Pig Lib

As an indie paragon since the early '90s, it's inevitable that Stephen Malkmus would want to make music that falls closer to traditional rock. His second solo album is the logical extension of those moments when Pavement cautiously approached the classic-rock canon, albeit from an oblique angle. Initially, it's hard-going for listeners. Where Malkmus's self-titled debut accentuated his flirtatious, pop-friendly inclinations, Pig Lib is gnarlier and more expansive. At times, it's uncharacteristically earnest, as if Malkmus was trying to defuse those usual jibes of archness with a sustained bout of jamming. Persevere, though, and Pig Lib's excellence is revealed. The two most obvious influences on spindly, febrile epics like "1% of One" and "Witch Mountain Bridge" are Television and Fairport Convention; Malkmus is particularly proficient at highlighting the affinities between New York art punk and British folk-rock through his notably improved guitar playing. Less rock-oriented souls, meanwhile, will be heartened by evidence of his continuing Ray Davies fetish on "Vanessa from Queens" and, especially, the "Waterloo Sunset"-styled "Craw Song." This is an album that, if lived with and nurtured, amply repays the kindness. --John Mulvey

His sophomore album embraces the classic rock ensemble featuring a delectable array of antecedents inform the music herein, from Irish prog-folk greats Mellow Candle to the Jazz inflected musings of Kevin Ayers and Lol Coxhill to some of the more outro moments on Pavements weirdest album, Wowee Zowee. Includes a bonus CD with 5 tracks, 'Dynamic Calories', 'Fractions & Feelings', 'Old Jerry', 'The Poet & The Witch' (live Sweden 2001) & 'Shake It Around' (live Australia 2001). Digipak. Matador. 2003.

STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS Pig Lib (2003 US limited edition 2-disc set comprised of 11-track CD album [the 2nd longplayer from Malkmus with The Jicks] plus bonus 5-track CD of unreleased material including live recordings from Sweden and Australia presented in digipak sleeve)