Tremblers and Goggles By Rank (2022)

 Tremblers and Goggles By Rank 

(2022, Guided by Voices Inc.) 

Following on the heels of the rather concise Crystal Nuns Cathedral, Pollard decided to release the shortest GBV full-length to date in terms of track listing. At just 10 songs, this falls into a rarely seen category of LPs like Robert Pollard is Off to Business and The Crawling Distance, in terms of number of tracks. While the song total may seem skimpier when comparing it to your copy of Zeppelin Over China, Pollard took the opportunity to craft this into a multi-layered prog rock record that really benefits from the contributions of his most consistent and tightest line-up of musicians.

Tremblers and Goggles By Rank boasts a collection that finds more in common with “Lights Out in Memphis” or “Sons of the Beard” rather than “Auditorium” or “Hey Aardvark.” One can almost imagine the multitude of boombox edits Pollard had to make before sending these multi-sectioned clips to the rest of the band to be fleshed out. In short, this might be an even proggier affair than Sweating the Plague, an LP that was continuously lauded as a "prog" LP in the press releases. 
 
When it works, Tremblers... is cause for celebration, although there are moments scattered about where the record feels like it may be dragging its own feet. While not every moment comes across as a winner, I appreciate Pollard and the reliable cast of workhorses for still finding new ways to tackle the writing and recording process to deliver new surprises to the listener. The LP is mainly a winner but does feel like it might be destined as one of the outliers of the catalog, but only time will tell.

SIDE A:

Lizard On the Red Brick Wall- 4  From the first note, things already feel a little different in the Pollardverse than previous records. Immediately, the record bombards you with an industrial, post-punk style thrumming of guitar crunch. As the riff pulsates away hypnotically, the band kicks in, Kevin March providing a heavy handed stomp throughout. With Pollard's vocals on top, the repetition eventually gives this a long winded psych rock feel. Perhaps more a product of production than killer songwriting chops, this is an effective opener none the less. 

Alex Bell- 5 At a hair over 5 minutes, "Alex Bell" is one of the Guided by Voices' most ambitious singles. Released as a double A-side 7" (along with "Focus on the Flock"), "Alex Bell" is a gorgeous  layered slab of pop, melancholy, longing, and ultimately triumph with his highly infectious lead-out section. It's a song that requires patience, but seems to deliver new surprises in its mini-rock opera structure nearly every time. Multiple times I've had parts of this song lodged in my cranium, only to recall that it's all from the same song! 

Unproductive Funk- 4 Starting with purpose and conviction via the guitar into, GBV once again returns 

with a repetitive riff that only elevates when March and Mark Shue kick in with the rhythm section chops. Pollard sounds incredible here, carrying it with his spot-on vocal delivery. Eventually the song gives way to the breezier "this is no love" section, both providing relief from the paranoid verses, giving the listener something more sonically celebratory to latch on to. 

Roosevelt's Marching Band- 3 Compared to the brut and pop mixtures of the first 3 tracks, this one finds GBV in a gloomier mood, the chorus seriously elevating the verses with it pensive hooks and affirmative delivery. Once again, Pollard sounds incredible in the mix, only heightened by the subtly dreamier backing/double vocals that provide much welcomed support. 

Googles By Rank- 3 The track that has given the LP with its seemingly nonsensical and mysterious title, this closer to Side A feels like a throwback to some late 90's/early 00's GBV as Pollard began to lay heavier into his prog tendencies. While not bad, the song doesn't really ever get off the ground, feeling more like a musically jumbled snippet that feels like it could benefit from a little extra fleshing out. The outro is bombastic to say the least, providing some added boost and by far the meat of the song to sink your teeth into. 

SIDE B:

Cartoon Fashion (Bongo Lake)- 1 The second side opens with more multi-sectioned madness (a 4 parter at that, listed separately in the track listing). Unfortunately, this feels like a straight mash up of demos come to life, all of which don't quite fit together. The song is only mucked up by Pollard reaching way back into his bag of vocal buffoonery that he hasn't bothered to bring to the table in a long time, bending and twisting his way through questionable singing choices over rather uninspired guitar propulsion. If there is purpose and intent here, I'm not really sure what it is. 

Boomerang- 4 After the jumbled "Cartoon Fashion," the band takes its foot of the dirt-bike at the muddied shores of Bongo Lake for this one. Musically, it feels like an unfinished demo or old-school GBV snippet stretched out to just over a minute and a half. After the vocal contortions of the previous song, Pollard sounds downright dreamy during parts here, specifically with the surefooted double vocals that have the power to melt one's heart. On its own, it may not make every "best-of" list but in the sequencing, it provides the perfect "intro" to... 

Focus On the Flock- 3 As if in protest to the residual weed haze lingering from "Boomerang," GBV kicks in with more conviction here. The other single released on the double A-side 7", "Focus on the Flock," pretty forward at points, but contains some of the most twists and turns on the record than some of the more obvious layered tracks. Always surprising, mostly in a good way, this is one of the heavier aural hitters of the record. At times, I wish it were more concrete in spots but an impressive experiment that never stops shifting in its 3 minutes. 

Puzzle Two- 2 Much in the fashion of "Test Pilot," the boys provide a late album track that just will not stick in my brain no matter how many times I seem to revisit it. Much like that song, it's not terrible but simply does little for me. Unlike that track, I do appreciate that this at least has some grit and a fiery, fuzzed-out Doug Gillard lead riff over the bombastic ending section, one that seems to fizzle out into one of the boldest album closers on record. 

Who Wants To Go Hunting?- 4 Ladies and gentlemen, believe it or not, here is the 6 minute GBV song. Yes, the band that once brought you "Cigarette Tricks" and "Hit," has decided the time is now to unleash the epic. Fortunately, it mostly makes good on that delivery. After the thin sounding, but ominous bass intro, the song builds before giving way to the sparse verses that allow for some breath. Slowly but surely, the song intensifies, dropping in its slyly catchy chorus. As with "Alex Bell," patience is required. Thankfully it pays off as Pollard comes in with more creamy vocals, asking cryptically "who wants to challenge me? Who wants to go hunting?"  The lone bass comes back in, this time sounding heavier, as the record sees us off with a rare but welcomed instrumental revelry for nearly a minute a half.