Artist bio

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

Not In My Airforce

» TROY CARPENTER | CO-DIRECTOR

Robert Pollard

Not In My Airforce

Matador, 1996

RiYL: Sebadoh, The Soft Boys, Wire

Robert Pollard's first solo album, Not In My Airforce was the first project to differentiate between his main song vehicle, Guided By Voices, and any other output by the Dayton, Ohio, rocksmith.

At the time of its release (Carnival Boy, a solo album by former GBV cohort Tobin Sprout, streeted on the same day), most decried the record's credits by saying there wasn't much difference between a Pollard "solo" album which featured contributions from his GBV bandmates and a bona fide GBV outing. In retrospect, however, the fallacy of this thought pattern has become evident.

Guided By Voices, at least since its coming-out era in the early '90s (Propeller-Bee Thousand), has been on a steady evolutionary track. While not decreasing the group's astounding level of productivity, GBV has consistently cleaned up its production while filling out songs' construction and generally heading toward full-on rock glory a la this year's barnburner Isolation Drills.

Meanwhile, Pollard himself has engaged in a number of various side projects (since his third solo record, Kid Marine, most of these have come under the guise of the Fading Captain Series) that really don't follow any given track besides the whim of their creators.

Not In My Airforce, for one, was having none of the clarity or coherence of all subsequent GBV recordings. Sure, there are full fledged tunes on here, like opener "Maggie Turns To Flies," the evocative mid-tempo "Girl Named Captain" and the addictive anthem "Psychic Pilot Clocks Out." But a good portion of the record is what most self-respecting music listeners would call "toss-aways" ("One Clear Minute," "John Strange School," "Prom Is Coming") and some that seem to have been picked for inclusion on not much more merit than their titles ("Double Standards Inc.," "King Of Arthur Avenue").

Still, in that inimitable way of Pollard's, Not In My Airforce rises above its sludgy production and questionable song selection to actually be a worthy (dare i say 'essential'? probably not.) addition to the extensive Pollard catalog. It's an interesting, if not quite bold, statement that he makes to differentiate between a solo album and a GBV album, and Not In My Airforce is the blueprint that allows this distinction. There are moments on here that approach his best, like the closing couplet to "Girl Named Captain" (Raise the dead / a girl named Captain said / I'm not in your dream, get out of mine"). GBV still plays many of these songs live, and no Pollard collection is complete without "Psychic Pilot." There you go.

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.