tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12962763089226094372024-03-14T11:02:18.392-07:00An Earful O' Wax: Guided by Voices/Robert Pollard Song by Song Review One man's quest to consume, rank, and comment on every Guided by Voices/Robert Pollard related song ever recorded.Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.comBlogger271125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-81928552443778932002023-08-14T15:17:00.000-07:002023-08-14T15:17:26.404-07:00THE CLUB IS OPEN... An Introduction<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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WELCOME to <i>An Earful 'O Wax</i>, the Guided by Voices/Robert Pollard; Song Documentation Database. Here, I attempt to provide a write-up accompanied by a numerical review (for what it's worth) of every song written, performed, or related to one of rock's most prolific songwriters; Robert Pollard. <br />
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If you have found yourself on this site, you probably know a bit of the story and history of the Dayton, OH band. If not, welcome! May this be your newest haven for a crash-course in the subject, and hopefully this can aid in your quest for the perfect mix tape.<br />
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This idea to delve into this project came to be in early 2012 while talking with a friend about the intricacies of the myriad of Guided by Voices/Robert Pollard LPs, EPs, side-projects, box-sets, 7'' singles, official bootlegs, and compilation tracks. I know as a true GBV fanatic, this conversation happens often. So I decided it was time to make my madness somewhat concrete!<br />
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The original sole purpose came about when I decided to try to log a rating to some of the more obscure Pollard related songs in my library for my own reference. How could I forget how good "I Am Decided" was off the top of my head? How was it that the closer, "Blue Shadow," off Pollard's side-project Keene Brothers' LP escaped my memory when thinking about the breadth of the catalog? Official documentation began to accumulate over a few months, and only grew from there. Once the wheels started turning, I found it increasingly difficult to operate the brakes. The determination to review every Robert Pollard related song was in full swing, scribbled in notebooks and sporadically typed out.<br />
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What presents itself on this site is just that; my quest to track down, consume (multiple times), and review (if only briefly), every song that came out of Dayton, OH's pop-psych mastermind, Robert Pollard. It's been a rough and bumpy road over many beers, research, and late night phone calls to friends on the matter.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>SO, how do you read this and what is it?</u></b> </span><br />
First off, every Robert Pollard related band/solo outing/side-project is divided into headers at the top of the page for quick reference.<br />
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The set-up of the free blogger.com space does not provide for ample scroll-down-and-enjoy reading. I encourage all to click on the links above to track down each LP, EP, 7", and compilation to find said song, or to simply browse the nature of each beast.<br />
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Also, each LP is accompanied by a brief to somewhat-extended introduction into the release, garnished with facts and opinions. Treat them as a short review. Treat them as garbage. Do as you will.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>What is included?</u></b></span><br />
Any and all Robert Pollard related material is included for mention and review on this site. That is, every Guided by Voices, Pollard solo outing, Pollard solo collaborations, or side-project. Several side-project bands are listed above in the same tab due to restrictions here, not importance, or lack thereof.<br />
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There are still plenty of off-shoots of the Pollard/GBV family tree; Tobin Sprout solo material, Doug Gillard solo LPs, Death of Samantha, Cobra Verde, fig. 4, Terrifying Experience, etc. While many of those releases are definitely worth tracking down, (especially Tobin Sprout's frequent and brilliant outings) I have not obtained all at this time.<br />
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Also, not EVERY single record is listed on this site. Some singles and box sets simply contained songs that had previously been released. I included each record, in which each song made its earliest appearance. If you'd like a complete discography of everything GBV related, check <a href="http://www.gbvdb.com/">HERE</a>.<br />
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In addition, there are a plethora of bootleg releases with alternate titles to track that were eventually released on the <i>Suitcase</i> box-sets. Also, there are seemingly endless unreleased instrumental outtakes, alternate bootleg takes, internet released demos, and unreleased live cover songs that have not been included. In time, they might see the light of day. Such is the case with Pollard's TWO "comedy" LPs of spoken word, <i>Relaxation of the Asshole</i> and <i>Meet the King: Asshole 2</i>. I've got 'em, just don't know where they fit in this puzzle, but maybe one day.<br />
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Additionally, as long as I breathe and maintain functional hearing, new releases will continue to be updated in the future. Please check back.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">In addition, THE RATING SYSTEM:</span></u></b><br />
The ratings assigned numerically differs, in context, for each band.<br />
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It should go without saying, but a Guided by Voices perfect song rating does not always reflect the same as, say, a great Circus Devils song, decent Acid Ranch, etc. Two different recipes, two different results.<br />
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Also, it's a 1 to 5 system. Don't have a stroke that something didn't get 10.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">And finally, LET IT BE KNOWN!:</span></u></b><br />
It should go without saying that I am a fan. Not to dive too deep into the sappy end of the pool, Robert Pollard has been an even more enormous influence on me than I can really every say. Who else would do such an arguably stupid thing if not a fan? Nevertheless, what lies ahead may offend, enlighten, educate and shock some as I have given reviews to songs that some hold deep in the ribcage; wedding songs, the break-up tune, the perfect song for a funeral, your favorite drinking singalong melody, etc. So please know that every bad review still comes from a place that still gives even the slightest wink of admiration, and I mean no offense to the fellow listener in the following reviews of everything, and encourage an open discussion about said topics. Such is the way of the world, and shouldn't need mentioning. But it bares repeating when dealing with something as sacred to so many.<br />
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May Pollard continue to write, record, release. The army of the shambolic have spoken and, sorry mainstream press, he does NOT need an editor. What we want is what we get, and so forth. And for the casual, or beginner, may this be both a guide and valuable lesson. As Pollard has said, he relies on his Four "P's"; pop, punk, psych, and prog (which will be referenced throughout the site), in his song writing. May the best of those styles continue to rain down, for better or worse. One man's "Gold Star For Robot Boy" is another man's "I Can't Freeze Anymore" and vice versa. But hopefully you get the picture. Read on, enjoy, and detest if you must. But remember, "Life is short, GBV is long."*<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Additional thanks to the project goes to the following:</span> </i>Jeff at Guided by Voices Database (<a href="http://www.gbvdb.com/">www.gbvdb.com</a>), for his his helpful correspondence and for his stellar website of meticulous fanboy info. Kevin Oliver, for guiding me through a cerebral discussion of <i>Suitcase 2</i> and its inconsistencies back in the day. Fid, for his enthusiasm, tri-state brotherly support, and providing me with a couple of hard-to-find GBV releases on loan while I was dead broke. Christopher Thomas Brown for talking GBV with me at length and for kind of kick starting this whole idea. And to K. Gogan, my best friend for encouraging me to finish and for helping edit a portion of this mess.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">**all photos taken from the fabulous world of google search. If you have a problem with a photo being up here, say the word and I'll take it down. I honestly don't know how to credit you!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">***background collage by Robert Pollard, entitled "Brought To You by Real Nice Scientist" </span>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-85777500862056814762023-08-14T15:16:00.088-07:002023-08-14T20:08:23.893-07:00La La Land (2023) <p style="text-align: center;"> <b>La La Land</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2023, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5h8UXG8NXCOORlHqPZenVtzDYELDDn6h7ua8NzsafoYYqc984XMtK2-X3gPccra3SKDZR-xFFODTW4T4tJP36PS-Kdc0yByxDj0Dz2ATU8rBTiWz0-sp8oo84lYLVENULNeDTy6iAqEATwMsarnQ9SZq5Ma38oH19QjqslwPF4R0uxaBuemD0HChFa8AC/s1500/LALA.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1491" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5h8UXG8NXCOORlHqPZenVtzDYELDDn6h7ua8NzsafoYYqc984XMtK2-X3gPccra3SKDZR-xFFODTW4T4tJP36PS-Kdc0yByxDj0Dz2ATU8rBTiWz0-sp8oo84lYLVENULNeDTy6iAqEATwMsarnQ9SZq5Ma38oH19QjqslwPF4R0uxaBuemD0HChFa8AC/w398-h400/LALA.jpg" width="398" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: left;">With the arrival of the new year, so comes a new Guided by Voices record!<br /> <br />Much in the same vein as <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2023/08/tremblers-and-goggles-by-rank-2022.html" target="_blank"><span class="il">Tremblers</span> and Goggles by Rank</a></i>, comes the oddly named “La La Land.” I saw GBV around the time <i><span class="il">Tremblers</span>…</i> came out, to which Pollard announced the title (which had also been circulating around the internet), and explained it was inspired by an old “bully” of sorts in the Dayton area who’d tell people he’d knock them into “la la land.” Whatever the case, this certainly didn’t stop a rash of short lived blurbs relating this to some sort of nod to the 2017 Oscar contender of same name.<br /> <br />All Gosling/Stone press aside, <i>La La Land</i> is the natural companion piece (as also stated in the press releases) to <span class="il"><i>Tremblers...</i></span> in almost every way: shorter track list than usual (11), longer song forms (another 6 minute outing!), heavy emphasis on multiple musical sections per song, and experimentation with audio trickery not always synonymous with GBV. All boxes are checked, and for the most part it works, perhaps better on one side of the LP than the other.<br /> <br />The reformed lineup (which at this point is consistently the longest and strongest formation of the band), continues to crank them out with engineering mastermind Travis Harrison. At this point, it feels like anything is possible with this band, and after 14 studio albums dating back to 2017 could you even argue that statement? For better (or worse for the easily fatigued), that seems to be true. While not an overall immediate impact record as some, there are a smattering of gems in this field of prog risks, pop sincerity, and bold ideas. <br /> </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />SIDE A:<br /><u>Another Day To Heal</u>- <b>1 </b>I recall reading a quote someone posted after talking to guitarist Bobby Bare Jr. where he said "just wait to you hear <i>La La Land!</i>" While I am paraphrasing a second-hand quote, high standards for this record were already in motion. So upon hearing the opening track, I was rather confounded. Along with "Made Man," off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/08/earth-man-blues-2021.html" target="_blank">Earthman Blues</a></i>, I still scratch my head as to why this was chosen as an opener. It's a direct but extremely middle-of-the-road guitar driven track with little to write home about. For some odd reason, Pollard's vocals are not only way up in the mix, but slightly out of tune most of the track, having the feel of a one-and-done vocal take (not necessarily for the better). The best part of this is the essential fade out into the glorious... <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Released Into Dementia</u>- <b>5 </b>Speaking of vocals, has Pollard ever sounded better!? Talk about a wild juxtaposition, but Bob sounds like he's singing for the angels on this gorgeous track. Solidified by a sturdy acoustic backbone, this one crunches but remains consistently airy while never losing its heaviness. The melancholy, Beatles-esque "organ" part at 1:25 is to die for, followed by a Doug Gillard riff that consistently leaves my speakers smoking. A real open-your-arms-and-embrace life celebration, "Released Into Dementia," is the type of track that makes you thankful you have not only found out about Guided by Voices, but that you've made them your favorite band. <br /><b><br /></b><u>Ballroom Etiquette</u>- <b>4 </b>Following in the footsteps of "... Dementia," GBV bring another of their prettier songs. While not nearly as crushing or dreamy as its predecessor, Pollard provides more incredible vocals while weaving a hallucinatory web of lyrics. The cadence is almost nursery-rhymelike at times making this an infectious earworm, if not always immediately. <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Instinct Dwelling</u>- <b>4 </b>This is the first glimpse the public saw of the LP, as this was released as the initial internet only single. After the previous 2 tracks, this one feels like the "punk" statement from the band. Pollard gives a more pissed-off, ominous vocal performance on the stomping chug of the verses before the gates burst open with its simplistic, fist-raising choruses. Carried mostly by the guitar crunch of Bare and Gillard, it's one of the heavier GBV dirges in a while, arriving with tinges of hopelessness and snarl. <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Queen of Spaces</u>- <b>5 </b>Perhaps after too much attitude from "Instinct Dwelling," GBV roll out one of of the most intimate moments in the discography A song so cold and brittle in spots, you almost have to sit and observe, afraid it might break in your handling like an icicle. After sparse acoustic plucking, longing piano chords, and a blanket of strings, Pollard finally makes his entrance at the 1:20 minute mark. An what an entrance it is; the icing on top of what has to fit in the box marked "TOP 10 PRETTIEST GBV SONGS OF ALL-TIME." If <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html" target="_blank">"It's Good,"</a> helped start the tears years ago, "Queen of Spaces," may help clear out your tear ducts for a while as you reflect on the entirety of your life, or perhaps the endless boundaries the fucking universe itself. <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Slowly on the Wheel</u>- <b>3 </b>Perhaps in an effort to catch your breath, Pollard unveils one of the heaviest experimental pieces of GBV writing and patience in a while. As if challenging "Who Wants to Go Hunting?," we're hit with another 6 minute outing, this time ending not the record but the first side of the LP. For 1:40 minutes, we hear a lone piano accompanied by a lone, shaky vocal track. It's so bare, it fascinates. Unfortunately, the song remains a little too desolate throughout its run time. At 4 minutes, it finally beings to sound like a rock band, complete with soaring melody worthy of celebration. A bold swing for the fences in experimentation, one that nearly comes close to sticking but pales slightly next to some of the more recent GBV epics of the last few years. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /><b> <br /></b>SIDE B:<br /><u>Cousin Jackie</u>- <b>2 </b>Another layered track, "Cousin Jackie" opens the second side with vibrancy and immediacy. Unfortunately, this has the rare distinction for me as being one I've liked less the more I've heard it. A mid-tempo stomper for most of it, Pollard says "make it rain," somewhere between 20 and 400 times to the point it becomes cloying. Toward the end, he takes a risk on some dated sounding rock scatting that doesn't completely fail but also doesn't really work. A bold track throughout, this one probably has the power the be a fan favorite of the LP, but leaves me longing. <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Wild Kingdom</u>- <b>3 </b>Absolutly melt over what sounds like the demo version of the vocals during the introduction of the song before the band kicks in. Another mid-tempo number that falls into straight ahead rock territory. Being that we're in prog land, the bridge has some start-stop moments. The simple but effective "an invitation to suffering moments," make this one slightly memorable. <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Caution Song</u>- <b>3 </b>A slower, mildly hypnotic track thanks for Pollard sounding like he's floating above the mix. Musically, there's nothing much to highlight, but simply revel in a great vocal delivery that helps make this a late LP song worthy of revisiting. One that seems to get better each time, personally. <br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Face Eraser</u>- <b>3 </b>Somewhere between new wave quirkiness and punk delivery, "Face Eraser" commits the sin of being catchy by being nearly annoying. Pollard manages to continually rhyme a series of basic words with more basic phrasing, a technique that seems beneath his usual writing style. Feels like a sister piece to <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html" target="_blank">"Questions of the Test"</a>; I should love this, but something is missing, and cant help revisiting in hopes that piece has somehow fallen into place.<br /><b><u></u><u></u> <br /></b><u>Pockets</u><b>- 2</b> In the style of "Cousin Jackie," Pollard relies heavily on repeating the title, basically giving scenarios of all the different ways we can use the word "pockets," in one's life. Like the word "pockets" itself, the song is rather a underwhelming. After a an LP of wild ideas, moments of swinging for the fences, this doesn't feel like we're properly shown the door. The extended guitars-only outro brings a welcomed farewell, if not somewhat unnecessary. </div></div>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-5139034908604658762023-08-14T14:20:00.095-07:002023-08-14T17:36:40.927-07:00Tremblers and Goggles By Rank (2022) <p style="text-align: center;"><b> Tremblers and Goggles By Rank </b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2022, Guided by Voices Inc.) </b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhMT4KqYzOIn-Q63GWZTneUpvyyphgHU3EhK4a5Ht1_GhiGLKc1cqs3jjei-pECcIn2v4mlMdeGF97uO15CDT8ljnXgM3447AQKGzFSYL69uvdOWSnMkn7tS8R1admYcnx857W-jztcwKesKU8s0cs8cOZ6HY-aIW2cZhgeSfN_GrLPsRWIksWhAHV9kQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhMT4KqYzOIn-Q63GWZTneUpvyyphgHU3EhK4a5Ht1_GhiGLKc1cqs3jjei-pECcIn2v4mlMdeGF97uO15CDT8ljnXgM3447AQKGzFSYL69uvdOWSnMkn7tS8R1admYcnx857W-jztcwKesKU8s0cs8cOZ6HY-aIW2cZhgeSfN_GrLPsRWIksWhAHV9kQ=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Following on the heels of the rather concise <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2022/06/crystal-nuns-cathedral-2022.html" target="_blank">Crystal Nuns Cathedral</a></i>, 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 <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2014/03/robert-pollard-is-off-to-business-2008.html" target="_blank">Robert Pollard is Off to Business</a></i> and <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-crawling-distance-2009.html" target="_blank">The Crawling Distance</a>, </i>in terms of number of tracks. While the song total may seem skimpier when comparing it to your copy of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html">Zeppelin Over China</a></i>, 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.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><i><span class="il">Tremblers</span> and Goggles By Rank</i> boasts a collection that finds more in common with <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/08/earth-man-blues-2021.html">“Lights Out in Memphis”</a> or <a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/10/sweating-plague-2019.html">“Sons of the Beard”</a> rather than <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/alien-lanes-1995.html" target="_blank">“Auditorium”</a> or <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/static-airplane-jive-1993.html" target="_blank">“Hey Aardvark.”</a> 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 <i>Sweating the Plague, </i>an LP that was continuously lauded as a "prog" LP in the press releases. <br /> <br />When it works, <i>Tremblers... </i>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.</span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><u></u><u></u></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">SIDE A:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Lizard On the Red Brick Wall</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">4 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">From the first note, things already feel a little different in the Pollardverse than previous records. </span>Immediately<span style="font-family: inherit;">, 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. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Alex Bell</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">5 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">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 </span>infectious<span style="font-family: inherit;"> lead-out section. It's a song that requires patience, but seems to deliver new </span>surprises<span style="font-family: inherit;"> 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! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Unproductive Funk</u>- <b>4 </b>Starting with purpose and conviction via the guitar into, GBV once again returns </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">with a </span>repetitive<span style="font-family: inherit;"> 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. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Roosevelt's Marching Band</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">3 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">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 </span>heightened<span style="font-family: inherit;"> by the subtly dreamier backing/double vocals that provide much welcomed support. