This CD single and vinyl 7" preceded the release
Stephen Malkmus' debut solo effort by a month, and featured that LP's "Discretion Grove" and two B-side tracks. The release of this single hinted at the quality of the highly anticipated forthcoming full-length.
Discretion Grove showed that free from the confines of
Pavement, the artist formerly known as S.M. could construct solid, rocking, yet quirky tunes -- even if they were somewhat devoid of the chaotic charm that propelled that former group into the rarefied stratosphere. And it's clear why the two B-sides here didn't make it onto the self-titled LP; they're throwaways when stacked up against the
Malkmus canon -- a fact the eccentric, pseudo-psychedelic production touches can't conceal.