Album #167: Pottery – Welcome to Bobby’s Motel

• Released: 2020
• Origin: Montreal, Canada
• Label: Partisan
• Best Track: Take Your Time

After a couple of very decent LPs last year, I’ve been looking forward to the debut album from zany and funky indie-rockers Pottery. Here it is, and it somehow feels like the perfect soundtrack to being in the midst of both a heatwave and a pandemic. It’s exuberant and danceable, yet surreal and nonsensical at the same time.

Reminiscent at times of ESG (who I discovered not long ago) with its blend of funk and punk, Welcome to Bobby’s Motel is a devious ride. Tracks like ‘Under the Wires’ leading into ‘Bobby’s Forecast’ are largely instrumental and give the impression of a talented band enjoying a damn good jam.

When more wordy though, like on tracks like ‘Reflection’ and closer ‘Hot Like Jungle’, vocals are strong and soulful. For me, they peak on the faster-paced songs like ‘Down in the Dumps’ and ‘Take Your Time’, the latter of which carries a B52s-like quirkiness and showmanship.

A brilliant start from a band whose sound is diverse, yet distinctive.