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Googles By Rank</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">3 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">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 </span>tendencies<span style="font-family: inherit;">. 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. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">SIDE B:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Cartoon Fashion (Bongo Lake)</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">1 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">The second side opens </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">with more multi-sectioned madness (a 4 parter at that, listed </span>separately<span style="font-family: inherit;"> in the </span>track listing)<span style="font-family: inherit;">. 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 </span>buffoonery<span style="font-family: inherit;"> 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 </span>propulsion<span style="font-family: inherit;">. If there is purpose and intent here, I'm not really sure what it is. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Boomerang</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- <b>4 </b>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 </span>sequencing<span style="font-family: inherit;">, it provides the perfect "intro" to... </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Focus On the Flock</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">3 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">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</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">. Always </span>surprising<span style="font-family: inherit;">, 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 </span>experiment<span style="font-family: inherit;"> that never stops shifting in its 3 minutes. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Puzzle Two</u>- <b>2 </b>Much in the fashion of <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/08/earth-man-blues-2021.html" target="_blank">"Test Pilot,"</a> 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. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;">Who Wants To Go Hunting?</u><span style="font-family: inherit;">- </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">4 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Ladies and gentlemen, believe it or not, here is the 6 minute GBV song. Yes, the band that once brought you <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/alien-lanes-1995.html" target="_blank">"Cigarette Tricks</a>" 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 </span>cryptically<span style="font-family: inherit;"> "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. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br /><p></p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-25543455208091708412022-06-24T09:30:00.006-07:002022-06-25T18:21:10.555-07:00Crystal Nuns Cathedral ( 2022) <p style="text-align: center;"> <b>Crystal Nuns Cathedral</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2022, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgY0LRt1fiBCibd4C-WnZR9ZI8Tjh9Pi9Rd3fEM5xfoqS6O49GomxDw9aI4UrK3GI31jE7vZ324IPyz8tmKBjO5sOuUVszquyNgv7Lg9Bvqh9fTSLC_YiWpSzip8hgW0L-Q6p5PevKiQ8XgTOF-3Nk5kdeKQMFOjoQCO2rNGhso2SXru43FF-w8sf6ITw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgY0LRt1fiBCibd4C-WnZR9ZI8Tjh9Pi9Rd3fEM5xfoqS6O49GomxDw9aI4UrK3GI31jE7vZ324IPyz8tmKBjO5sOuUVszquyNgv7Lg9Bvqh9fTSLC_YiWpSzip8hgW0L-Q6p5PevKiQ8XgTOF-3Nk5kdeKQMFOjoQCO2rNGhso2SXru43FF-w8sf6ITw=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></b></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal">Until 2018’s <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/10/sweating-plague-2019.html" target="_blank">Sweating the Plague</a></i>, the concept of the 12 track GBV album was almost unfathomable. A band
known for <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/sunfish-holy-breakfast-1996.html" target="_blank">10 track EPs</a> (and a minimum of 14 to 15 songs per LP), the aforementioned LP broke new ground
with one of their more focused, yet prog heavy affairs. It was a record that left
little fat in the mix. Such was also the case with 2017’s <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html" target="_blank">Space Gun</a></i>; a 15 track LP so worthy of
celebration, Robert Pollard admitted to the conscious decision of letting it stand as the band's lone album of 2018.</p><p class="MsoNormal">While we're on the topic of <i>Space Gun</i>, I have personally come to regard it as the benchmark. Such is my fervor for what is undeniably the stone-cold best
amalgamation of any Guided by Voices' lineup, this LP has remained in my heart as the best of the (whopping) 12 LPs since 2016. Its tracks weave
nicely between heavy-handed pop, listener friendly prog, all topped with soaring
harmonies. It's the reunion record I did not think could be topped.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Then, along comes <i>Crystal Nuns Cathedral</i>. Following 2021’s
somewhat inconsistent <a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2022/02/its-not-them-it-couldnt-be-them-it-is.html" target="_blank">I<u>t's Not Them. It Couldn't Be Them. It Is Them!</u></a>, this record comes as a bit of a shock. Where
the former is a collection of orchestral anthems smattered with some ho-hum
2-3 minute pop-leaning filler (and “Razor Bug”!!!), <i>CNC</i> drops into the catalog like
an anvil. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">
At 12 songs, it’s a lean tracklist to be reckon with. However, every song packs a undeniable punch. The lack of filler shows, as every move feels about as calculated and deliberate as anything
Pollard has released. As is the ongoing case with every new GBV, Travis
Harrison continues to aid as the 6th member of the band with his stellar production. If there's a set of ears who gets how to elevate the band, they belong to Harrison. His production work alone cannot be understated as the band reaches new sonic highs. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Over the past few albums, Doug Gillard’s string
arrangements give an aural heaviness and emotional weight to these records that can
be felt in one’s bones. <i>Crystal Nuns Cathedral</i> is no exception. In all this, Pollard continues to laugh in the face of the concept of aging. Vocally, he absolutely crushes his past performances with
possibly his best showing to date. To top it off, the often psychedelic, existential lyricism are some of his recent best.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">The question is not whether <i>Crystal Nuns Cathedral</i> as a whole is the best new "reunion record," but possibly one of the best Robert Pollard related albums of
all-time?<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p></div><p style="text-align: left;">SIDE A:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Eye City</u>- <b>5 </b>With its lackadaisical guitar bends and subdued time keeping, it's pretty immediate we're not in for a record filled with a bunch of<span style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/alien-lanes-1995.html" target="_blank">“Cigarette Tricks”</a> and “Hit" length tracks. </span>No punch in the gut here, the LP opens with a breath of cold air, Pollard hovering over the vocal mix like hanging icicles. The guitars snake around as if longing to burst. After a much anticipated set up the song inevitably explodes at the chorus. Pollard's layered harmonies are equal parts haunting and infectious. Laden with dynamics, this opener is a panasonic attack of layered haze, the band waiting to attack at any moment. A long fuse burns slow eventually leaving unavoidable burns. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Re-Develop</u>- <b>5</b> Tom pounding abounds as Bare Jr. and Gillard lead a staccato guitar jab while Pollard lays an instantly slyly hooky verse. In revelry, the chorus opens into a top 10 fist raising anthem. Straddles a wonderfully delicate line between longing and immediacy. Begs for repeated listens during moments of triumph, and times of uncertainty.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Climbing a Ramp</u>- <b>4</b> Carried by Gillard's pummeling cello arrangement and March's robotic hi-hat work, "Climbing a Ramp" is an upward journey full of longing, loss of hope, anxiety, and eventually the gimmer of possible hope. Like the grind itself, this feels like it'll never end, trapped in the ever moving, unforgiving gears of life itself. Eventually Gillard's blazing lead into fiery solo carries us out. Additionally, the orchestration brings this song to new heights, with Pollard's not-so-thinly-veiled lyrics about continuing to carry on "always climbing a ramp" only adding to the weight. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Never Mind the List</u>- <b>5</b> After the anxiety and eventual release of "Climbing a Ramp," this song sounds downright breezy. Closer to "classic" GBV than the previous songs on the record, "Never Mind the List" is carried by a singular Pollard vocal take that absolutely shines. Incredibly infectious in its mid-tempo groove, this song seems to again speak of continuing to carry on. Never mind "the list," disregard the outside voices. Come to think of it, never mind what I say on this site either! "And I always throw another list away." </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Birds In the Pipe</u>- <b>4</b> The band plays a sparse waltzy cadence, Pollard confidently upfront in the mix. Another perfectly paced track with a lot of open space to breath. Halfway through, Pollard introduces an incredible call and response vocal part. Eventually, he ups the ante at the 2 minute mark, hitting incredible vocal highs, nailing the notes on the head. Where this may have paled slightly in the past, the group is so incredibly gelled with Harrisons' production topping it off nicely.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Come North Together</u>- <b>5</b> Immediacy takes center stage, Pollard bellowing harmoniously from the jump. Side A leads us out with another celebratory anthem dotted with moments of melancholy. It cannot be understated just how surefooted Pollard sounds here, from the sing-along worthy verses to the bridge. An incredible ending to one of the strongest sides of any GBV outing. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;">SIDE B:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Forced To Sea</u>- <b>3 </b>We open SIDE B with what feels like a callback to "Next Sea Level" off <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html" target="_blank">Surrender Your Poppy Field</a></i>. It's a soundscape track of sorts, with the band nearly aimlessly moving along in pure mood. There's no immediacy here as you begin to wonder if we're getting an instrumental. At nearly 2 minutes, Kevin March kicks in with Pollard following suite. As close to stoner rock as the record comes to at this point, "Forced to Sea," is in no hurry, eventually leading us out with the force and determination.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Huddled</u>- <b>3</b> "Huddled" is one of those tracks that means no harm, no foul. In fact, every time I hear it, I've really enjoy it. However, in an LP full of continuous surprises and on point performances, I often find myself forgetting how this one goes. Somewhat prog-laced with its multi-sectional pieces. Not much in the way of a chorus to sink ones teeth into, but a strong enough middle of the pack showing nonetheless. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Excited Ones</u>- <b>5</b> The first of internet streaming singles to see release, "Excited Ones" is a pure melodic torpedo anthem aimed straight the auditory cortex. This one almost comes off as GBV-up-to-their-usual-tricks. Regardless, there's no point in denying the joy of this hooky, immediate anthem. Pollard slips in more moments of sly harmonizing as the band upwardly bashes behind him in a joyous pogo. Another revelatory track cloaked in a thin layer of melancholy. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>The Eyes of Your Doctor</u>- <b>4</b> A hefty dish of psychedelic and the prog on one of the records most ambitious songs. "The Eyes of Your Doctor" starts out in an airy territory. Midway, the tempo picks up with immediacy before drawing us back into calm. Full of jilted starts and stops, Gillard's leads provide a memorable hook. Vocally, the hooks sink in after repeated listens. At 4 minutes, and with a smattering of moving parts, this may prove to be one the sneakiest earworms of the LP with its assortment of surprises.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Mad River Man</u>- <b>3</b> Foreboding penultimate track, the song is mostly carried by Harrison's production. Pollard delivers a somewhat middle of the road vocal hook over one of the gloomier showings on the record. A minor chord feast that comes off as one of the more forgettable moments of the record.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Crystal Nuns Cathedral</u>- <b>5</b> Following the gloom of "Mad River Man," the band fires back up for a wonderfully revelatory, concise, and hook laden closer. Full of cryptic, psych lyrical mysticism, this may be the most immediate closer since <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html" target="_blank">"An Unmarketed Product,</a>." At just under 2 minutes, this pop gem calls for you to flip the record back over and start the journey again. </p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-81637671636889638002022-02-20T11:22:00.002-08:002022-02-20T11:31:27.538-08:00It's Not Them. It Couldn't Be Them. It Is Them (2021)<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="background-color: white; color: #202124; white-space: nowrap;">It's Not Them. It Couldn't Be Them. It Is Them</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: inherit;">(2021, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhd3kaXo2bNNTgiOnZZfLMsFq_apJcqYktFYmO0AHepVvoTfS289kuwlKUNjnuoeoJzoBMuJfhxsSYnHTi9Lds2gLF1wzuM0gjIltTgCkHTnKflKGh9xne36ZLrc81tDQ3s3Cm9SevPGfDK9uN1ntncxTAXY20GV6wkHzQ7LAYwL-ruJACvvC1vQMafTg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhd3kaXo2bNNTgiOnZZfLMsFq_apJcqYktFYmO0AHepVvoTfS289kuwlKUNjnuoeoJzoBMuJfhxsSYnHTi9Lds2gLF1wzuM0gjIltTgCkHTnKflKGh9xne36ZLrc81tDQ3s3Cm9SevPGfDK9uN1ntncxTAXY20GV6wkHzQ7LAYwL-ruJACvvC1vQMafTg=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Reputedly an album
title that was in contention for 2003’s <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/earthquake-glue-2003.html" target="_blank"><i>Earthquake </i>Glue</a>, the <i>INTICBTIIT </i>moniker finally sees the light of day<i>. </i>As tongue-in-cheek as it is
true (and a testament to the groups audacity), Guided by Voices continues to
throw caution to the wind. Record plant backups be damned, GBV can’t be
stopped, won’t be stopped! The 2nd proper Guided by Voices album of 2021 (and
the 11th with the re-reunion band, if you're still keeping score at home), is
yet another triumphant display from the solidified line-up that seems
determined to take no prisoners with each subsequent record.</span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">After the
experimental, mixed fidelity "school musical rock opera" grab bag
of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/08/earth-man-blues-2021.html" target="_blank">Earthman Blues</a></i>, GBV issue another 15 tracks crammed with sentimentality,
high wire experimentation, and an orchestral display rarely seen before. The sheer
fidelity here is also an immediate standout. Always a wiz behind the boards,
Travis Harrison takes matters in his own hand by crafting perhaps the most
hi-fi GBV record yet, one that really compliments the inclusion of such
orchestral passages as mentioned. The experience truly pays off in helping push
some of the records (multiple) triumphant moments through the ribcage.</span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Unlike some its
predecessors, It Can’t Be Them.. is one of the few records that feels like it
lacks any sort of cohesive feel, weather thematically (<i>Earthman Blues</i>),
or stylistically (<i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/01/styles-we-paid-for-2020.html" target="_blank">Styles We Paid For</a>, </i></span></span><i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html">Surrender Your Poppy Field</a></i><span style="font-family: inherit;">). This doesn’t
necessarily detract from the record. However, it’s one of the first in a while
that feels like assortment of songs without a distinct stake in the catalog to
claim. Nevertheless, it’s another dizzy display of Pollard’s bottomless barrel
of brilliance delivered in recent year quality we’ve not only come to expect,
but may possibly be taking for granted at this point.</span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">SIDE A:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><u style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;">Spanish Coin</span></u><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">- <b>4 </b>As
the 3<sup>rd</sup> run of GBV LPs continue to pile up, the surprise left
turns of Song 1/Side 1 keep coming. No longer a sure bet, Pollard has used these
first tracks as a springboard for some of his wilder ideas (see “Year of the
Hard Hitter,” <a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/10/sweating-plague-2019.html">“Downer,”</a> etc.) “Spanish Coin” is no exception. At nearly 3.5
minutes, the song takes its time building up over traditional flamenco guitar
leads, trilling trumpets, and layers of Latin percussion. Pollard sounds
upfront, somewhat desperate in his delivery, really aiding the arid feel of it
all. If nothing else, the song is another welcomed gamble in style and mood
that generally pays off.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></span><u style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;">High In the Rain</span></u><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">- <b>5 </b>One
of the early online singles released for the LP, “High In the Rain” is up there
with some of the most triumphant GBV songs in the catalog. Pollard sounds
excellent, bellowing out melody after beautiful melody. Gillard’s string
arrangements sore, hitting you directly in the chest. Like the opener, this one
builds until ready to burst. Perhaps almost too heavy handed in spots for some,
this is uber lush territory, only further propelled by Travis Harrison's
impeccable production.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></span><u style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;">Dance of the Gurus</span></u><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">- <b>5</b> A
propulsive guitar anthem, filled with psych dropouts. Not to mention
infectious, perhaps due to Pollard’s near cloying repetitive word play of the
fleeting not traditional “choruses.” The song benefits from some well timed
drop out, only to explode back in, particularly at the end.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></span><u style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;">Flying Without a License</span></u><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">- <b>3 </b>Barebones guitar intro gives way to sudgier
prog psych. When the band kicks in they
trudge along a slow groove, taken their time while cloaks himself in a blanket
of vocal reverb. The whole track feels clouded in smoke, as you peer through
the haziness with half open dried eyes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></span><u style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;">Psycho House</span></u><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">- <b>4 </b>Following
the vein of recently named “house” songs, this one takes a page from the
repetitive slow burn of such growers as “Slaughterhouse” off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/01/styles-we-paid-for-2020.html">Styles We Paid For</a></i>. Subdued to a low-level drone jam of sorts, “Psycho House” constructs
a hypnotic mood, one that’s easy to fall backwards into waiting for it to
consume you. The kind of song that boarders on temporary psychotic bliss.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">Maintenance Man of the Haunted House</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>3 </b>Speaking
of more “house” songs, Pollard continues his fascination with domestic
dwellings. Here, Pollard and gang dive deeper into “moody” territory. The feel
of this one is solely in the name. An eerier slow burn, in the vein of Circus
Devils’ track.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">I Share a Rhythm</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>2 </b>Completely
harmless pop rocker. Unfortunately, it’s the cut and paste structure that makes
this feel mostly forgettable. Comes off as a tossed off track backed by a
single <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pollard vocal track that’s one of
the only spots on the record leaves a little to be desired. The type of GBV
track that fails to make its way into my memory, causing me to forget what it
sounds like until I put it back on.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">Razor Bug</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>1 </b>Destined to be THE
most talked about track of the LP (for all the wrong reasons), “Razor Bug” is
essentially the new <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/05/please-be-honest-2016.html">“Sad Baby Eyes,”</a> but more stripped down. Pollard “performs”
acapella into his boombox, sounding like a sloppier, less gravely Captain
Beefheart, spewing off some possibly stream-of-conscience lines about Mr. Razor
Bug. I don’t hate its inclusion, and in fact kind of enjoy it showing up to end
Side A. Essential? Far from it. An event not to be missed. Oh yeah. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">SIDE B:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">I Wanna Monkey</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>2 </b>Excellent
industrial drum intro leads us into post-punk pop territory. At nearly 3
minutes, Pollards voice hangs upfront for the majority, bringing to mind a Lee
Ranoldo-esque delivery. The outro propels toward the finish line, Pollard
shining in a bellowed doubled vocal performance, but the song never really
takes hold, falling flat in an “I Share a Rhythm” kind of way. </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">Cherub and the Great Child Actor</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>4 </b>From
the get-go, the lead intro brings to mind some vintage Pollardian penned moments
. Vocally, Pollard delivers a hypnotically melodic croon throughout. The group
comes off so effortlessly, it's almost easy to miss the simplistic beauty here.
