Stephen Malkmus - Pencil Rot

So much pernicious indignation resonates through the indie world when we discuss Pavement. Everyone that loves indie rock worships at the altar of Pavement at some point and in particular, they toss roses to its patron saint of lost causes, Stephen Malkmus. I recall that when Pavement disbanded, you could hear a collective thud as people's jaws hit the ground. In true indie form, all the cred seekers bounced back and aimed their attentions elsewhere, never losing sight of or forgetting about Mr. Malkmus. Luckily for us, Saint Stephen agreed to continue to smile and spread his blessings on us for a couple of solo records. This newest album, Face The Truth, offers no resolutions and, true to form, is as unpredictable as the braintrust from which the wellspring of college radio's dam flowed as it jacknifed all the cars on the Stockton turnpike. It sounds like Malkmus might be a bit nostalgic for Memphis's recently-burned-down Easley-McCain Recording, where Pavement recorded this album's closest cousin, the elusively beautiful Wowee Zowee. One of my favorite people from back west, Phil Ek, turned the knobs on this project, and his signature analog sizzle is all over this record. It gives me great pleasure to report that somewhere in these songs Mr. Malkmus has found some form of joy, and a resonating sound of happiness strings through the record unlike anything I've heard previously from him. I think he has mastered the undercurrent of pop music in this record. It does not bore, and I am going to need to want to listen to it for a long, long time.

You can now purchase "Post-Paint Boy", the first single from the album, from iTunes, if you just click here.