubble-domed, guitar-shaped spacecraft motif of corporate arena-rock band, Boston. As for the title of their debut, the metaphorical value of Brown Submarine need not be explained in detail. Although, I might mention that my inner teenager blew Miller Lite out his nose once he gave it a second thought.

Scatology and sophomoric humor aside, Brown Submarine is a really good album. Driven primarily by Pollard’s melodies and catchy guitar riffs, the highlights of Brown Submarine are generally its more boisterous moments, such as the sex-and-drugs album opener “Winston’s Atomic Bird” and the sweetly addictive pop gem, “You Satisfy Me.” One low-key exception is the title track, whose moody strings and down-strummed acoustic guitar create a surreal, spooky realm where the crew of the submarine eats “Nutella and toast” among “the old men in boats… the ghosts of the sea.”

It’s no secret that Pollard loves the Who, and by the sound of things, it’s safe to say that collaborators Chris Slusarenko (Guided By Voices) and John Moen (the Decemberists) share that love. It works often, but not always. While “Ate It Twice” pays homage well, allowing for a progressive rock bridge built on a solid foundation of punchy rock rhythm, “Psych Threat” eventually gets lost in its excess. Similarly, Brown Submarine appears to lose momentum towards the end, with the exception of the album-closing “Go for the Exit.”

But that doesn’t mean the jokes let up. One of the best lines on the album comes from one of its weaker songs, the whiny “Soggy Beavers”, in which Pollard chides, almost teasingly, “What serves your mother serves her ri-i-i-i-ght.” By and large, the humor is an aesthetic garnish, not the main course. Brown Submarine may be wrapped in a litany of potty jokes, but that doesn’t stop it from being a resplendent pop album.

Listen: Various Tracks [at myspace.com]

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