REDEEM DOWNLOAD CODE

Enter the download code you received with your purchase to claim your downloads. Keep in mind many mobile devices don't have built in support for opening ZIP files; you may want to download on a computer.


LOGIN

Login with your existing account.

CREATE ACCOUNT

Create an account to purchase items.

Passwords must be at least 6 characters

King Heavy Metal

Ricked Wicky

King Heavy Metal

GBV Inc
LP $16.00

07/24/2015 655035086019 

GBVI 60 LP 


CD $12.00

07/24/2015 655035086026 

GBVI 60 CD 


MP3 $9.90

07/24/2015 655035086026 

 


FLAC $11.99

07/24/2015 655035086026 

 


King Heavy Metal, the second release from Robert Pollard’s self-described “supergroup” (tongue practically piercing his cheek with self-deprecating irony), is a hitherto undiscovered species of rainforest songbird capable of changing colors in the ultraviolet and infrared spectrums. At once prog-struck, collagist, technically impressive and melodically complex, King Heavy Metal lives up to and subverts its title over the course of its twelve songs. There’s stuff on here that wouldn’t be out of place on any post-Isolation Drills Guided By Voices album, stuff that wouldn’t be out of place on an alternate-universe mid-’70s Who album, and stuff that’s as lo-fi, booze-addled and sloppy as anything from “classic”-era GBV. 
Pollard’s determined to establish Ricked Wicky as more than just another solo or side project: it’s a proper, self-contained group with significant contributions, both instrumental and songwriting, from guitarist Nick Mitchell (long time GBV / Pollard stalwart Kevin March supplies drums). Mitchell sings lead on two songs here, both presumably written by him as well: “Imminent Fall From Grace” and “Weekend Worriers.” The latter is a kind of “A Salty Salute” update, with Pollard taking the anthemic first chorus, but Mitchell handling the rest of the vocals. Stranger, but in some ways more interesting, is Mitchell’s other contribution. “Imminent Fall From Grace” contains probably the most straightforward, earnest lyrics ever associated with a Pollard record—and yet, bizarrely, the song fits, and fits well, with the sort of no-fucks-given experimentation on display throughout King Heavy Metal. 
From the skewed-time-signature stomp (with periodic King Crimson-esque breakdowns) of “Come Into My Wigshop” to the voice-over montage intro to “Tomfoole Terrific” to the Sabbath-y riff fest (with added insane babbling chorus) of “Ogling Blarest,” the record hops from genre to genre (sometimes within the same song) with the giddy glee of a kid in a record shop. What makes King Heavy Metal different from pastiche-laden past efforts (like, say, I don’t know, Bee Thousand) is the level of technical mastery (high) and recording fidelity (high) and altered consciousness (very high) on display. Though Pollard contributes his own often-underrated guitar heroics, when Mitchell cuts loose with a solo—as he does on, for instance “Map and Key”—it’s like, “Who let Ritchie Blackmore into the studio?” The answer is probably Ritchie Blackmore let himself in the studio, because he’s Ritchie Blackmore, and has his own studio, but on “Map and Key” Mitchell’s blistering, melodic runs coil and twist around Pollard’s epically melancholic constructions with impressive brio. 
King Heavy Metal is not devoid of signature Pollard moments, like the power pop chug of the album’s opener “Jargon of Clones,” or the lo-fi balladry of “Too Strong for No One to See You,” but the emphasis here is on pushing limits. While not the weirdest record in Pollard’s discography, King Heavy Metal is a very rare bird indeed. Just listen.

Tracklist

  1. #1 Jargon Of Clones

    Listen

  2. #2 Come Into My Wig Shop

    Listen

  3. #3 Imminent Fall From Grace

    Listen

  4. #4 Too Strong For No One To See You

    Listen

  5. #5 This Has Been My Picture

    Listen

  6. #6 Ogling Blarest

    Listen

  7. #7 Tomfoole Terrific

    Listen

  8. #8 Earth Among Men

    Listen

  9. #9 Weekend Worriers

    Listen

  10. #10 Walk Through Glass

    Listen

  11. #11 I'll Let You In

    Listen

  12. #12 Map And Key

    Listen

Related Items

Ricked Wicky

Number I Can Trust
GBV Inc

Ricked Wicky

I Sell The Circus
GBV Inc

Pollard, Robert

Faulty Superheroes
GBV Inc

Guided By Voices

The Littlest League Possible
GBV Inc

Guided By Voices

Welshpool Frillies
GBV Inc

Ricked Wicky

Death Metal Kid
GBV Inc

Ricked Wicky

Tomfoole Terrific
GBV Inc

Ricked Wicky

Poor Substitute
GBV Inc

Ricked Wicky

Swimmer To A Liquid Armchair
GBV Inc

Ricked Wicky

Jargon Of Clones
GBV Inc