keepers-3
keeper avg .115
Being just one of the many things Robert Pollard craps out any given year, there are the expected hits and a lot of filler. After a couple sketches smooshed together, "Juggernaut Vs. Monolith"**** blasts out like the best on Mag Earwig, and "Tourist UFO"**** meanders around a bit before its towering "Metal Mothers"-like coda. As usual, many of the tracks accurately emulate The Who, especially "Minefield Searcher", "Tabby And Lucy", "I Took On The London Guys", "You In My Prayer", the brass honks in "German Field Of Shadows" and the end of the title song "Let It Beard", but some tracks also borrow from The Beatles, or at least John Lennon on piano-driven "Bad Whiskey", and the White Album on "Let More Light In The House". There are plenty of vocal hooks, like the 70's pop "that's the woman!" calls in "Chevy Marigold", though when they make no sense, like "make a record for lo-life, come on make a record with me", "earmarked for collision - collision - collision", "I'll make it strong for you", and "you in my prayer", the earworm they plant is an annoying liability for otherwise mediocre songs.
And there are a few enjoyable song sketches reminiscent of the lo-fi days, like the haunting keyboard on "A Hair In Every Square Inch Of The House", "Toppings Take The Cake", and "Pincushion". Coming near the end, "The Vicelords"**** is a solid rocker, and then there is "Speed Bumps" - hilarious lines like "I'm talking on my phone, you must be stoned" are crammed into melodies so haphazard they must be ad-libbed. It's funny though eventually its ridiculously complex arrangement gets in the way of the song. Ditto closer "Inspiration Points" - ambitious, but in over 5 minutes (an epic for Pollard) little that is memorable.
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