Boston Spaceships: Camera Found the Ray Gun (2010)

I was a big fan of The Takeovers' EP Little Green Onion Man. It was four tracks that were unique, and maybe just a little lo-fi for the two regular album The Takeovers put out. I consider Camera Found the Ray Gun to be for the Boston Spaceships what Camera Found the Ray Gun was for The Takeovers; a small shot of something different and worthy of our attention. Clocking in at around 9 minutes, this short EP is another worthy addition to the Boston Spaceships catalog...

The trend of using past Pollard demos and re-recording them with the full band continues with this EP. Both Pluto is Polluted and Aquarium Hovercraft appear on Suitcase 3 in what sounds like Pollard by himself with a guitar, and even singing the solo part on Aquarium Hovercraft. Both are recorded with the Boston Spaceships here and are generally full band versions that are true to the versions of Suitcase 3. During the chorus to Pluto is Polluted, I am somewhat reminded of The Doors. Aquarium Hovercraft is made up of three distinct parts; the first has Pollard ripping through the lyrics at a hectic pace, the second slows the song down to a grooving pace, and finally the song explodes into an epic conclusion. 

The Way Out is a standard straight-forward rocker that adds guitar layers to the second verse to keep the track building up, and it also includes the EP's title lyric. Rival GT is also on the heavier side, and like Aquarium Hovercraft the heavier sections are split between a quiet interlude. I had to listen to it a couple of times to determine its inclusion on the playlist, and in the end it won me over.

I'm not really sure what the point is to an EP for a band like the Boston Spaceships where the time between releases is usually very small, or how one track is chosen for an EP and another for an album. I'm guessing it is to create the illusion of a band that follows the more usual release schedule where an EP is a great way to remind people that you are still around and working. These four songs probably could have fit in with the next album (Our Cubehouse Still Rocks), but either way, they add to the already excellent catalog of music released by the Boston Spaceships.

Tracklisting (songs in bold make the playlist):

01 The Way Out
02 Rival GT
03 Pluto is Polluted
04 Aquarium Hovercraft