This came out in 2005 — or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Now that Robert Pollard has retired Guided By Voices — at least temporarily — somebody has to assume the mantle of quirky indie-rock gurus. I nominate Swedish psychedelic-rock sextet The Soundtrack of Our Lives. And I respectfully submit their second North American disc Origin Vol. 1 as their application to the post.
An intoxicating 14-shot cocktail of snarling guitars, bombastic drumming, trippy textures, jangly melodies and flower-power anthems, Origin connects the dots between Love, Pink Floyd, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Stooges, The Doors and even Serge Gainsbourg (thanks to a Jane Birkin cameo on the languidly poppy Midnight Children).
OK, their tunes are a bit more polished, produced and coherent than Pollard’s nuggets of stream-of-consciousness retro-pop. But titles like Royal Explosion (Part II) and Wheels of Boredom — not to mention tunes like Song For The Others — appear to come straight from Pollardville. Plus, their lead singer has a beard and wears a robe onstage. All these guys need to do is pound more Bud and they’re basically ready for the gig, if you ask me.
