While his old bandmate Stephen Malkmus steers towards classic rock, folk and even a little bit of prog these days, Scott Kannberg continues to keep the indie flame burning. For his second album as Preston School Of Industry, Kannberg sounds exactly as you'd expect: the guitarist out of Pavement grown a little older and more rueful. These are amiable, humane songs given a touch of country decorum by Wilco, who make up his backing band. It's a calmer, less ambitious album than 2001's All This Sounds Gas, but no less beguiling, especially when Kannberg betrays his love of The Go-Betweens. Nice, too, to see him embrace one or two long-suppressed quirks: "Get Your Crayons Out!" illustrates why Pavement were seen as Fall acolytes in 1992, and how far Kannberg has travelled in the interim.
While his old bandmate Stephen Malkmus steers towards classic rock, folk and even a little bit of prog these days, Scott Kannberg continues to keep the indie flame burning. For his second album as Preston School Of Industry, Kannberg sounds exactly as you’d expect: the guitarist out of Pavement grown a little older and more rueful. These are amiable, humane songs given a touch of country decorum by Wilco, who make up his backing band. It’s a calmer, less ambitious album than 2001’s All This Sounds Gas, but no less beguiling, especially when Kannberg betrays his love of The Go-Betweens. Nice, too, to see him embrace one or two long-suppressed quirks: “Get Your Crayons Out!” illustrates why Pavement were seen as Fall acolytes in 1992, and how far Kannberg has travelled in the interim.
