Search - Airport 5 :: Life Starts Here

An improved part 2 from a wonderful reunion..For Up We Are!

lrutigliano | 03/03/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Where I was largely disappointed in the unevenness of the first Airport 5 release;Life Starts here is solid effort, filled to the brim with Pollard's vocal hooks and Tobin Sprouts beautifully understated instumentation.Tobin plays alot more piano on this release which gives the songs a greater warmth and depth.Bob weaves his vocal web in,out over,under and through a rich collection songs, which range from the experimental (Intro & Dawntrust Guarantee)to the infectious chorus in (Yellow wife #5 & However Young they are),the anthemic rise,fall and deconstruct in(How Brown) and the catchy(Impressions of a Leg, Forever Since & I Can't Freeze Anymore)Yeah, there's even a couple of toss a ways but who cares? This is a collection that is warm, playful and weirdly wonderful and leaves me longing for more!"

The Disappointing Pt. 2 of a Wonderful Reunion

radiocode | Richmond, VA | 02/28/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This album will always hold a special spot in my cd collection, because it's the first Robert Pollard release I've purchased and been disappointed with. I got into the GBV game late, but was quickly hooked after seeing them live. I both sought out the older stuff and made sure to scoop up (and if not, at least hear) everything new. And I really loved everything I bought, old and new, from Propeller to Isolation Drills, and each became a permanent fixture in my listening collection. And while I had heard friends' copies of some of the more uneven side projects Bob puts out, "Life Starts Here" was the first I awaited with anticipation but found lacking. My biggest complaint with this release is that the flaws of the collaboration are revealed. Where I listened to and treated each track on "Tower in the Fountain of Sparks" as a complete, unifed, whole song, many of the ones on "Life" sound like instrumentals with words over them. And where songs like "The Cost of Shipping Cattle" and "Up the Nails" culminated with Bob dramatically repeating a line, it seems like an old formula he resorts to on "We're in the Businesses" and "I Can't Freeze Anymore." But, that said, some of the songs do warm up to you over time, and I enjoy the elements of play and experimentation found here. The "Intro" is a great opener, "Dawntrust Guarantee" is an interesting forray into weirdness, and "Out in the World" is a fun-filled boot-stomping closer. My main wish is that Tobe and Bob would have maybe swapped a few more tapes and accrued some more material, so that they could really put out a powerful and cohesive sophomore disc. But as it is, "Life Starts Here" seems split between more experimental sonic excursions and watered-down tracks in the style of "Tower.""

Almost great

scot lade | fort myers | 07/22/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"on the first airport 5 release, there was a kind of lazy indifference to the whole thing. this one is a vast improvement. the album works as a cohesive unit and creates an atmosphere all its own. this is what great records do. this is not a great record, though. the finely tuned ear of mr. pollard is again somewhat off here, as with the first airport 5. a little more work and this would have been one for the ages. as it stands, it is meerly a very good album."