THE WIRE
September 2003

by Ed Ward

The Swimming Pool Q's came up in Georgia at about the same time as R.E.M. and The B-52's, and were signed to Danny Beard's DB Records. But unlike their contemporaries they were a bit arty and lacked a killer pop hook instinct. The Q's never went away, though, and main man Jeff Calder and producer Phil Hadaway, along with the other group members and various guests, worked on his album for the better part of a decade. The result is a surprisingly lush, sumptuous, song cycle overflowing with musical and intellectual ideas, set to productions that's Spectorian in its density, but far less ham-fisted.

Calder's voice seems amazed by all it describes, which is largely the miracle of life-specifically life lived on the landscape of the US South: its earth, its sky, and of course the Mississippi River. Musically, it's a delicate balancing act: one too-loud guitar solo, one misplaced accent, and the record might have become ponderous. As it is, I might have left off the last song, "Alpha Centauri's Rise", if only because "The Wheel of the Sun" is such a perfect closer.

Nevertheless, having it there by no means diminishes the record's impact, which is considerably enhanced by mostly saying what has to be said and getting out within four-minute songs. The exceptions are the last track and the remarkable "Deep South", which would have wound up on The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds had Brian Wilson grown up in Georgia.

Calder and Hadaway are a killer team: who else would have thought to start a track ("Wheel of the Sun") with VU drummer Moe Tucker's patented thudding only to overlay it with multi-tracked Highland piping, and then season it with glass harp? But Calder (sometimes with Hadaway) can also write a melody, as the instantly bonding chorus of "The Radio in Memphis" demonstrates.

Royal Academy of Reality could well acquire the same cult status once 'enjoyed" by Pet Sounds and Love's Forever Changes. The Swimming Pool Q's are a working group, and although I don't think their live shows sound like this, anyone who can come up with something so flat-out astonishing should be encouraged.