Smooth, subtly jangled, subtly psych, all pop at a perfectly prim 2 minutes.
The song rings out... </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">Black and White Eyes In a Prism</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>5 </b>...
different in scope but somewhat similar in feel, we pick back up, as if this
were the added addendum to "Cherub..." At 4 and a half minutes, "Black
and White Eyes..." is the epic of the LP, and what an epic it is.
Disregarding multi-sectioned layers found on some of the band's recent epic outings (i.e. "Light Out in Memphis," "Sons of the Beard"), "Black and White..." relies
on its easy flow groove while slipping easily into a multitude of lush string
passages. Much like "High In the Rain," this one spills over the top
several times in pure revelatory triumph. </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">People Need Holes</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>4 </b>Dogged
by a fairly forgettable first half, "People Need Holes" is all about
the fist raising second section. The first minute and a half is all about the
anticipation, waiting for Gillard's angular lead to accent Pollard's deadpan
melody until the quadrophonic "oh yeah"s carry you off downstream in
a joyous haze.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">The Bell Gets Out of the Way</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>3 </b>Reserved
in feel, similar to "Low Flying Perfection, “ off <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/08/how-do-you-spell-heaven-2017.html" target="_blank">How Do You Spell Heaven</a>. </i>After running through a bit of an
emotional gamut, "The Bell..." feels like a refreshing palate
cleanser with a finish warm hug. A place to regroup after some heavy handed
aural therapy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span><u style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;">Chain Gang Island</span></u><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">- <b>3 </b>Mid-tempo
stomp, accented by some immense vocal reverb for max psych disorientation. Boiling
slow and steady, it all mounts to a headrush of feeling; a satisfying blend of
hard psych rock finishing off in an extended, swirling existential psych jam
that's a welcomed (and necessary) addition to the LP. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="color: #222222;">My (Limited) Engagement</span></u><span style="color: #222222;">- <b>5 </b>The
first of the online singles to be released from the LP, GBV send the LP off on
a high leg-kicking note, Pollard reaching the highs with a saccharine sweet
bellow. A compact mini-anthem destined for easy GBV playlist pop territory. A
final sunbeam at just under 2 minutes from another sonically demanding LP of
tricks and audial delights. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div></span></div>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-58571806612976576072022-02-16T14:49:00.003-08:002022-02-16T14:49:33.776-08:00Clang Clang Ho (2021)<p style="text-align: center;"> <b>Clang Clang Ho</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2021, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdVdsOsFjhG2HHJJubQC1GSOSvtVS7USnaEiLGDj49YwiTw1uTIWu3DE1DkVg2Bb3o375RrycuF3BSOjk16P48Su2ZXMEuKwixGcsG3c-StfsvdsiTzn5O-d6Vqcuv3wlGAsNyPY2zkD84/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdVdsOsFjhG2HHJJubQC1GSOSvtVS7USnaEiLGDj49YwiTw1uTIWu3DE1DkVg2Bb3o375RrycuF3BSOjk16P48Su2ZXMEuKwixGcsG3c-StfsvdsiTzn5O-d6Vqcuv3wlGAsNyPY2zkD84/w400-h400/cub_scout_bowling_pins_clang_clang_ho_large.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;">It’s July 4<sup>th</sup> weekend 2021, and Guided by Voices have returned less than 3 months removed from <i>Earth Man Blues</i>! They cannot be stopped!!! The full roster is here. 20 jammed packed songs from the likes of Pollard, Gillard, March, Shue, and Bare Jr. Soundman/producer Travis Harrison is on back on board, fiddling with knobs and taking on full instrumental responsibilities as well! Except, this isn't GBV at all. It's the full length debut of the somewhat "mysterious" Cub Scout Bowling Pins!<u></u><u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;">Following the release of the highly lauded <i>Heaven Beats Iowa </i>(an EP that swooped into the pre-order world without warning, and was delivered to doorsteps in one of the fastest turn around surprises in a while), expectations were set. The 6 song EP featured a mix of styles (lo-fi rock, power pop, new wave inspired pieces) that blended together and satisfied like a heat-and-serve lunch on the run. It was a quick shock of creativity from a group of guys already churning out an unfathomable amount of material since reforming in 2016.<u></u><u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;">Perhaps the bar then was set just a little too high for the debut LP <i>Clang Clang Ho</i>, one of the more uneven offerings in the Pollard catalog in a while. The LP in hindsight almost feels doomed after the one-two punch of its predecessors creative offerings. In its place, the LP feels at times lacking the urgency, creativity, brevity set forth earlier in the calendar year. The LP in turn tends to fall somewhere in between a Cash Rivers album (without the blue humor) and dated adult contemporary. Add a few dashes of psychedelia and muddled mid-fi pop for good measure, and you’re left to make sense of this as a whole.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;">One of the more polarizing issues with the LP, nearly every track runs the risk of feeling mucked up with dated synths, tropical themed percussion, and a smattering of electronic bleeps and bloops that add up to a bit of a sonic head-scratcher. On top of that, there’s almost no predicting when Pollard will drop in with some further muffled scatting vocal tracks. <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;">It's a record brimming with collective ideas, each member writing and recording backing tracks that does bring a few merits to the table. It’s a grab bag for sure, one that sometimes maddens more than delights, bringing new sonic layers to the Pollard pre-recorded vocal boombox demos universe.<u></u><u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;">Strap in and take the ride in the...<u></u><u></u></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;">SIDE A:<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Magic Taxi</u>- <b>3</b> We begin our ride through the fun house with a solid attempt at '60s melodic pop, glazed in a dreamlike fog. Feels reminiscent of a fairly balanced combo of The Monkees meets The Who. However, the whole track is so bloated with lush acoustics and sweeping synths that it winds up overshadowing much of the simplistic beauty going on here. Memorably hooky in a children’s song kind of way.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Flip Flop World</u>- <b>1</b> Ho' boy. Who let Cash Rivers crash his dune buggy into the second track of this album? Uncle Bob shows up to basically scat over dinner table Luau music full of bongos and subtle surf rock palm muting. Humorous if little else.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Casino Hair Wife</u>- <b>3</b> Mid-tempo tune for gray skies, but one that slowly wins you over in bleary eyed monotony. Pollard sings in a drawl as the song limps along with undertones of postpunk malaise, sneaking into the back of your brain to stay.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Ride My Earthmobile</u>- <b>2</b> Pollard repeats the title of the song a million times in a goofball voice as <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #202124; font-family: inherit;">kaleidoscopic</span> carnival rock spins around, toms pounding, slowly building in an anxious repetition of jilted psychosis. A slight glimmer of hope musically, built around a limited Pollard vocal sketch.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Schoolmaster Bones</u>- <b>3 </b>Bounce-tastic easy listening, as Pollard croons, and sometimes plods his way through. A mini Who-esque number in places that rewards with revisits. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Eggs, Mother?</u>- <b>4 </b>Pollard, a man haunted by eggs, continued obsession with finding ways to sing about them in his art. One of the more upwardly mobile songs in the set, the track is an obtusely catch track that sinks in. The piano adds an extra bounce in the songs already carefree step. At just over a minute, it's a bizarre ray of sunshine in a somewhat murky record.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Strange Walk Home</u>- <b>2 </b>FM '90s college rock radio friendly, "Strange Walk Home" feels like a hazy dream. Pollard's vocals wonder about complete with tremelo effect and the donning of odd accents. Unfortunately, it's all mostly forgettable. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Nova Mona</u>- <b>3 </b>Another one that falls instrumentally in pop-bop spectrum. The Pollard vocals on the verses leave little to be desired, causing it to all fall in the pocket of blandly average. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>The Telegraph Hill Gazette</u>- <b>3</b> Opens with promising jangled acoustic guitar lead before heading slowly down a darker, more mysterious path. By songs end, this one feels like we're deep in the woods, buried in another dream. Almost forgettable if not for it's incredible execution as moods transition before our ears. Seamlessly bleeds into... <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Everybody Loves a Baboon</u>- <b>1 </b>A song that lives up to its poor title. More scatting from Uncle Bob as this song leads us out in under a minute. <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;">SIDE B:<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>© 1-2-3</u>- <b>4 </b>The bonafide pop single of the LP, Side B’s opener is vintage melancholy pop, complete with call and response melodic gold. A steadfast winner that warrants plenty of quick, satisfying visits.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Sister Slam Dance</u>- <b>3 </b>Perhaps the most “metal” track on the LP, this song also lyrically tips its hat to the <i>Clang Clang Ho</i> title. Somewhat grim, with a dash of industrial, “Sister Slam Dance,” is the kind of prog-light sludge you find yourself eventually reveling in.<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>It's Marbles!</u>- <b>1 </b>A mixed bag of guitar bending, harmonious backing vocals, Uncle Bob drunken accent bending. Also feels like a Cash Rivers song that got away and stuck here. Not sure who this song is for? <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Space Invader</u>- <b>4 </b>A mini-prog pop passage that is easy on the ears as it is on the heart. Sounds like a paisley-shirt era '60s demo. One of the best of the tracks on the record that gets better with each listen. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Human Car</u>- <b>1 </b>At 1:30, "Human Car" is more filler for the mix, unfortunately clogging up the Side B with odd choices. No real vocal melody to speak of. Feels like Pollard was trying to figure a few things out as he went along. Musically, the song also feels like a skeletal work in progress that never found its footing. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Competitor</u>- <b>2</b> A mostly frenetic wild guitar strumming journey complete with staccato scatting interrupted by moments of ho-hum, breathable moments of reflection. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>She Cannot Know</u>- <b>3 </b>Downer rock complete with haunting pan flute, evoking some sort of brown sweater wearing folk performance on a gloomy fall day in the college quad circa 1967. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>We</u>- <b>4 </b>After a minute instrumental buildup, Pollard appears in another mini-prog display. The song leads out in a group chant and moment of sheer triumph! A nice bright spot toward the end of the record. <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>Roll Up Your Nose</u>- <b>4 </b> Perhaps the best Pollard vocals performance on the record, complete with melancholy, melodious bravado. The song leads us out with a wonderfully repetitive group vocal of longing and victory. <u></u>Yes, this certainly is one hell of a closing track to bring this long record to a fitting close!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><u>What Crawls Also Flies Over</u>- <b>2 </b>Oh wait, what a perfectly missed opportunity at a closer with that last one! In perhaps fitting fashion, this 2 minute mid-tempo tune actually sends us off with out of tune vocals, paper thin drumming, and lifeless acoustics. Clang clang ho! </p></div><p></p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-47477473371210811702021-08-24T17:11:00.004-07:002021-08-25T05:20:01.796-07:00Earth Man Blues (2021)<p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>Earth Man Blues</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"> <b>(2021, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzjdF3wLPJWHLLXOHVDe_CebCIXHfEeAiV5tKWrjbvIb7yBjvqPtRU7lNrSnFPiNu7Z0plrVskVeDYh8pq4Sj7gkuStC8clCy5fXUTp1ynBIxp6ACsmyjnpUPeh5IG7E5Chma1zNhzKMsE/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzjdF3wLPJWHLLXOHVDe_CebCIXHfEeAiV5tKWrjbvIb7yBjvqPtRU7lNrSnFPiNu7Z0plrVskVeDYh8pq4Sj7gkuStC8clCy5fXUTp1ynBIxp6ACsmyjnpUPeh5IG7E5Chma1zNhzKMsE/w400-h400/guided_by_voices_earth_man_blues_large.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></b></div><br /><p style="font-weight: bold;"></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"></p>
<p><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">In
the Robert Pollardsphere, the concept LP is a bridge that’s been crossed
several times. While often not overtly rooted in any tangible concept, Pollard
(ever the rock aficionado), has slapped that label onto various records that
seemingly contain little to no theme. It’s part of what makes the snaking
creative labyrinth of his colossal body of work so enjoyable, intriguing. </span></p>
<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<p><span style="color: black;">With
the concept record in mind, we find ourselves at a hodgepodge of ideas smashed
together as only Pollard and Guided by Voices can present. Beyond his penchant
for assigning elusive meaning to some of his LPs, Pollard is a collector of his
own ideas strewn across notebooks, cut-and-paste collages, and dusty cassette
tapes straight from the boombox. Armed with a collection of such ideas, and
always looking for new ways to assemble his art, Pollard went different route
in constructing GBV’s frenetic LP <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Earth
Man Blues</i>. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p><span style="color: black;">A
collection of discarded songs, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Earth
Man Blues</i> resurrects some of Pollard’s scraps from recent years and gives
them new, often exciting life. It’s an assemblage of nearly lost bastard songs
and snippets redone and remotely recorded from several locations across the US
(including Kevin March’s drums being put to tape outdoors from a Montclair, NJ
parking garage). To top it off, Pollard assembles the liner notes and artwork
to mimic that of a stage play with the essence of a Playbill. The front cover
boasts “John A. Morrison Production” (Pollard’s elementary alma matter in
Dayton, a school that has since been bulldozed), as we embark on twisted, small
town public school theater.</span></p>
<p><span style="color: black;">Pollard
may not always be profound, but he is always intriguing. And after a potent
2020, GBV with stalwart producer Travis Harrison have delivered a somewhat
confounding record; a times a return to basics, other times venturing off into
bold new experiments. It delights, it frustrates, it keeps you coming back for
more looking to uncover more pieces of the puzzle, much like GBV themselves.</span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: black;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: black;">SIDE A:</span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Made Man</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>2</b> For
an LP of discarded songs, this opener stalls out of the gate as one of the most
trash heap worthy GBV fragments come to life. Practically one verse, so cloying
that it somehow infects your brain over time. Interrupted by an extraneous
orchestral bridge that drops in from left field, making for a maddeningly out
of place yet exciting moment. Damned if you don’t walk around whistling this
blink-and-you-miss-it tune after few spins though. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">The
Disconnected Citizen</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>4</b> A waltzy, breezy ballad carried by
more lush orchestral backing. Pollard sounds warbled, frail but in a positive
way. The whole track feels triumphant, yet dusty, like an old photograph
unearthed in an attic to see the light of day. A potent number that takes it
time, allowing you to interchangeably raise a fist or shed a tear. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">The Batman
Sees the Ball</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>3</b> Lean repetitive riff rocker devoid of any extra baggage.
