Artist bio

See also: Airport 5, Guided By Voices, Lifeguards

Robert Pollard is principally known as the frontman and leader of indie rock juggernaut Guided By Voices. But his recording career extends beyond GBV, with a series of albums released eponymously and pseudonomysly fulfilling his extracurricular creative urge.

Pollard formed GBV in 1985, but it wasn't until 1996 when he took the step beyond with the Matador release of Not In My Airforce, accompanied on the same day by a solo album from fellow GBV songwriter Tobin Sprout. The aquatic-themed Waved Out followed in 1998, but it wasn't until the following year's Kid Marine when Pollard decided to subtitle it "No. 1 in the Fading Captain Series." And the rest was history.

If you dozed through your history classes, though, the short story is that Pollard has exploited the Fading Captain moniker in the years since, often releasing three or four albums a year -- plus assorted compilations -- on local Dayton, Ohio label Rockathon. The man is a rock and roll genius, although subpar songs are a matter of course. It's hard to sum his work up in a few scant paragraphs, so instead I offer a Fading Captain salute: Bottoms Up, You Fantastic Bastard!

Albums by this artist

From A Compound Eye (2006)

Zoom 7" (2005)

Relaxation of the Asshole (2005)

Music For Bubble EP (2005)

Motel of Fools (2003)

Choreographed Man Of War (2001)

Speak Kindly Of Your Local Volunteer Fire Department (Recommended) (1999)

Kid Marine (1999)

Waved Out (1998)

Not In My Airforce (1996)

Robert Pollard and his Soft Rock Renegades

Choreographed Man Of War

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» TROY CARPENTER | CO-DIRECTOR

Robert Pollard Choreographed Man Of War Rockathon, 2001 RiYL: Bob Pollard and his many faces.

Bob Pollard has become somewhat of a one-man indie Wu-Tang Clan. He releases albums with his main squeeze Guided By Voices the same way a regular, hard-working bandleader would. But in between, he always finds time to get together with friends of various stripes and forge new musical relationships (usually over light beer, the Shaolin equivalent being honey-dipped blunts) for various side-projects or "solo" albums.

Hence the Fading Captain Series, the 14th installment of which (Choreographed Man Of War by Robert Pollard and his Soft Rock Renegades) is filling up the room as I write this. Pollard has the ultimate setup for a prolific soul such as his -- he gets to record albums with whatever combination of pals interests him at the moment and release them without great bombast through his own Rockathon Records. And yes, all these albums are different -- each spiced with healthy dollops of classic Pollard magic, for sure -- but somehow each having its own distinct personality.

A look at the artwork for Choreographed Man Of War hints at the nature of the music this installment contains: a simple, sloppy collage, Pollard looking like he's about to throw up, sitting cross-legged next to a haggard Jim MacPherson, bassist Greg Demos holding forth with Bud bottle in hand. And the image holds, to an extent, given the album's rough production -- the music actually sounds like it was created by these three under such conditions. But Man Of War's songs are strong, and not easily forgotten.

The high-octane live favorite "I Drove A Tank" kicks things off, only to be bested by the triumvirate that follows. "She Saw The Shadow" is a concise, catchy number showcasing an entrancing minor-key vocal hook, but "Edison's Memos" is the most fully developed song on the album, moving through three full verses and a bridge and almost fading out completely before coming back with a kicking rawk coda. "7th Level Shutdown" is Man Of War's "The Brides Have Hit Glass," a confessional ballad in which Pollard laments being stuck in a rut, the shot at renewal always just out of reach: "another day gone / another chance rolling over / another night I can't remember..."

The album's late-inning punch of "Citizen Fighter" and "Kickboxer Lightning" (both clocking in at 2.24) ride staccato Greg Demos guitar hooks and bubbling basslines. The power trio Renegades likely does both more justice than the Isolation Drills/Schnapf treatment would have. Then the pseudo overture "Bally Hoo" revisits a number of the Man Of War's workman riffs before making way for epic closer "Instrument Beetle."

How does he do it? The man simply produces more quality rock material than almost anyone out there. Like the Wu's plentiful bounty, some of the Fading Captain Series is decidedly subpar. But Pollard has an impressive track record nonetheless. It may seem as if the man releases everything he writes orrecords, but as last year's 4-CD Suitcase project proved, the truth is far more ridiculous -- thousands of original compositions have fallen by the wayside over the years. The man defines music as a career -- from all outward appearances, he lives for writing songs and making albums. It's in his bones.

And luckily for the rest of us, those rock-infused bones have produced yet another winning record in Choreographed Man Of War.

TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.