Welshpool Frillies

Welshpool Frillies is the 38th studio album by American indie rock band Guided by Voices. It was released on July 21, 2023.

Welshpool Frillies
Studio album by Guided by Voices
Released	July 21, 2023 (2023-07-21)
Recorded	2022
Studio	Brooklyn, New York City, New York, United States[1]
Genre	Indie rock
Length	41:00
Language	English
Label	Guided by Voices, Inc.
Producer	Travis Harrison[1]
Guided by Voices chronology
La La Land (2023) Welshpool Frillies (2023) Nowhere to Go but Up (2023)

Recording, release, and promotion

Weshpool Frillies continued a series of eight studio albums by Guided by Voices in three years and unlike their previous releases that were mostly recorded at a New Jersey studio, the band's producer Travis Harrison instead recorded this live to tape in a Brooklyn basement.^[2] This album was preceded by the singles "Seedling" in May and "Meet the Star" in June".^[2] They also promoted this release with a brief North American tour.^[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
The Irish Times	[5]
Under the Radar	[6]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Welshpool Frillies received "universal acclaim" based on a weighted average score of 83 out of 100 from four critic scores.^[7] Editors at AllMusic rated this album 4 out of 5 stars, with critic Mark Deming writing that "GbV have been on an unprecedented hot streak since 2017" by making a stable line-up of musicians to support frontman Robert Pollard and this album is "an especially impressive example of the strength of Guided by Voices as a band rather than another Pollard project".^[4] Writing for BrooklynVegan, Bill Pearis chose this as one of the best albums of the week, stating that "the current lineup of the band rivals any of the “classic” lineups of decades past" and characterizes this release as "down and dirty", due to being recorded live to tape.^[8] Eamon Sweeney of The Irish Times gave this album 4 out of 5 stars, calling it "yet another collection of scuzzy pop and delicious riffs, topped off by Pollard’s deadpan voice and surreal lyrics" and stating that the band has evolved from their lo-fi music roots.^[5] At The Quietus, Jon Buckland wrote that this album has a "sparkling lyrical display" that "is peppered with powerful language hinting at events untold, slotting together in surprising mixtures, shapes, and forms"^[9] and editors chose this as one of the best albums of June and July 2023.^[10] Michael James Hall of Under the Radar scored this album a 7.5 out of 10, calling it "a shimmering highlight in the constant, often delightful stream of GBV output".^[6]

Track listing

All songs written by Robert Pollard.

1. "Meet the Star" – 3:26
2. "Cruisers' Cross" – 3:30
3. "Romeo Surgeon" – 3:18
4. "Chain Dance" – 1:58
5. "Why Won't You Kiss Me" – 2:09
6. "Animal Concentrate" – 2:38
7. "Cats on Heat" – 1:39
8. "Mother Mirth" – 1:27
9. "Don't Blow Your Dream Job" – 3:34
10. "Awake Man" – 2:19
11. "Rust Belt Boogie" – 4:08
12. "Seedling" – 2:47
13. "Better Odds" – 2:43
14. "Radioactive Pigeons" – 2:30
15. "Welshpool Frillies" – 2:54

Personnel

Guided by Voices

• Bobby Bare Jr. – guitar, backing vocals
• Doug Gillard – guitar, backing vocals, string arrangement
• Kevin March – drums, backing vocals
• Robert Pollard – lead vocals, guitar, cover art, layout
• Mark Shue – bass guitar, backing vocals

Additional personnel

• Travis Harrison – production

See also

• List of 2023 albums

References

1. Deville, Chris (May 23, 2023). "Guided By Voices Share New Song "Seedling"". New Music. Stereogum. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
2. Rettig, James (June 20, 2023). "Guided By Voices Share New Single "Meet The Star"". New Music. Stereogum. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
3. Pearis, Bill (June 20, 2023). "Guided by Voices announce US tour ++ hear "Meet The Star" from upcoming LP". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
4. Deming, Mark (n.d.). "Guided by Voices – Welshpool Frillies". AllMusic. RhythmOne. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
5. Sweeney, Eamon (July 14, 2023). "Guided by Voices: Welshpool Frillies – Scuzzy pop, delicious riffs, surreal lyrics". Music. The Irish Times. ISSN 0791-5144. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
6. Hall, James Michael (July 21, 2023). "Welshpool Frillies". Music. Under the Radar. ISSN 1553-2305. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
7. "Welshpool Frillies by Guided by Voices Reviews and Tracks – Metacritic". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. n.d. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
8. Pearis, Bill (July 21, 2023). "Indie Basement (7/21): the week in classic indie, college rock, and more". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
9. Buckland, Jon (July 27, 2023). "Guided By Voices". Reviews. The Quietus. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
10. Clarke, Patrick (July 28, 2023). "Music of the Month(s)". Quietus Charts. The Quietus. Retrieved July 28, 2023.

External links

• Entry in the Guided by Voices Database
• Welshpool Frillies at Discogs (list of releases)
• Welshpool Frillies at MusicBrainz (list of releases)