Carried on the merit of said lead riff, this one feels mostly like a no harm no
foul (no pun intended) track. It’s in the pocket groove gives sculpts it, but
almost feels as if the song suffers from a lack of rock propulsion. It hits
more like a mid-00s Tobias track, missing that certain something that fails to
push this over the edge into greatness.</span></p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Dirty Kid
School</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>3</b> A rare moment of GBV swagger mixed with a healthy
dose of schizophrenia; from the drums to the guitar work, complete with
Pollard's free-swinging vocal lines. Travis Harrison, ever the mad scientist
juggles ideas around making this an aural free-for-all full of daredevil
instrumental changes, complete with Zappa-esque percussive bridge. It's a head
scratcher in some of the best ways. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Trust Them Now</span></u><span style="color: black;">-<b> 5</b> A
propulsive pop track that leans into punk territory with a healthy dose of
Pollardian pop melancholy. Uncle Bob lays down a low registered vocal track
that flows with easy, imbedding itself in one’s brain. The undeniable anthem
and new classic of the record that makes you wonder what could’ve possibly kept
this off any past records in the first place. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Lights Out In
Memphis (Egypt)</span></u><span style="color: black;">-<b> 4</b> If you're looking for a
multi-layered progrocker, strap on your jetpacks, zip up your jumpsuits and
fall face first down the looking glass as this nearly 5 minute monument of rock
unfolds before you. This one takes its time to even get started, eventually
jump cutting from verse to chorus. However, once those choruses hit, and
eventually repeat, it becomes a slow burn cause for celebration. If you stick
it out and revisit, you may find the anticipation of the track, combined with
the instrumental swelling make this too promising to pass up. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: black;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: black;">SIDE B:</span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Free Agents</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>5 </b>Another
new GBV classic! Steady hook filled verses build upon each other until the song
eventually feels as if it takes flight thanks to Gillard's chiming leads and
Pollard's building intensity. By the time we hit the second half of the song,
the band feels aloft, Pollard bellowing dreamy worthy hooks with ease and
purpose. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Sunshine Girl</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>4</b> "Sunshine
Girl" feels like a large chunk of the GBV ethos crammed together in a 2
and half minute package of ear candy. At its core, the song is a delightfully
mixed bag of waltzing folky jangle pop. However, it's bookended by a hell of a
pair of mid-fi psychrock snippets that makes you beg to wonder what wondrous
roads they could've taken us down as well if expanded upon. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Wave Starter</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>3</b> Rolling
toms, pounding snare, and gurgling bass line give this declarative run of the
mill track a strong frame work. Perfectly fine song, almost destined to get
lost in the sea of tunes. Feels like a potential mid set live song Pollard
insists on keeping on setlist for the long haul. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Ant Repellent</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>2</b> One
of those GBV moments in common with a Circus Devils’ idea than a GBV song. The
song is essentially a slow chug and stomp while Pollard and gang annoyingly
deadpan "Ant Repellent. Ant repel ant." A few moving parts, including
a brief stoner jam ending that is a breath of fresh air, but never feels it has
much purpose or direction. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Margaret
Middle School</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>4</b> One simplistic minute of midtempo rock given life padded
nicely with vocal pop hooks that flow with easy. Gets stuck in your head with
little notice. Joyfully short and sweet for a quick revisit. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">I Bet Hippy</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>4 </b>GBV
tackle this track with welcomed minimalism. Pollard sounds somewhat vulnerable
but surefooted. Mark Shue plays a descending bass line that sounds like dense a
melodic avalanche of melancholy slowly rolling down the hillside backed by brittle
guitars. Has the power to slyly sink its teeth into your psyche. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Test Pilot</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>1</b> After
listening to the LP about 20 times, I still can never recall what "Test
Pilot" exactly sounds like. It manages the rare feat of feeling like a
black void on the LP; a song that simply can't be recalled. Pollard sort of
sneers over forgettable guitar licks backed by stiff, uninspired midtempo
drumming. And then it ends, sitting there to be rediscovered and forgotten for
another time. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">How Can A
Plumb Be Perfected?</span></u><span style="color: black;"> - <b>3</b> Perhaps the most cryptic GBV track
of the record. Like “I Bet Hippy,” the band goes with a minimalist approach,
keeping this hushed, letting the beauty lay low. Pollard chooses to veil this
in a shadowy reverb and chilling minimalism. The approach is somewhat
fascinating, and it works, except the chorus constantly brings to mind The
Psychedelic Furs in a way that continues to haunt me in all the wrong ways. A
roadblock yet to be passed. </span></p>
<o:p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><span style="color: black;">Child's Play</span></u><span style="color: black;">- <b>3 </b>One
of the wildest, if not THE wildest closer in GBV history. Actually, one of the
stranger mishmash of songs in the GBV catalog. Absolutely jarring upon first
listen; a fragmented nightmare of high-octane rock, jilted stops and starts,
and masturbatory guitar soloing that begs for a double take and a deep dive
once more. A disjointed send-off on an album full of resurrected ideas. </span></p>
<o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></o:p></span></o:p><br /><p style="font-weight: bold;"></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"></p><p></p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-16258542740001081562021-01-30T18:14:00.004-08:002021-01-30T19:03:45.966-08:00Heaven Beats Iowa EP (2021)<p style="text-align: center;"> <b>Heaven Beats Iowa</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2021, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6qr5kmrsLtTtBfOaZ-yak04fZMcgHIv0jkWHFLwkgh5E7xLvGP-FSuLIiStv389YkLB-cAa2e0WNSiBl9XXX4MIUkGLbO5uy3-2L6-XoyDaB_VLaLfU888KYZrgvewav6_DYpmet696fM/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1198" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6qr5kmrsLtTtBfOaZ-yak04fZMcgHIv0jkWHFLwkgh5E7xLvGP-FSuLIiStv389YkLB-cAa2e0WNSiBl9XXX4MIUkGLbO5uy3-2L6-XoyDaB_VLaLfU888KYZrgvewav6_DYpmet696fM/w400-h400/a1601812993_10.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Originally, word that a project under the name Cub Scout Bowling Pins was casually dropped in a rare Pollard interview a few months prior to the release of GBV's <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2021/01/styles-we-paid-for-2020.html" target="_blank">Styles We Paid For</a></i>. A few weeks later, a sneak peak track popped up in the GBV weekly steaming service, <i>Hot Freaks</i>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Following that, a few weeks of Cub Scout Bowling Pins radio-silence followed. Without warning, early one January day, the pre-orders were up on Rockathon Records, less than a month after <i>SWPF</i>'s street release date. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The 6 song 12 minute EP is a GBV collaboration consisting of the current line-up, seemingly pieced together by regular engineer Travis Harrison from what feels like a variety of different recording contributions by the band. This weirdo pop friendly quickie of a release is a much welcomed surprise in an already, and prolific-even-for-Pollard pool of recent GBV LPs over the past few years. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Limited to 1000 CDs and blue 7''s, respectively. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div>SIDE A:<div><u>Hobson's Beef</u>- <b>3 </b>A solid amalgamation of the pop meets rock aspect that runs through each track on the EP. This opener finds Pollard dipping in and out of tune with varying levels of tape hiss in the mix. Hooky, optimistic guitar lines carry this over drum stomp. Feels like the most patched together, if not progressive of the tracks on the EP. </div><div><br /></div><div><u>Gear Balloon Mouse Trap</u>- <b>5 </b>A melding of vintage early '90s Pollard crashing head on with <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0" target="_blank">Universal Truths</a>...</i> era GBV. A minute and a half crooner that calls back some nostalgia. Benefits from its brevity; a short one that packs an emotionally gratifying wallop.</div><div><br /></div><div><u>Moon Camera</u>- <b>4 </b>A shadowy prog pop number bolstered by some marimba type backing. A creeping indie rock mystery that's subtly great. A 2 minute track that continues to surprise with each revisit.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>SIDE B:</div><div><u>School School</u>- <b>4 </b> What a complete glorious mess. A melancholy, yet fist pumping guitar jangle punk pop anthem in just over a hair of a minute. The lyrics are complete repetitive nonsense, but delivered with a conviction that only adds to the power of this revelatory song.</div><div><br /></div><div><u>Funnel Cake Museum</u>- <b>3 </b>After nearly a minute of airy breathable intro noise, this one takes a hard left into standard guitar stunted mid-tempo rocker. Feels like a <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/05/warp-and-woof-2019_14.html" target="_blank">Warp and Woof</a></i> bonus track. No great shakes, but a wholly familiar, digestible nugget. </div><div><br /></div><div><u>Heaven Beats Iowa</u>- <b>5</b> Released as a preview single track online before release, this closer holds the distinction of being an infectious number that you recognize as a good song, that only gets better with each listen. It sticks with you, that nearly annoying but necessary melody from the organ. Pollard sounds like he's got honey in his voice singing the ending. Keeps you flipping the record over for more. <br /><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br /><br /></b></p></div>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-48003356372413516222021-01-20T20:38:00.003-08:002021-01-22T19:24:19.997-08:00Styles We Paid For (2020) <p style="text-align: center;"> <b>Styles We Paid For</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2020, Guided by Voices Inc.) </b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI8uAdC3nyyfZNg7UF0ZjGLnqN7QnIJSsd_hW75U6hXvmgS3Za3Vss2G63hXTXT_vr9a_uu_59JK160A0hL0utof8gPh-cN4GkA2sJxNdGcvHtb-Hy3ddD2PyxAUy4m7ti-0IsyAJRW9_n/s300/guided_by_voices_styles_we_paid_for_large.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI8uAdC3nyyfZNg7UF0ZjGLnqN7QnIJSsd_hW75U6hXvmgS3Za3Vss2G63hXTXT_vr9a_uu_59JK160A0hL0utof8gPh-cN4GkA2sJxNdGcvHtb-Hy3ddD2PyxAUy4m7ti-0IsyAJRW9_n/w400-h400/guided_by_voices_styles_we_paid_for_large.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">2020 saw the world come to a near halt. Daily life uprooted, people adjusting to the much repeated phrase of “the new normal." The year started with a blow to the record industry, as Apollo Masters in Los Angeles burned to the ground, destroying the largest supplier of vinyl lacquer plates in the world. It seemed as if the future of record pressing was in peril as the industry scrambled to make changes to long outdated practices. A month later, the story was nearly forgotten by some of the most i</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">ndebted music fans and collectors. Soon, it wasn’t just the fact that records were endangered. Record stores,music venues, daily life shut down as sickness took precedent around the globe.<u></u></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In all of the talk of the new norm of the year, blow after blow, one thing remained alarmingly consistent. Yes, if there were any doubts at the impact the events of the year might have on GBV, Pollard and the most formidable lineup assembled to date made sure to squash all fears. It was business as usual by way of Dayton. <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">With their third LP of the year, GBV was able to match 2019's LP output, appeasing everyone in a time of upheaval. According to Pollard, <i>Styles We Paid For</i>'s traditional boombox demos were finished at the tail end of February before being sent to the band to flesh out. Originally, Pollard envisioned the LP as an all analog record with the title <i>Before Computers </i>in mind. Whether true of not, the record saw completion at the hands of trusted engineer Travis Harrison, piecing the LP together from 5 different states digitally. So much for the analog idea.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">With its December release, </span><i style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">Styles We Paid For</i><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"> is a remarkably consistent album, fit for a year end ease into the winter. It's a record a 15 song LP that comes in at under 40 </span><span style="color: #222222;">minutes but feels like it takes its time to grow and expand at every turn. Containing no throwaway tracks, it never rushes for attention.</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"> From the ‘70s callback of the cut-and-paste models on the cover, to the tone of the entire record, it’s a great companion piece to watching your breath during a long car ride in the middle of a winter sky, or bundling up on the Barcalounger in a wood paneled basement. While most of the tracks are not as immediate as some on the previously released </span><i style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/09/mirrored-aztec-2020.html" target="_blank">Mirrored Aztec</a></i><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">, it’s a consistently strong sonic grower, full of buried hooks and earworm riffs, best listened to in its entirety.<u></u><u></u></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">GBV once again proves they are an everlasting force to be reckoned with.</span></p></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;">SIDE A:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Megaphone Riley</u>- <b>4 </b><span style="background-color: white;"><span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">In his openers, Pollard once seemed a creature of habit. Often, they sounded and contended as flat out hits, always feeling like most GBV LPs came out with a bang. However, since <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html" target="_blank">Zeppelin Over China</a></i>, it’s felt more of an exercise to set the tone of the record. Such is the case with “Megaphone Riley.” Like the LP itself, this one crackles on the wick. A reserved chug building until the band bursts like a underground </span><span style="color: #222222;">gas line at max pressure</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">. A moment of bombastic triumph shakes you to the point of revelatory celebration, before the song leads out. A lot to ponder for seemingly little payoff, but one that has the power to call you back continuously... setting the tone of the record if you'll let it in. </span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>They Don't Play Drums Anymore</u>- <b>3 </b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Originally released as a “demo” on Pollard’s solo </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/09/planet-cake-7-2020.html" target="_blank">Planet Cake</a></i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> collection earlier in 2020, this is the full band go round. It’s a dim, heavy handed plodder that has more in common with stoner rock than any summery jangle pop you might be looking for. A real grinder of a gray-skies-overhead track that’s oddly infectious over time, but slightly detracted from by the lyrics. Did we really need “beating their puds, staring at their screen savers” in the pantheon of GBV songs?</span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Slaughterhouse</u>- <b>4 </b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Certain to be a divisive track, “Slaughterhouse” goes against all perceived GBV ethos. At 4 and a half minutes, and </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">tacked to the front end of an LP, it has the power to stall an already groggy record in its place if you let it. However, more so than the proceeding track, this one is even slower in its plod, heavier in its grind, equal parts simplistic sinister yet joyous in the resonating lead notes. A wonderful combination of powers, the current lineup coming together to make a potential drag-ass of a track into a hulking, spaced out head nodding shoegazer.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Endless Sea Food</u>- <b>3</b> F<span style="background-color: white;"><span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">or the first time on this record, GBV present something lighter in tone. The first breath of fresh air, cracking the window a tad to try to let in some spring air. In fact, the whole song is downright "airy." The guitars are crisp, the distortion is dialed back to almost naught, Pollard's vocals lean. Sounding somewhat like a mid-00s Pollard solo track, it’s a bright inclusion that sees us out with heavy handed </span><span style="color: #222222;">symphonic</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"> outro. </span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Mr. Child</u>- <b>4 </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">One of the internet sneak peak tracks of the LP, “Mr. Child” rides on its impactful snotty lead riff. The song rolls along at mid-tempo, holding it all together with said guitar leads. By its triumphant end, it’s an all out cause for celebration, Pollard bellowing in high form. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Stops</u>- <b>3 </b>Could have been a lost <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2014/04/sidea-theweekly-crow-4-ifa-sunday.html" target="_blank">Moses on a Snail</a></i> track. So much density in this one, Pollard sounding like he's singing into a cold winter's night air. The band appears distant in the background at times. A real slow, beautiful mover. A 2 minute near ballad that stands as a gap track of sorts in the thick of things. Sticks the least, but revisits make it feel like you have a temporary home here. