Search - Guided By Voices :: The Pipe Dreams of Instant Prince Whippet

The New Old Sound

George a Pletz | Central PA, USA | 11/19/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"First off, this is NOT the place to start. Unless you enjoy obtuse snippets and brief flashes of crypto-pop, Prince Whippet is a confusing cul-de-sac of prog impulses and post punk florishes. Sure there is rock here but it is all filtered through that Ohio outsider vibe that has been going since the 70s. So if you are looking to brainlessly shake your booty to power pop punk, you will not even get past the door.But if you are someone who has long been a citizen of this Wallace Stevens goes punk alternate earth, this is a veritable feast of Pollard powered indie pop. From the near textbook example of Townsend-Punk that is "Visit This Place" through the sludgy anthem of "Action Speaks Volumes" to the subtle orchestral (how often do these two words get put together?) sweep of "Dig Through My Window", you cover the many flavors of this crucial indie rock group. Like so much of the GBV catalogue, other mixed metaphor gems ("Swooping Energies, Instant Prince Whippet, Beg For A Wheelbarrow.") come to your attention with multiple listens. Coming somewhere in terms of quality between "Sunfish Holy Breakfast" and "Hold on Hope" eps, the Prince holds its title as a fantastic continuation of the long standing GBV adventure. Does what an ep is supposed to do, keep us psyched for the next long player. Not great on its own but certainly a worthwhile addition to that GBV collection you have growing in your rock'n'roll closet."

Will Pollard ever dry up?

Jason Wendleton | Lee's Summit, MO United States | 09/23/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"That's the question on my mind-"Will singer/songwriter Robert Pollard ever dry up creativly?" The man is a MACHINE. Most bands release an album every few years...not Guided By Voices-oh no, for Pollard, it's a new release ever few MONTHS.
Here, on "The Pipe Dreams of Instant Prince Whippet" (don't you just love that title?) We find Pollard and Co. banging out more The Who-meets the Beatles-meets REM-meets an alien from space type songs. This was recorded around the time of Universal Truths and Cycles (the bands latest album).
This release really isn't an "album", rather it's a collection of B-side type stuff.
Buy it for "Dig Through My Window" alone (the string arrangment is fantastic!), then buckle down for the rest-"Swooping Energies" stands out, as does "Action Speaks Volumes." If you like GBV you won't regret this purchase!!!"

Pitchforkmedia review false edit cut like tremulous eons

treblekicker | Houston, TX | 10/22/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Pipe Dreams of Instant Prince Whippet collects the odds-and-ends left on the cutting room floor in the aftermath of UT&C, and dare I say, Bob hasn't sounded this much like his old self since "Jane of the Waking Universe". Why these tracks were left off Universal Truths in favor of obvious filler like "Skin Parade" and "The Ids are Alright" is beyond me.As I see it, one of the primary failings of the band's recent material-- including much of Universal Truths-- is a relative homogeneity that causes otherwise quality songs to bleed together into a mush of chiming guitars and cigarette-stained vocals. That never, ever happens on Pipe Dreams, where each track is clear and distinct from the one that comes before. As a companion piece to Universal Truths, it's easy to see where each cut fits into the larger picture, but the total effect of this record is far closer to that of early GBV classics, where bizarre, half-assed tracks like "Yours to Keep" and "Kicker of Elves" achieved a weirdly compelling power simply through proximity to plain great pop songs.Some of the great pop songs included here are the bite-sized "Stronger Lizards" and "For Liberty", which both build to sublime crescendos of power and emotion before fading away less than a minute later. These tracks bear the mark of some of GBV's best work, in that you're left wanting more, despite the knowledge that what you just heard was an autonomous unit of songcrafting excellence. These morsels, however, merely set the table for the superlative "Dig Through My Window" and the closer "Beg for a Wheelbarrow." The former is a laidback pop reflection replete with key changes and a subtle orchestral backing, while the massive three-minute closer "Beg for a Wheelbarrow" has Pollard shouting, "Dig a deeper hole/ And then you'll feel better," over a climax of searing guitars and mounting drum fills. Pipe Dream's crown jewels are such a return to form that I almost imagined Tobin Sprout's voice among their backing choruses.This, of course, is the rare collection in a Fading Captain series which has been-- and will undoubtedly continue to be-- incredibly patchy. Still, this disc implies nothing if not potential for more of the stunning songcraft Pollard built his good name on. Bob still has "it", to my amazement, and some to spare.-Eric Carr, October 16th, 2002"