by David Wilikofsky
“Welcome to Bobby’s Motel, the place where all your dreams come true.” Those are the first lyrics we hear on Welcome to Bobby’s Motel, the debut long player from Montreal band Pottery. After hearing the full album, those introductory words seem apt; Pottery proceeds to take the listener on a sonic odyssey, criss crossing genres and pumping out some of the most enjoyable rock and roll heard in a long time.
Across its forty minute runtime, Pottery kick out the jams (literally). Tracks like “Down In the Dumps” and “Texas Drums Pt I & II” allow the band to go into full funk mode, locking into a groove and freestyling vocals on top. Although most tracks are dance punk workouts, Pottery manages to keep it interesting throughout the record. “Texas Drums” disintegrates half way through into a cloud of ambient sound, only to reform on the other side as a new beat. “Reflection” and closer “Hot Like Jungle” are Pottery’s version of a ballad, woozy confections that are sweet and off-kilter at the same time. Opening track “Welcome to Bobby’s Motel” manages to sound like three different songs in its two minute runtime (and even finds time for a wicked guitar solo) without ever sounding overstuffed.
Pottery could easily have just created an album full of high energy stompers, and to some extent they’ve done that, but the album is much greater than the sum of its parts. It plays like an album from a bygone era; songs smoothly flow together, forming a larger work. This is a record that lands as a well thought out, cohesive album rather than just a collection of singles. Pottery have managed to show up to the party fully formed. With so many musical ideas packed into Welcome to Bobby’s Motel, it’ll be interesting to see where they go from here.