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>War Of The Devils</u>- <b>4 </b>Leave it to a song with "Devils" in the title to conjure up the most <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/p/circus-devils.html" target="_blank">Circus Devils</a>' memories of the LP. A multifaceted mystic prog rocker that brings to mind "<a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/08/how-do-you-spell-heaven-2017.html">Steppenwolf Mausoleum</a>" before disintegrating into sonic breakneck guitar ping-ponging and eventual aural implosion. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;">SIDE B:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Electronic Windows To Nowhere</u>- <b>5 </b>Holy autotuned hell! For a record originally called <i>Before Computers</i> this song reeks of digital cosmetics. It's also a part of what makes it so irresistibly odd. What happens when you plug a GBV formula into your hard drive and let the motherboard produce the results? This stands as almost annoyingly catchy. But it's one that sicks to your brain like bubble gum on hot summer's tar. It's inviting, simple. A revelatory ray of sunshine to open up the second side. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Never Abandon Ship</u>- <b>4 </b>Continuing with the brown and gray tone of Side A, another serious mid-tempo song that relies on the warmth of its guitar lines and affecting doubled Pollard vocals. This song feels both isolating and wholly communal simultaneously. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Roll Me To Heaven</u>- <b>3 </b>A rather drab tom pounder of a song takes us through a short but meandering first section before breaking through the clouds and into some sort of heavenly field of view, and back again. A spaced out stoner series of vignettes recalling the feel of a <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/08/how-do-you-spell-heaven-2017.html" target="_blank">How Do You Spell Heaven</a> </i>song<i> </i>that never was. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>In Calculous Stratagem</u>- <b>5 </b>Short, almost to be missed, but a thing of beauty. This has a way of catching your attention upon first listen if tuned in. But each subsequent listen drives its allure deeper until you realize you've fallen in love with this new GBV gem with traces of REM magic. Perhaps the most oddly singable song title, this song has the ability to wrap its arms around you if only for a brief boozy 2 minutes. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Crash At Lake Placebo</u>- <b>5 </b>Teeters on the edge of sounding like a goofy folk song with its repetitive guitar line, Pollard singing in time with the infectious groove. Carried forth with an arresting minute long instrumental bridge in a surprising turn. Pollard comes back in as the band crescendos upward with double vocal tracked finesse to cement this one in your bones. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Liquid Kid</u>- <b>3 </b>A prog affair that takes a while to get off the ground, stuttering along for a minute before kicking into standard mid-tempo rock... at 2 minutes the song shifts toward the building finale setting you up for more symphonic fist raising, accented with Gillard solo flairs, and Pollard hooks to lead us out. A bit of too little too late, but enough to keep you coming back.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Time Without Looking</u>- <b>5 </b>Absolutely fucking gorgeous. A scrapbook of memories if you should allow such a brief song to do so. With such an appropriate title, the guitar jangle and syrupy doubled vocals begs for you to flail for buried nostalgia and immediate reflection at just over a minute and a half. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>When Growing Was Simple</u>- <b>4 </b>After the previous reaffirming life track, we're left in the cold with a pensive "this is your life" snapshot for further contemplation. The toms echo coldly in the background as if a lone mic picked them up in an abandoned warehouse. A singular guitar lines carries this with chiming cacophony striking us back to attention, Pollard sounding somewhat frail with his vulnerable vocals pushed to the front. A haunting finish but with and underlying feeling of hope. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-74252914657055905602020-11-12T17:42:00.003-08:002020-11-12T17:42:37.568-08:00Bad Side of the Coin (2020) <p style="text-align: center;"> <b>Bad Side of the Coin</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2020, Shit and Shit Records)</b> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdxMlX1jHzQl3rWe9WYeTdVYq8JyqCD44HWc25apr64UDL3AIN9eszklURnx0uNcQqvM5EPte9DKyEeyFVNAN2xQx5SfP8wEQVIdgSmK8SzFKEd03ZdjnuMXABGD3QVkz9DJe8UZiPx6_/s500/BadSide.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="375" height="409" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdxMlX1jHzQl3rWe9WYeTdVYq8JyqCD44HWc25apr64UDL3AIN9eszklURnx0uNcQqvM5EPte9DKyEeyFVNAN2xQx5SfP8wEQVIdgSmK8SzFKEd03ZdjnuMXABGD3QVkz9DJe8UZiPx6_/w345-h409/BadSide.jpg" width="345" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p>Talk about wearing out your fucking welcome. Cash Rivers is like that actual drunk uncle that came to stay for the holiday weekend and is still sleeping on your couch in mid March. You keep kicking his feet off the cushions and telling him it's the last night, but he keeps showing up with shiny gifts of cheap plastic and empty promises of leaving "soon". In other words, I can not believe I am sitting here again writing this sentence... "This is the final Cash Rivers LP" God, 2020 sucks. </p><p>What began as a surprise limited 17 "song" joke 7'' in 2017 has now spanned a 3 year haul of endless blue humor and bar room tidbits about panties, truck driving, overweight women, cell phones getting wet, obscure slang, and everything else in between. In all of this madness, these limited Pollard comedy country records have turned into some of the hardest to find on the secondary market due to their limited pressings. </p><p>But before I disown the entire fictional world of Cash Rivers, when all is said and done, the impressive 69 track <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/11/do-not-try-to-adjust-your-set-i-am.html" target="_blank"><i>Do Not Try To Adjust Your Set I Am The Horizontal and the Vertical</i></a> remains as a dizzying accomplishment in Pollard's vast catalog; a record that hurdles past bad taste and fart jokes and should be held in its mysterious own regard as some one of a kind, gold standard psych splatter of nightmare inducing humor. </p><p>The rest of the Cash Rivers output though has been endlessly ho-hum, good for a spin or two and then left to rot. The newest, and again purported LAST (we shall see...) installment pretty much picks up were <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/08/loose-shoes-2019.html" target="_blank">Loose Shoes</a> </i>left off (mostly quick snippets, some with little to no thought, and decent backing by the boys of GBV). What the point of dropping another one of these during GBVs prolific 2020 run leaves me scratching my skull from the inside out?</p><p>Perhaps what hurts most about this limited to 1000 on 3D coin shaped cover is the $40 price tag slapped upon it. My philanthropic spirit hopes that this was some sort of added payment to the band for missing out on playing GBV shows during this pandemic affected year. Whatever the case, it sold out from Rockathon Records in less than 24 hours, proving that Cash may never die. </p><h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;"><br /></h3><div>SIDE A:</div><p><u>Do It Real Good</u>- <b>1 </b>Acoustic strumming with drunk scatting and growling. It is not good.</p><p><u>Whatever We Give You (Is What You Get)</u>- <b>2 </b>Yes, indeed. Whatever you give us. And here are again. Electro Bonnie Rait. Has a nice Travis Harrison crunch, but damn this one's devoid of a joke.</p><p><u>The Purple Hair</u>- <b>2 </b>Another song that forgets to insert any sort of joke, and goes on over 2 minutes with otherwise standard country rock backing. </p><p><u>Breaking Her In For You</u>- <b>4 </b>A surprisingly Byrds-esque jangle pop song with Pollard sounding golden voiced like some <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/bee-thousand-1994.html" target="_blank">Bee Thousand</a> </i>era b-side. A goddamn pleasant early gift, and damn good song!</p><p><u>She's Smoking Crack In the Synthesizer Room</u>- <b>3 </b>Feels like Circus Devils are back. A one trick idea of a title repeated over some synth swells. Fairly cool song in its own right. </p><p><u>Pango Bye Bye Juice</u>- <b>1 </b>Country hopping with nonsensical word play that's on par with infant babbling. Make it stop. </p><p><u>Hard Living Little Liver</u>- <b>1 </b>More country hopping nonsense</p><p><u>Tindall Tables</u>- <b>1 </b>Sounds like a Pollardian take on The Residents. I don't get it. </p><p><u>She Grows Me Out</u>- <b>1 </b>Motorcycle video game rock as Pollard repeats the title over sterile honky hard rock. </p><p><u>To The Waistband</u>- <b>2 </b>"Shit stains to the waistband." Yes, I guess sometimes that could happen in life? Almost chuckled so I'll give this one an extra point and make mental note of the song's "greatness."</p><p><u>Sugar Boogey Baby</u>- <b>1 </b>Nice homage to Bob Dylan's "You'll Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine." Musically, it's the same track on helium. Pollard sings like he's got his lips around the ol' helium tank a bit as well. And then it's over. </p><p><u>Sir Wackinoff</u>- <b>1 </b>An ode to getting caught masturbating. Minor kudos to the rooster noises. </p><p><u>Run With It</u>- <b>2 </b>This could possibly, almost, just sorta be a Pollard demo with it's slurred lyrics, reverberating vocals, and piano. For that it almost sounds like a "classic" here. </p><p><u>Eggs Make Me Sick</u>- <b>2 </b>Originally from The Takeovers' <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/06/turn-to-red-2006.html" target="_blank">Turn To Red</a></i> LP. For whatever reason, this isn't credited on the LP as being written by Pollard. This song was ridiculous then although I sing it about once a week. So its nice to take a trip down memory lane with Cash Rivers in 2020 here, I guess? </p><p><u>Baby Let Me Buy You Lunch</u>- <b>1 </b>The first single by Quick Hotdog? oh fuck, please don't tell me there's another comedy record coming anytime soon. My wallet has run dry. Also, this single is number 1 with a bullet (between my eyes).</p><p><u>Evil Mustard</u>- <b>1 </b>Like waking up with a drunk dude whispering in your ear about that goddamned evil mustard again. </p><p><u>Baby's Takin' a Shit</u>- <b>1</b> Been down this fuckin' road before. </p><p><br /></p><p>SIDE B:</p><p><u>Kicker of Elves</u>-<b>2</b> Thankfully I get to turn the record over and hit with one of the lesser classics from <i>Bee Thousand. </i>A lounge act, after hours version with cut and pasted Pollard by way of Cash jazz delivery. A new take on a gone but not forgotten tune that no one asked for. </p><p><u>Struggling Wizards Juggling Lizards</u>- <b>2 </b>Sounds like a classic GBV progression over repeated song title. </p><p><u>Computerized Eyes</u>- <b>3</b> Synth driven new wave that actually sounds refreshing amongst this dung pile. Dig the backing music (would welcome side project one off in this style), oddly catch. Other than that, it's mostly wishful thinking I never knew I had until now...</p><p><u>Rip</u>- <b>1 </b>More video game rock n roll with Pollard cutting in doing a machine gun-like delivery. More kudos to rooster crowing in the background. </p><p><u>Too Drunk For Facebook</u>- <b>3</b> Song sounds exactly like the title and (un)fortunately catchy. </p><p><u>23 Days Before Christmas</u>- <b>2 </b>Pollard cementing a new holiday classic into his catalog. Appreciate the <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html" target="_blank">Surrender Your Poppy Field</a> </i>cut in there of "20!" </p><p><u>19 Push Ups</u>- <b>2 </b>A sweat soaked nightmare that's almost too good to be true. Sort of dig the creep factor present in the grooves here. </p><p><u>Stipened Mills</u>- <b>1 </b>Pollard getting to revisit his REM sound that's been so sourly missed since the days of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/sandbox-1987.html" target="_blank">Sandbox</a> </i>and <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/forever-since-breakfast-ep-1986.html" target="_blank">Forever Since Breakfast</a> </i>while delivering piss poor pun. </p><p><u>Sucker Punch</u>- <b>1</b> So forgettable I almost forgot to listen. </p><p><u>Chico and the Man</u>- <b>1 </b>Pointless Jose Feliciano "cover." </p><p><u>My Angel</u>- <b>3 </b>One of my favorites off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/05/warp-and-woof-2019_14.html" target="_blank">Warp and Woof</a></i> gets the Cash Rivers treatment. Essentially, a decent rendition in the easy listening sense with wonky noises and Pollard dipping into Mark E. Smith phlegm coated vocals in the middle and outro. </p><p><u>Googling Pam</u>- <b>1 </b>Uplifting sounding nonsense that nearly feels like a real song. </p><p><u>Poor Mrs. Blankenship</u>- <b>1 </b>Pollard throwing some yucks at GBV super fan Trader Vic's mother. Oh boy, he done got them Blankenships good. </p><p><u>Aunt Ethel</u>- <b>1 </b>More fucking nonsense. </p><p><u>Grandma Got Ta Ta Too</u>- <b>1</b> Wait... No, THIS is more fucking nonsense. Why is this song so fucking long?</p><p><u>Them Other Too</u>- <b>2</b> Dig this barebones garage stomp. The "lyric" line is pointless. </p><p><u>Call the Dog</u>- <b>2 </b>Reminiscent of a grunge tune one might find on the radio circa '94-95, amounting to a song that's almost listenable for the fact that it's nearly a real song.</p><p><u>The Best Day Ever</u>- <b>4 </b>Fucking great title being that this record is finally fucking ending after 35 more brain pissing tracks. And holy shit, yeah, this track sounds like fucking "Echos Myron" compared to the rest of this record. </p><p><br /></p><p>Cash Rivers.... please stay down for the fucking count. I don't need anymore Jason Voorhees getting stuck by lighting and rising from a grave moments in my record collection in the upcoming years. </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-84999387490993332032020-09-11T08:05:00.008-07:002020-09-11T21:28:32.164-07:00Mirrored Aztec (2020) <p style="text-align: center;"> <span> </span> <b>Mirrored Aztec</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>(2020, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi4RhVZbokcfsMzjx3p3CdI7baazgsnL4SICabsE7UrHYvHVZwZTZhAxYaG7x3cA73P3BrjpRgnF2DwyIsImAUqdAovsINWKUPAFj8-rrq_fmZ243Ck3Z1cR04Sf6F8HLzTqanspic7PL2/s750/Mirrored_cover_1400.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="750" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi4RhVZbokcfsMzjx3p3CdI7baazgsnL4SICabsE7UrHYvHVZwZTZhAxYaG7x3cA73P3BrjpRgnF2DwyIsImAUqdAovsINWKUPAFj8-rrq_fmZ243Ck3Z1cR04Sf6F8HLzTqanspic7PL2/w400-h400/Mirrored_cover_1400.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When Pollard resurrected the name Guided by Voices in 2016 for his essentially solo effort <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/05/please-be-honest-2016.html" target="_blank">Please Be Honest</a></i>, I was skeptical. GBV had always been the moniker for the Uncle Bob goods, or at least, the guise of a fully fledged band. Pollard playing all the instruments himself and calling it GBV just didn't feel legitimate (this judged on a guy's merits who has a universe of fake band names cataloged in his brain, and more actual LP artwork from said fake bands in boxes in his basement). </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">But thankfully, dusting off the GBV name brought us an actual band. And what a band it has been. With each LP, through warts and all, this solidified lineup of Kevin March, Bobby Bare Jr., Mark Shue, and Doug Gillard continue to churn out the usual Pollard pace at a remarkably high standard. This is also largely thanks in part to unspoken 6th member, engineer and live sound man Travis Harrison giving this era of GBV its own unique stadium sound at the everyman American lager consumed club level. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Enter August 2020, and it's not the first time we've seen GBV during this tumultuous year. While in the can well before 2020, February's <a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html" target="_blank"><i>Surrender Your Poppy Field</i> </a>both in moment and hindsight felt much like a product of the times. Released during the gloom of winter, the LP opens with Sara Zade-Pollard declaring "the high today is 20!," before spilling into an anarchic patchwork of cut and paste style rock songs of every conceivable style. Pollard sings "and now it's because of you, you got me thinking Rock and Roll won't always be around," as Covid-19 became reality, shutting down clubs, record stores, bars, society. "Woah Nelly" felt like a late album reminder of the eeriness that was the norm instead of a rehashed b-side. The un-GBV like dirge "Next Sea Level" felt like we were all left in the balance with no life raft; a country divided, a planet melting, directions to "shelter in place," from sea to sea, while some continue to scream to ignore it all. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It's with all this in mind that GBVs 2nd LP of 2020 (of the proposed 3) couldn't have come at a better time. Hitting just before Labor Day, it's a stark end cap to the season. From its eye popping artwork (Pollard handing off his usual visual duties to artist Courtney Latta) to its lighter tone, the record feels like a proper brighter horizons GBV check-in in the middle of unbalanced uncertainty. A tightly packed collection of pop hooks and guitar wallop from Gillard and Bare, the band adds another bright spot in what is now clearly the greatest era of a "band" in their 34th year of recording. <i>Mirrored Aztec</i> makes a strong case as being a top tier contender in this renaissance period that thankfully appears to have no end in sight. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">With everything up in the air, it's another reminder that there is one constant you can continue to count on. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Life is short, GBV is long. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">SIDE A:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>I Think I Had It. I Think I Have It Again</u>- <b>3</b> Pollard, the king of opening tracks, takes his time here with a song that shines but not too brightly. In a measured attack, this opener is a mid-tempo tune that plants an earworm or two but doesn't steal the show. The opening guitar strums provoke the feeling of waking up to brush the early morning dew out of your eyes. A quick rock-edging-out-sheer-pop tune; one with a solid backbone, setting up a record and a first side of showstoppers. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Bunco Men</u>- <b>5 </b>If you are a GBV nut then you might think this song sounds familiar, and yes, you'd be correct as the original appeared on the first <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/suitcase-failed-experiments-and-trashed.html" target="_blank">Suitcase</a> </i>boxset. An outtake from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/under-bushes-under-stars-1996.html" target="_blank">UTBUTS</a></i> (as the lyrics slyly suggest), this is a lost classic that got away. Here, in full band rendition, this song pops as a melancholy anthem with underlying hope. Pollard makes the slightly off-kilter hooks shine under big band production, resurrecting this old gem once left to wallow in obscurity. