Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - 'Real Emotional Trash' (Domino) Released 03/03/08

When an artist makes their name with an era-defining band before going solo, they have an instant audience for their output. Just like when a band gets so big that it can release virtually anything and still hit platinum sales, it’s not unheard of for this to have a negative effect on creativity, with artists retreating into making music that retreads the musical paths of their pasts, knowing there are die-hard fans that will lap it up. It’s a credit to Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks then, that this album manages to be a success in it’s own right.

It’s Malkmus’ fourth album since the end of Pavement, and his second with The Jicks. There are still elements of his sound, which have been present in all of his work – spiralling melodic guitar leads, and an experimental edge. Elsewhere The Jicks sound great, with a solid rhythm section doing well to hold together the freeform songs that make up ‘Real Emotional Trash’.

It’s an experimental album, with songs that release themselves of any constraints, which are allowed to explore differing sonic boundaries. Of the ten tracks on the album, six surpass the 5-minute mark – ‘Real Emotional Trash’ clocking in at a whopping 10:08. Impressive then, that even when a track wanders far away from its original path for an epic jam, it remains completely enjoyable. It’s thanks in part to some great inventive guitar playing, really imaginative music, and the rhythm section that never misses a beat, making sense of everything.

Although there’s a definite prog influence, when the songs descend into free form jams it never feels aimless. The music ebbs and flows before launching in some other direction. Tracks like ‘Hopscotch Willy’ and ‘Baltimore’ are great examples of songs heading in multiple directions over their course. There are tempo changes, great guitar solos, and sudden switches in feel – done badly, the kind of thing that could make you feel sick. It makes it all the more impressive that it works. Great fuzzy guitar hooks and jumpy vocal melodies also give the songs some more traditional hooks, and identity, in between the noisy freeform interludes.

Die-hard fans of Pavement will be more than satisfied, but there’s plenty to keep the attention of newcomers to Malkmus’ music interested in what is another impressive album.