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Citizens' Blitz</u>- <b>5 </b>When GBV nails that particular sweet spot of the post-punk slant, they usually hit it straight on. Angular, jarring, and cloaked in an industrial sport coat as it takes the dance floor. Similar in feel to "Sleepover Jack" off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/half-smiles-of-decomposed-2004.html" target="_blank">Half Smiles of the Decomposed</a></i>, this may be an acquired taste track to some. Regardless, the song's really brought to life by Harrison's production. Pollard's hallucinatory bending vocals are fantastic in this oddly catchy winner. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>To Keep An Area</u>- <b>5 </b>"To Keep an Area" is such an easy shoe-in for classic GBV song that it seems unfair. It's basically anything a college kid with an acoustic guitar can come up with in the quad on a sunny day, but it's flaunted and catapulted into the stratosphere of heartstrings here. The slight off tempo endings to the verses, Gillard's emotive guitar bridge leads, and Pollard's incredible finish make this a returnable track of sheer unfettered warmth.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Easier Not Charming</u>- <b>5 </b>Following "To Keep an Area," this is perhaps the best 1-2 punch on the record. And all at just a shade under a minute and half! Feeling like an <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/earthquake-glue-2003.html">Earthquake Glue</a>/<a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0">UTAC</a></i> style pop nugget, the verses shift into infectiously simplistic mini choruses. It's the kind of pop song you don't realize has sunk its teeth into you and continues to bite until you find yourself humming, whistling, reminiscing at unexpected times during your daily routine. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Please Don't Be Honest</u>- <b>4 </b>Kevin March and Gillard work out a jittery main opening as Pollard drops a perfectly droll lyric "Skeleton. Stick figure of myself." This song may be a skeletal pieced together demo (as further revealed in the <i>Hot Freaks </i>weekly releases) that was well deservedly beefed up by the band. Another wonder piece of Harrison and the GBV guys patchwork. It feels like the prize that got away from <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html">Surrender Your Poppy Field</a></i>. The bridge sticks out like a sore thumb of pure gold. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Show Of Hands</u>- <b>4 </b>On its own, this song is such a grand sweep; a powerful statement written too late to be a hit off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html">Zeppelin Over China</a></i>. Pollard is forcefully declarative here with the band hoisting him up on their proverbial shoulders. It almost does a disservice in sequencing being behind the equally as good, somewhat similar in feel (at least the former's bridge) to "Please Don't Be Honest." A layered pieced together type track that is a sneak attack on the senses, leaving you dizzied with crescendoing outro for the ages! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Lip Curlers</u>- <b>3 </b>The first true filler track of the LP, "Lip Curlers" has the misfortune of following a streamroller of hits. This feels like a Tobias-era Pollard solo cut with cloying hooks in the strike-a-rock-stance choruses. Lines and toe tapping continue to invade my thoughts to slight amusement at random moments. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Math Rock</u>- <b>3 </b>Leave it to Robert Pollard to write a math rock-esque song (although not post-punk enough for the math rock I mainly enjoy, as I adjust my math rock lapels), that supposedly "drives[s] Doug crazy." This song is as fun as it ridiculous. The idea for this sounds almost as if it'd be a drunken late night phone call to the band, or a demo sent out that left the band scratching their heads over how drunk Bob actually was that night? Essentially, the Kevin March conducted Montclair School of Rock (Hell yes! New Jersey!) kids chorus' saves this with a grounded ending. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">SIDE B:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Transfusion</u>- <b>4 </b>A slow drip rock song as the title implies, this is a (SLOW) leak from a sapling tree in a dying forest (hey, "dying worlds make Dinosaur bones"). This is about as close to doom rock as Pollard can get. Lumbering but joyously hypnotic opener to the second side that pumps the brakes on a killer opening side. Grows with repeated listens. The type of track that just hits in the right spot after you let it take its hold. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Biker's Nest</u>- <b>3 </b>Like "Lip Curlers," this one may be the actual filler track of the LP. Feeling like a leftover demo from Circus Devils' <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2015/11/stomping-grounds-2015.html" target="_blank">Stomping Grounds</a></i> LP, this is a guitar chug along that really goes nowhere. Except, I find myself quite enamored with the actual guitar chug of this song! Pollard's single tracked vocals don't lend any service to this rather hookless effort, but it's a fine run-of-the-mill song to pull out of one's backpocket in a pinch. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>A Whale Is Top Notch</u>- <b>4 </b>A simplistic riff riding, blip of anthemic pop bliss on side B. A sneak attack of fist pumping and hard swings for a rambunctiously short time. At just over a minute, GBV delivers an infectious piece that's easy to miss. A quintessential gap track that's worthy of a stiff finger point of acceptance on its own. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>I Touch Down</u>- <b>2 </b>Speaking of gap track, this stands as the official dud of the LP. The only purpose I can see of this song in sequencing is the closing track references "touch down" several times? It has its hypnotic qualities that become more appealing with repeated listens but still... Other than that, it is a rather quick but murky track that drags you through the muck before making a wonderful transition into... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Haircut Sphinx</u>- <b>4 </b> A completely barebones garage rocker, this song harkens back to old school GBV mentality of a "Buzzards and Dreadful Crows" type; here's a riff that could be metallic in style, drums that stomp about, and vocals carrying it with some cocksure sense of direction despite how nonsensical they may seem. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Screaming The Night Away</u>- <b>2 </b>A meandering late LP track that feels like more of a filler gap track than an actual winner. Is Pollard growing tired here, unleashing a simple rhyme to be reckoned with over guitar pummel? Either way, it's a sturdy quick albeit lifeless punch near the end of the record. If only there's was something to pump a little life back into this record... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>Thank You Jane</u>- <b>5 </b>Where in the holy goddamn did this late LP surprise come from? A spiny guitar lead mid-tempo track that feels like straight breaking sunshine coming through closed blinds on an already decided clouded day. Reportedly a shout-out to actress and activist Jane Fonda, a great Pollard tip of the cap to someone who should keep inspiring us, as he says "I think the time is now for us to all step up, I think we know" (and don't forget to keep "working out"). This winner bleeds into... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>The Best Foot Forwards</u>- <b>3 </b>... before you know it you're already drowning in Kevin March's drum roll filled assault as this quick penultimate track sucks you under. A brief, blunt track that goes for the jugular more on guitar riffs than vocal hooks. A perfect quick set up to the afterparty of an LP finale.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u>The Party Rages On</u>- <b>4 </b>While you're still catching your breath from the all out band attack jumble of "The Best Foot Forwards" you're escorted into the short after party where you may have time to grab a glass of flat champagne. More of a slow walk of reflection and "farewell and thanks for the memories" trot than a "raging party" stampede. A perfect nightcap for this mid-year GBV LP, Gillard's fiery solo sparking up and fading out just over the 2 minute mark... "We'll see you later this year," it seems to call. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-65541394586460770912020-09-09T11:25:00.004-07:002020-09-09T11:34:29.507-07:00Planet Cake 7" (2020) <blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: center;"><b>Planet Cake 7" </b></p></blockquote><p style="text-align: center;"><span> </span> <b>(2020, Guided by Voices Inc)</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvHpDm0_ajuN-hSybCd5U0I10gfL2jV3pO8CiAke2NY5V7HqsjCfoql6RjgkrSEwX2dzp9ADr4inaAqG2ooW8A5g5M2a96PGLKxZN1SVTc5vozPM0yE90j45UCnzOkBLNh96D1TaLqpiJP/s631/Eat16_cover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="631" data-original-width="500" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvHpDm0_ajuN-hSybCd5U0I10gfL2jV3pO8CiAke2NY5V7HqsjCfoql6RjgkrSEwX2dzp9ADr4inaAqG2ooW8A5g5M2a96PGLKxZN1SVTc5vozPM0yE90j45UCnzOkBLNh96D1TaLqpiJP/w320-h404/Eat16_cover.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">The second EAT installment in Robert Pollard's solo catalog, here is another collection of "never needed to be released, but happy to have another 7" on my shelf" record from the master. Like it's predecessor, <i>Eat 15</i>'s <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/08/dislodge-immortal-orangemen-2019.html" target="_blank">(Dislodge) The Immortal Orangemen</a> </i>7" this finds Pollard alone on his boombox, hammering out musical accompanying pieces to his collage work in the beautiful layout of his literary book, <i>Eat 16</i>. </p><p style="text-align: center;">To be owned for the 237 pages of artwork WAY more than the record, I'll take another piece of Pollard wax for the turntable. Unfortunately, it's another non-essential piece of collector fun that keeps the diehards, myself included, foaming at the mouth. Oh to have another Pollard solo LP one day...</p><p style="text-align: center;">Limited to 1000 copies.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;">SIDE A:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Strange Angels</u>- <b>2 </b>Here, Pollard fumbles around with a couple of strings before going off into a down stroking rumble on a detuned chord (string?) while speak singing. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>They Don't Play the Drums Anymore</u>- <b>3 </b>Hey, is that some drumming on the acoustic guitar I hear? Pollard expands his horizons. This actually has a fairly strong melodic Pollardian bellow to it. Hey, sign me up.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Good Luck To Ya Mutha</u>- <b>1 </b>Nothing to see here folks. Pollard thinks it up while being recorded. On to the next side. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;">SIDE B:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>When Growing Was Simple</u>- <b>3</b> A variation of "A Salty Salute"? The one's a haunter. Feeling like it might have some purpose at first, it eventually goes off into stream of conscious with some pretty decent surrealist lyrics. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Game Cocks</u>- <b>2</b> The poppiest of the tunes here, it's features some trademark uncle Bob scatting at the end. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Blogs on Toadstools</u>- <b>1 </b>Spoken word piece ending with warbled voiced Pollard sounding almost prophetic. Being that he's released not 1 but 2 comedy records, I'd buy a spoken word/poetry LP from him at this point. </p><p style="text-align: left;"><u>Bonus Track</u>- <b>1 </b>Pollard fiddles around with a toy flute/recorder for about 10 seconds. Not a song, even a little bit but so be it. </p><br />Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-10289130802712811172020-03-27T06:51:00.003-07:002020-04-10T18:49:14.817-07:00Surrender Your Poppy Field (2020) <div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Surrender Your Poppy Field</b></div>
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<b>(2020, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Robert Pollard is well known in his circle of fans as the King of
the 4 P’s. Whether by pop hooks, punk ethos, psych spirit, or prog leanings,
Pollard has made a career by careening from style to style, ingesting the
entire history of rock, and redistributing to the world through his own eyes. It’s
with his vast knowledge and appreciation of the subject that makes his own
output so tantalizingly kaleidoscopic. With this in mind, we find
Pollard and his refreshed band of brothers taking broad strokes on the open
canvas that is <i>Surrender Your Poppy Field</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">On the 7<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> re-reunion LP finds Pollard’s tightest
line-up on full display, running through a gamut of styles and concepts. Each song feels different from the next. </span></span>The chord progressions are unwieldy at times. Pollard goes full on experimental vocals throughout, sometimes bellowing with the best of his run, other times bending his voice into new and less charted territory. Even t<span style="font-family: inherit;">he audio quality jumps from track to track in a way that's wholly refreshing compared to recent GBV LPs. Sometimes all of these things happen in
the exact same song!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> <span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Surrender Your Poppy Field</i> feels like the most fun
this group has had constructing a record to date. One can imagine Pollard giving
a half finished demo tape to the band with nearly illegible scribbled notes, instructing them to run wild. This also applies tenfold for stalwart engineer Travis
Harrison, producing some of the most profound and eyebrow raising moments of
his tenure with Pollard. Everyone involved sounds like they're having the times
of their lives-and it's all captured on tape. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> <span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: inherit;">While <i>Poppy Field </i>is at times immediate, there are moments that beg for revisits, again, sometimes within the parameters of the same song. It is a moody album, flailing wildly with reckless abandon. There are swings and misses
scattered about, but when it hits, it hits hard. A bold and exciting record 34
years into the universe of Pollard recordings.</span> </span></span></div>
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<u>Year of the Hard Hitter</u>- <b>5 </b>What happens when Bob Pollard sends his most scatterbrained demo recording to the band to figure out? They come up with this patchwork of 4 minute nonsense that somehow turns out to be one of the coolest GBV songs in the catalog thanks to its sheer massiveness alone. Is this a clusterfuck or actual genius? Constructed of nearly a dozen parts, this opener is an unwieldy gem of no-fi, psych, doom metal, sheer pop, all complete with unnecessarily long guitar bridge, and fireworks worthy guitar solos. A dizzying exhibition, and one wallop of an opener, not necessarily for the faint of heart. </div>
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<u>Volcano</u>- <b>4 </b>The greatest '90s song GBV never wrote. Sounding unnervingly unlike GBV and instead resembles an incredible slew of college slack rock hits you can almost put your finger on. Shoegazy, lush, impactful, complete with beautiful Bob melodies. However, misses the classic mark for almost being too... derivative? </div>
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<u>Queen Parking Lot</u>- <b>4 </b>After throwing back to other alt/indie 90s bands, Pollard throws it back to some simplistic glory day GBV territory with this short pop laden tune. Warbles about in mid-fi range, Pollard crushing it vocally. One of the sunniest spots on the record, that hooks with ease. </div>
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<u>Arthur Has Business Elsewhere</u>- <strong>5 </strong>A grand sweeping gesture from Pollard and gang ready to knock you on your heels. Meanwhile, revel in the potent production by Travis Harrison, some of his strongest work put to record yet. Uncle Bob is in waltz mode, calliope bopping eerily about. Is this a circus fever dream we're stuck in? Empowering, triumphant. Play it loud. </div>
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<u>Cul-De-Sac Kids</u>- <b>2 </b>A song with so much potential. Starts off brittle and reflective before kicking into mid-tempo, fairly standard Pollard 70's rock. However, the cheesy lyrics and vocal choice from Pollard make this more thorn in side than an actual winner. Is he mocking the lyrical stylings of Craig Finn? Does he sing with an intentional lisp at one point? Hearing "boy those 'sac kids throw good parties" makes my skin crawl just a tad. So many questions to a song with such a gorgeous start and outro. </div>
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<u>Cat Beats a Drum</u>- <strong>3 </strong>Speaking of intros, what an incredible one to this song! However, this song is only stuck in intro mode. A two minute run that starts and never really gets anywhere, though that's not necessarily a bad thing. Minimalist incidental indie music. Uncle Bob goes for some strange vocal stylings on this as well. However, as a whole, it's perfectly meditative, carried by Gillard's prickly descending guitar line that it fits unobtrusively in the back pocket of your brain. </div>
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<u>Windjammer</u>- <b>3 </b>This is the product of trying to squeeze The Who's entire discography into a 3 minute song. "Windjammer" is a dizzying mash-up of pop buried under Townsend strumming and Moon-like drum bashing, all mixed in a mid to lo-fi disorienting fashion. A grower that sometimes feels like a breathtaking headache. Pollard may have just invented kitchen-sink pop with this one.</div>
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<u>Steely Dodger</u>- <b>2 </b>Moody, mysterious; a somewhat weak opener to side B, although intriguing. This song snakes along like a low hanging cloud. Grimy and subtly hooky, it occasionally begs for a revisit. Unsettling ground all around. </div>
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<u>Stone Cold Moron</u>- <b>2 </b>My new favorite Circus Devils' song. I refuse to believe Todd Tobias isn't manning these instruments. Complete with Pollard-the-cop voiceover at the end, this screams like a leftover track from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2015/11/stomping-grounds-2015.html">Stomping Grounds</a>. </i>A mildly irritating stoner metal jam where Pollard gets to flash some classic constipated vocal intonations. It also has strong potential to get stuck in your head for unknown reasons, so it's got that going for it. </div>
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<u>Physician</u>- <b>4 </b>A pop gem that continues to get better with every listen. Dynamically, it rides the same wave length for a somewhat lengthy 3:38. But the song is so incredibly solid, from the blatant to its sneakier hooks. Gillard lights the fuse for another signature smoldering solo. One of the stronger tracks of the record.</div>
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<u>Man Called Blunder</u>- <strong>3 </strong>The second single of the LP, "Man Called Blunder" is a simplistic three chord basher. Pollard shines vocally, pushing through this song like a double tracked bulldozer. Unfortunately, in an LP full of sudden surprises, this one feels almost too safe for its own good. </div>
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<u>Woah Nelly</u>- <b>4 </b>What happens when Tom Waits meets Magnetic Fields? This haunting minute long tune sounds like it's projected from a busted gramophone in a cemetery. A haunted lullabye of sorts. Also, it's a "cover" of a song Pollard previously released on <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/11/lithuanian-bombshells-7-2016.html">Lithuania Bombshell 7''</a> </i>under the ESP Ohio name in 2016. It was great then, but it may be even better now. </div>
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<u>Andre the Hawk</u>- <b>1 </b>With a name like "Andre the Hawk," you could almost smell this stinker coming from a mile away. A downer of a waltz, this song is almost 2 minutes of a lifeless blank canvas with some fairly crummy lyrics as the finishing touch. Pollard's strong vocal performance goes nowhere on this gray blob tacked on at the tail end of the record. </div>
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<u>Always Gone</u>- <b>5 </b>What's this? After dozing off to the "Andre.." get ready to get a jolt with this minute plus GBV classic-lineup type rev up. Could've been an <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/under-bushes-under-stars-1996.html">UTBUTS</a> </i>outtake! Sunny nostalgia wrapped in a perfect minute and a half. Pure Pollardian gold. </div>
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<u>Next Sea Level</u>- <strong>3 </strong>And now after you've woken up with "Almost Gone," drift back to sleep with one of Pollar'ds most go-nowhere songs in a while. Reminiscent of something off Circus Devils' <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/06/five-2005.html">Five</a></i> LP. Pulsing bass tones lead us in for over a minute before switching to half-assed 2 chord rock. BUT WAIT... this closer is so trancelike that after a few deep listens, this one begins to sink its teeth in. One of the most simplistic of all GBV songs, it's an eerie and fitting end as we float back out again into the unease of these modern times. </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-37221466815572628422020-03-27T05:30:00.000-07:002020-03-28T03:10:20.978-07:00Man Called Blunder 7" (2020) <div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Man Called Blunder 7"</b></div>
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<b>(2020, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></div>
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One of two 7" singles released in support of <i>Surrender Your Poppy Field</i>. Limited to 1000 copies, the A-side contains the single, while the flip side contains the 7" exclusive cut. Here, GBV give their updated rendering of 1986's "She Wants To Know."<br />
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<u>Man Called Blunder</u>- Same track appears on the full-length LP <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html">Surrender Your Poppy Field</a></i>. Check out the review over there.<br />
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<u>She Wants To Know [New Version]</u>- <b>3 </b>For whatever reason, Bob and the boys decided to dust-off this self proclaimed "classic" all the way back from 1986's <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/forever-since-breakfast-ep-1986.html">Forever Since Breakfast</a></i> EP, the first GBV release in the catalog. Unfortunatly, it's the weakest track on that original LP. Here, 34 years later, it's slightly better! Perhaps it's the production or the addition of Gillard's refined leads. This once ho-hum, overlong tune feels less cumbersome ho-hum song. Worth a passing glance. </div>
Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-9941645491961784992020-03-27T05:29:00.000-07:002020-03-28T03:11:07.723-07:00Volcano 7" (2020)<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Volcano 7" </b></div>
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One of two 7" singles released in support of <i>Surrender Your Poppy Field</i>. Limited to 1000 copies, the A-side contains the single, while the flip side contains the 7" exclusive cut. In this case, GBV present a Kevin March solo track appropriate for the times. </div>
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<u>Volcano</u>- Same track appears on the full-length LP <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2020/03/surrender-your-poppy-field-2020.html">Surrender Your Poppy Field</a>. </i>Check out the full review there.<br />
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<u>Sun Goes Down</u>- <b>4 </b>Chilling. Kevin March takes the lead here on this sparse piano track. Sounding like he's sitting in an echo chamber, this song holds the power to send chills down one's spine. Almost over before it starts, it's a haunting gem begging to be excavated in the GBV solar system.<br />
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-60309954783130079782019-10-25T19:10:00.000-07:002020-03-27T06:59:40.833-07:00Sweating the Plague (2019)<div align="center">
<strong>Sweating the Plague </strong></div>
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<strong>(2019, Guided by Voices Inc.) </strong></div>
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It's like 2012 all over again! Guided by Voices, with continued second reunion line-up forging ahead without end in sight, have released their 3rd LP of the year; enough to leave even the Pollard-addicted fans even somewhat satisfied with the sheer bounty of output!</div>
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To close out the 3 LP run of 2019, Guided by Voices decided to release their shortest LP to date; a 12 track affair of prog-heavy rock songs that take their time to unfold. It's a batch of material meant for you to sit with. It's also a dozen tracks meant to be played LOUD!</div>
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From it's brevity in tracklisting to its dynamic mid-song shifts, it's unlike any GBV LP of the past, perhaps having more in common with some of Pollard's side projects. Think the bottom heaviness of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html">Zeppelin Over China</a> </i>blended with <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0">Universal Truths and Cycles</a></i>/<i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/earthquake-glue-2003.html">Earthquake Glue</a></i> era prog. Then add in the gray-skies rock of Ricked Wicky's <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2015/10/swimmer-to-liquid-armchair-2015.html">Swimmer to a Liquid Armchair</a></i>, blended with dashes of the rock-centric moments in Circus Devils' <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2015/11/stomping-grounds-2015.html">Stomping Grounds</a></i>. It's a downer of a record, but one that never feels too heavy a burden to bear. In fact, it manages to be one hell of an uplifting rock record, despite all it's angular jabs and surprises. With each spin, you may find yourself turning the record up to maximum listening capacity.</div>
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One of the key highlights of the record (which is so strong on LPs like <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html">Space Gun</a></i>, and felt sorely lacking on <i>Zeppelin Over China</i>), is the sheer force behind Pollard's voice. He sounds determined, on-key, demanding. His harmonies hit in all the right spots (often hiding in these songs rather than immediately jumping out in a trad "pop" chorus). Engineer Travis Harrison continues to delight in the recording process, perhaps doing his best work yet. The band (Gillard, Shue, March, and Bare Jr.) really flesh this record out, turning Pollard's sketches into a bracing GBV record that truly rewards the listener with each repeated listen. </div>
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33 years into his career, Pollard has perhaps succeeded in something he's never done before; creating the most unconventionally infectious GBV record of his expansive discography.</div>
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<u>Downer</u>- <b>2 </b>The strangest GBV opening track of any LP in the canon, and for that, part of me wants to praise this song to the high heavens. Unfortunately, it's not a great song. Still, "Downer," is a post-punk/krautrock track that relies on feel but with addictively simple moments sprinkled about. Way more of a mood piece than song, but a jarring way to start off the record, setting the pace. Begs for (and gets) relistens out of sheer curiosity. </div>
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<u>Street Party</u>-<b>3 </b>Originally slated to be the titlet rack of the LP, "Street Party," is more traditional to the GBV formula, but still left of center at times. A steady rocker that falls into "average" territory. The most arresting moments are scattered about in the song, both instrumentally and in Pollard's verses, rather than the fairly bland chorus of "It's a street party. And the heat is insane." </div>
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<u>Mother's Milk Elementary</u>-<b>4 </b>Warbled acapella Pollard opens this up, brittle and beautifully. When the band kicks in with its slug-slow rock, this turns into a hulking haunt of tune. The even more haunting instrumental interlude into the bridge becomes spine tingling after repeated visits. Grows on you like a slow acting mold. </div>
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<u>Heavy Like the World</u>- <b>5 </b>The first and lone single released for the record, "Heavy Like the World" is a <em><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html">Do the Collapse</a>/<a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/isolation-drills-2001.html">Isolation Drills</a></em> callback number. Really feels partially like a mash up of several GBV greatest hits moments. Fortunately, I don't sicken of these harmonized moments of joyful melancholy. Epic and beautiful. </div>
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<u>Ego Central High</u>- <b>4 </b>Feels partially like a paint-by-numbers hard rock riff song, but damn this song sinks its hooks in. The band takes their time, laying down an almost hypnotic crunch throughout. Dig that Circus Devils-like pounding bridge, into double timed pogo-punk part. Pollard comes off reserved, busting loose vocally during the doubled chorus parts. Like the entire record, it's best played at top volume. </div>
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<u>The Very Second</u>- <b>4 </b>Seemingly random acoustic strums eventually bursts into cocksure guitar rocker that gets better with age. The song keeps its foot firmly planted on the octane all while building throughout, going from big to bigger! Pollard sounds incredible on this track. The guitar work of Bare Jr. and Gillard really shine. And that brief hyper-charged outro? Oh, my heart. One song that begs for a stadium sized setting. </div>
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<u>Tiger on Top</u>- <b>3 </b>Rickety intro again bursts forth as the band delivers a start-stop progged up rocker. Begs for a crank of the volume nob. A bit uneven, even for a record bursting with uneven transitions, and surprises. A grower for sure, but possibly one too many twists and turns for its own good. The "tiger on top" part scorches, though! </div>
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<u>Unfun Glitz</u>- <b>3 </b>Bottom heavy, crunchy with some potent Pollardian pipes. Perhaps a little too by the book at times, "Unfun Glitz" is above average at best song, but one that elicits a fist-raising response. The band is locked in, and pushes it over the top but like it just falls shy of the mark. </div>
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<u>Your Cricket (Is Rather Unique)</u>- <b>5 </b>Demoed as track 98 on the <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/01/suitcase-4-captain-kangaroo-won-war_25.html">Suitcase 4</a></i> collection, this song was originally released as the B-side of the <a href="http://gbvdb.com/album.asp?albumid=3360"><i>You Own the Night</i> 7'</a>' released in 2018. The same track returns for its proper LP debut, drummer Kevin March taking lead vocal duties. As proven in <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/03/august-by-cake-20017.html">August By Cake</a></i>, March as a downright killer voice. Beside that, this proves to be one of Pollard's most beautifully written songs. Anthemic, heartfelt, complete gorgeous melody. Travis Harrison's production (combined with Gillard's guitar jangle, and March's tick-tock drumming in the verses), make this one of the great GBV moments of second reunion run. </div>
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<u>Immortals</u>- <b>5 </b>A steadfast hard rocker that stays the course, building in the choruses. Guitar heavy with solid backbone and stiff upper lip attitude that never feels like posturing. A confident Pollard shines, sounding honest and potent, shooting from the hip. The repeat anthem outro is forcefully hooky below the surface, really standing as shining moment in GBV rock. </div>
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<u>My Wrestling Days Are Over</u>- <b>3 </b>The throw-away of the LP is still interesting (and short) enough to continue to revisit in all its strange glory. A true Circus Devils moment if you will. Pollard boom-box demo-like beginning with overdubs is downright haunting. When Pollard sings the title, it actually hurts. Unnervingly, this song leads out with downbeat stomping and unfettered guttural screams. </div>
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<u>Sons of the Beard</u>- <b>4 </b>Pollard has written a few of these multi-faceted, rock-operaesque songs throughout his career to varying results. Admittedly, I'm not much a rock opera fan so perhaps I come off biased during these moments. However, "Sons of the Beard," really delivers. It feels like an amalgamation, a condensed recap of the entire record crammed into one song, riding on feeling and pure sonics alone. Fittingly, the song ends with the same chords that opened the record, an endless circle that is <i>Sweating the Plague</i>. </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-38750098316148740162019-10-24T19:54:00.000-07:002020-01-17T07:58:32.353-08:00Heavy Like the World 7'' (2019) <div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Heavy Like The World 7''</b></div>
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<b>(2019, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b><br />
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Released approximately 2 months before GBV's 3rd LP of 2019 <i>Sweating the Plague</i>, this lone single from the LP comes in limited form with exclusive B-side. Unlike some other singles of the reunion era that feature other GBV member's song, the B-side is a Pollard penned exclusive. </div>
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Limited to 1000 and released on black vinyl. </div>
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<u>Heavy Like The World</u>- Same track as on <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/10/sweating-plague-2019.html">Sweating the Plague</a>. </i>Read review in link. </div>
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<u>Silent Army</u>- <b>5</b> Pollard has a way of hiding some of the best GBV tracks as B-sides of exclusive singles. Often, Pollard's turned to Gillard, Shue, and Bare Jr to contribute, including putting some excellent Sprout songs on B-sides in the past. This go-round, Pollard buried one of his own pure gems in one of the hardest to find spots. How this was left off the LP, I'll have no idea. I guess it's just another small piece of building the legacy. "Silent Army" is 2 minutes of late '60 harmonizing over nostalgic, slightly melancholy guitar pop. Pollard sounds exceptional all around. When it's all over, it's nearly impossible not to move the needle back to the beginning. </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-42035181069984703452019-09-18T21:17:00.000-07:002019-10-29T21:28:47.764-07:00Hold On Hope [Promo] (1999)<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Hold On Hope [Promo]</b></div>
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<b>(1999, Creation Records)</b></div>
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It seems like 4,000 different EPs, singles collections, and promos exist for "Hold on Hope" and everything little thing ever possibly thought up for the LP <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html">Do the Collapse</a></i>. I could spend 4 lifetimes reviewing all of the "Hold on Hope" (radio remixes) that were released off that record, but I won't... yet.</div>
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But as reader <a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/08/tractor-tunes-volume-1-2000.html">Lucas Gelati</a> pointed out, I had missed the review of the "Teenage FBI (DEMO)" exclusively released on this UK only promo for the LP. I wrestled with even reviewing this, but decided what the hell... this is as legit as any "demo" released on any of the <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/suitcase-3-up-we-go-now-disc-11-2009.html">Suitcase</a> </i>collections. Without any further ado, possibly the last of the missed GBV officially released songs I have overlooked on this site?<br />
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<u>Teenage FBI (Demo)</u>- <b>5 </b>What do you know, it's "Teenage FBI"? Is this basically one of the best GBV songs ever. YES! Released on this UK only single along with "Hold on Hope" and "Perfect This Time," this remains the strange, lone place to hear this track. Is it essential? No. Is it the same as the version on <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/wish-in-one-hand-ep-1997.html">Wish In One Hand...</a></i>? Maddeningly, of course it's not. Pollard's vocals are WAY up in the mix, and it's a bit faster than the <i>WIOH</i> version, more comparable with the <i>Do the Collapse </i>version, minus those cloying synths. If anything, this MAY be the best version? </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-25172074770576072192019-08-19T22:01:00.001-07:002019-08-22T23:17:41.213-07:00Loose Shoes (2019) <div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Loose Shoes</b></div>
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<b>(2019, Bomb Record) </b></div>
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Are you fucking kidding me? I have to do this shit again? </div>
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Welcome to the THIRD release from Cash Rivers and the Sinners. Now I say third release, but really, it's the FOURTH release if you count (and you should) Cash Rivers' solo 7'' <i>S<a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/08/she-laughed-i-left-7-2017.html">he Laughed I Left</a></i>. Already, I can tell my mind is a warped pile of gelatinous gloop because I have just referred to Cash Rivers as if he were a real person.</div>
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Fortunately, he's not. However, I'm sure we all know someone like Cash Rivers, and luckily, like these extremely limited releases, they hopefully rarely make it into your home. </div>
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With that said, let's dive into the (alleged) LAST album from Cash Rivers and the Sinners. I know I said the same thing with the rather incredible double LP <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/11/do-not-try-to-adjust-your-set-i-am.html">Do Not Try to Adjust Your Set I Am the Horizontal and Vertical</a></i>. I only say “last”, because that's what camp Rockathon had said before announcing this limited slab. In the world of Cash Rivers, things are never as they seem.</div>
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Marketed as a bootleg record, this collection of 32 "songs" in 27 minutes is reportedly all the leftovers of Cash and his Sinners. Now, if I may get out of fantasy land for a minute, Pollard and gang had originally planned for a CD box set of all Cash Rivers tracks, including this very bonus material. Instead, the good people at Rockathon pulled the plug on the idea and released this ultra limited LP (500 to be exact), to drive the collectors up a wall once again, and pump more Pollard drunken comedy into the world at inflated 3rd party prices. </div>
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Are we better for it? At this point, fuck it, yeah sure? Is this good? No. Is it better than <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/blue-balls-lincoln-2018.html">Blue Balls Lincoln</a></i>? Maybe? Listen to this as a whole while munchin' on LSD and freebasing corndogs. </div>
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In conclusion, stick a fork in Cash. He's fuckin' done. </div>
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On with the show. </div>
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SIDE A: </div>
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<u>See Alice</u>- <b>3</b> Did I laugh? Yes. Again, like <i>Do Not Try To Adjust</i>... why does this sound so good? A real boner of track. That streamboat at the end kills!</div>
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<u>Shemaho</u>- <b>1 </b>Street-walkin' cock rock straight out of the '80s. You know this stinks when the shining moment comes courtesy of eagle screeching sound effects complimented with neighing horse accompaniment. </div>
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<u>What?</u>- <b>2</b> So incredibly stupid that I continued to sit on my couch laughing at how fucking stupid this was, while reaching for my beer. Another step closer to hip-hop territory for Pollard. </div>
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<u>2 Fisted Drinker</u>- <b>1 </b>The "Tacoma intro" is worth price of admission. The rest is complete nothing, as Pollard Rivers repeats the title over a <i>Bonanza </i>type rodeo jam.</div>
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<u>Wanna Do a Shot?</u>- <b>4 </b>Busted a gut. There's completely fucking ridiculous and then there's this. Comedy meets bar metal. </div>
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<u>Better About Myself</u>- <b>1 </b>So stupid I wanna cry. </div>
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<u>Party Hearty</u>- <b>1 </b>Did I already write the line "so stupid I wanna cry"? Yes... yes I did. Well, this is worse. </div>
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<u>White Wine Woman, Red Wine Man</u>- <b>3 </b>A rootin-tootin good time. Cowboy bar rock that sounds tooooo real. Good for a quick chuckle and then best left on the shelf to be forgotten. Nearly a real song at 2 minutes, this one even sports a freakin' bridge! </div>
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<u>We've All Been Drinking</u>- <b>2 </b>A '90s alternative throwback, could've been an updated theme for a sitcom, perhaps <i>Cheers? </i>Oddly catchy slack rock </div>
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<u>9:49</u>- <b>2 </b> Clap and stomp bar chant pumps out of the speakers courtesy of a head-in-the-toilet Cash Rivers. This song makes me realize that my willpower is for shit, because I find this song funny. </div>
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<u>Green Beans</u>- <b>1</b> Speaking of crap... this maybe be the most steaming pile of it on the record thus far. </div>
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<u>No Prob Limo</u>- <b>1</b> Stupid promo track... can you call this a track? </div>
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<u>Tickle and a Twenty</u>- <b>3</b> Fuck, Pollard really wrote a catchy goddamn tune here. Tex-Mex countrefried goodness. Really lacking in the lyric department, but this has sing-a-long potential. Damn if my toes weren't tapping. </div>
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<u>Two and a Half Tanks</u>- <b>1</b> Piano nonsense at under 20 seconds. What? </div>
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<u>Buzz Clip</u>- <b>1 </b>I'm not laughing, I'm crying, and not because I'm laughing. About 12 seconds long. </div>
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<u>Brown Bottle Flu</u>- <b>1</b> I don't understand this.... get me another beer. </div>
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<u>Better 2</u>- <b>1 </b>Alright! A 5 SECOND reprise of the song "Better About Myself." Did you need this in your life? Well, too fucking bad. At this point, I've already typed WAAAAYYYY more than this song deserves. Again, it's 5 seconds long. Still typing.... I can type forever... </div>
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<u>Out</u>- <b>1</b> But I won't, because I have to move onto the track "Out." I've come here to say this is all spoken word and it stinks! Goodbye. </div>
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<u>Dick In a Knot</u>- <b>4 </b>Thankfully, a new Pollard... I mean Cash (forgive me Mr. Pollard), has given us a classic to one day lie in our graves with. Okay, really though, this symphonic motherfolker is one catchy bleepin' tune. And to say nothing of the autotuned laughter and boner noises? </div>
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<u>Bobby Bare Promo</u>- <b>1 </b>Country music legend Bobby Bare returns from his spoken word appearance on the last record to put his name on new low. </div>
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<u>Holding Hands With Barry Gibb</u>- <b>3</b> Rhyming "Barry Gibb" with "very glib" has gotta be worth something? Right? </div>
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<u>SORM</u>- <b>1 </b>I honestly don't know... fill me in. </div>
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<u>Walking on Clown Shoes</u>- <b>3 </b>When complete stupidity becomes genius... it cracked me up. And don't it feel good? (originally written by Katrina and the Waves).</div>
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<u>Feels Good To Be Loved</u>- <b>1 </b>What the stink is this? ... best part is the argumentative outro. How often can you say that? </div>
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<u>Athman</u>- <b>1 </b>A classic lisp track "Athman" is. Subpar garage rock with "ath" jokes dragged through the mud. </div>
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<u>Sundown</u>- <b>1 </b>Woof! Oh hey! That's a nice little double guitar part. </div>
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<u>Too Much Makeup</u>- <b>1 </b>Drunk ranting that leads into... </div>
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<u>The Funky Mummy</u>- <b>1 </b>... the same spoken drunken ranting over skeletal "hip-hop" drum loop. The Chick Corea reference is good enough for a smirk. </div>
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<u>She's Got Fingers</u>- <b>1 </b>Piano smashing with Pollard singing about fingers in the time it takes you to let out 3 good sneezes. The fuck? </div>
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<u>She's a Lesbian Now</u>- <b>2 </b>Almost a song, almost funny... How is it that a song called "She's a Lesbian Now" is a breath of fresh air in the complete massacre that is Side 2 of this record? </div>
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<u>God's Toe Nail</u>- <b>1 </b>Swingin' no-fi doo-wop that leads absolutely nowhere. </div>
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<u>Strong Lion [Cash version]</u>- <b>4 </b>Incredible undone-bowtie-Sinatra-karaoke version of song written by a guy named <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/from-compound-eye-2006.html">Robert Pollard</a>, complete with befuddled big band backing and all. A small triumph, but yet, a complete wreck, much like this whole fucking slab of wax. </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-74781465093057597022019-08-19T21:07:00.001-07:002019-08-22T23:07:51.508-07:00(Dislodge) The Immortal Orangemen (2019)<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>(Dislodge) The Immortal Orangemen 7"</b></div>
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<b>(2019, Rockathon Records) </b></div>
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Since 2003, Robert Pollard has been releasing collections of poetry and artwork under the collected title <i>Eat</i>. Starting as a modest expansion of the man's artwork, the collections have grown bigger in page numbers, and in scope, much like all of Pollard's output. If you've stopped and taken a look at any volume of <i>Eat</i>, or perhaps go revisit, you'll notice a plethora of LP artwork, both front and back covers, buried in the pages of Pollard's extensive collages.<br />
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With 2019's <i>Eat 15</i>, Pollard raised the stakes. His longest collection of artwork to date also featured the return of the Pollard solo moniker for his first showing since 2016s <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/03/of-course-you-are-2016.html">Of Course You Are</a></i>. A 6 song, no frills one-sided 7'' came with <i>Eat 15</i>, tucked into the back flap. Page 131 of the collection collects the "liner notes" for this exclusive 7''.<br />
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Far from essential, this is a fun artifact to behold, perhaps to put on flipping through the pages of Pollard's cut and paste hungry mind, if only for 6 brief minutes. Each track is a classic boombox demo-like track, of similar nature to all 4 <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/01/suitcase-4-captain-kangaroo-won-war_60.html">Suitcase</a> </i>collections or, say, the <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/let-it-beard-boombox-demos-2011.html">Let It Beard Boombox Demos</a> </i>CD. Drop the needle, briefly kick back, and eavesdrop on a man pounding out his legacy on rickety acoustics. </div>
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<u>Late Night Worm</u>- <b>3 </b>Brittle, seemingly off-the-cuff tune walks a familiar, and classic, GBV walk-down on the guitar. Melancholy and haunting. 38 seconds of mystery, melody, and warbled vocal cords. </div>
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<u>Nurses Smoking Cigarettes</u>- <b>4</b> Seems to be some percussion in the rattle here! Is that cymbal crash in the dissonance? Pollard provides a strong melody in between cryptic pauses. Jangly and bombastic, in the no-fi sense. In between the hiss, this is a real winner. </div>
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<u>The Sea Hags Of North Dayton</u>- <b>3 </b>Acoustic stomp rocker that sounds like it'd fit wonderfully on an early Pollard solo LP if fleshed out. Complete with warped bar room noises, trippy and chaotic with underlying promise. </div>
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<u>Mirror Of The Maniac</u>- <b>2 </b>Sounds like an acoustic guitar played through a flange pedal, this is a short mood piece that meanders about and never really goes anywhere of note. </div>
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<u>Pain</u>- <b>4 </b>Driving psycho tune complete with drum machine backbone. Repetitive 2 chord riff complete with psych riffs. A little slice of art damaged Krautrock via Dayton. An addictive experiment from Pollard. </div>
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<u>Trumpets and Trumps</u>- <b>2 </b>Sad acoustic ringouts as Pollard barely makes it out of the speakers, crooning lowly in the background. A comedic social commentary if you will, at 2 sentences long. </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-79429270093644358662019-05-15T20:41:00.000-07:002019-08-19T20:42:34.964-07:00Tractor Tunes, Volume 1 (2000)<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Tractor Tunes, Volume 1</b></div>
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<b>(2000, Fresh Cow Pie)</b></div>
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For some godforsaken make-the-collector-sweat reason, Robert Pollard stuffed one ultra elusive track into the depths of record collecting hell. And here it is. Such is the case, that on this site, as I boasted to have commented on all Pollard studio tracks, little did I realize I neglected ONE single track. Hell, maybe there's a few more out there, but I think the lone track under the Kuda Labranche moniker covers it!<br />
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The fact that a song by Pollard's Kuda Labranche existed did not escape me. In fact, I've stumbled upon a picture of the cover to <i>Tractor Tunes Volume 1</i> a few times online. However, the track listed online for the compilation was "My Big Day." Lord knows I didn't need to hear this, as all 3 versions were released on Guided by Voices' <i>Suitcase: Failed Experiments and Trashed Aircraft. </i>Surely, this Kuda Labranche track HAD to be one of the ones included. BUT NO!.... it was not. (turns out I also ignored the comment by one Lucas Gelati in 2016 informing me "<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;">There's yet another version of "My Big Day", credited to Kuda Labranche that was released on "Tractor Tunes, Volume 1". It's the better of the four in my opinion."</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;">And I'll be damned. That IS the case! Presented here is the long lost review to "My Big Day" (the 4th version known to exist). Released on a CD included with the <i>Fresh Cow Pie</i> zine, this run is supposedly limited to 500 copies and includes a track from GBV alumn Mitch Mitchell's Terrifying Experience. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">Happy hunting for this one! </span></div>
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<u>My Big Day [Version 4]</u>- <b>4 </b>Only to be found on this obscure compilation included with zine, Pollard releases the BEST version of this generally lackluster song. The 3 versions released as one LONG track on <i>Suitcase</i> is enough to make you drool out the side of your skull with boredom. Here, this sounds like a GBV full studio outtake winner that got away. The layered vocal harmonies alone carry this. The crunch and swirl of the guitars enter psych rock territory. All at a minute and a half, this version KILLS! </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-61447202277627901572019-05-14T18:21:00.000-07:002019-10-25T18:10:02.862-07:00Warp and Woof (2019)<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Warp and Woof</strong><br />
<strong>(2019, Guided by Voices Inc.) </strong><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In the world of GBV fandom, the course of time moves both forward and backwards, at times seemingly suspended in motion. From Pollard's manic
writing pace, to his almost equally fervent output, seasons blend together,
memories coalesce. You can forget about trying to pinpoint the exact years on
certain releases without stumbling into moments of hesitation and recollection. Through the crackling fidelity, past the timeless nostalgia of the catalog, bolstered by the sheer will for Pollard to continue to press forward with such fluidity and determination (strengthening, weakening, rebounding, resurging, onward and forward), time is but an outsiders construct in Pollard's land. As the man said himself, "Life is short. GBV is long." Perhaps the timelessness has never been so evident as with the release of their newest LP, <i>Warp and Woof.</i><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Only 84 days after their polarizing 32 song
tome, <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html">Zeppelin
Over China</a></i>, and 13 months removed from the streamlined <i><a href="https://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html">Space
Gun</a></i>, its enough to make one nearly nauseous with giddiness at
the very existence of such an embarrassment of riches. To make matters
even more salivating, the newest offering from GBV glides smoothly into the
discography, a throwback to the off-the-cuff GBV formula that made them #1 in
the hearts of legions.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">For this go-round, Pollard and the
powerhouse reinvigorated line-up of Gillard, Shue, Bare Jr., and March tried a
different approach. <em>Warp and
Woof </em>combines Pollard and company's 4 limited
EPs (released late 2018 and early 2019), with a revised tracklist order
for the optimum lone LP listening experience; one of Pollard's
many idiosyncrasies when it comes to fine tuning his art. The new LP begs
the question, "What happens when your favorite prolific band releases 4
separate EPs and then rereleases everything as an LP? " Beside dropping a
shitload of money on a 5 separate vinyl offerings to get the same songs, the
whole experiences makes for an exciting new twist in the listening
process that is the Pollard songsphere. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This isn’t the first time GBV
released, or rather rereleased a collection such as this. Fans will recall
the 10 song<a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-pipe-dreams-of-instant-prince.html">
<em><span style="color: blue; text-decoration-line: none;">The Pipe Dreams of Instant Prince Whippet</span></em></a>;
an LP length sized EP constructed of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0">Universal
Truths and Cycles</a>' </i>b-side tracks that had previously been released
on four 7'' singles. Unlike the aforementioned collection, it's the immediacy of each track, and
coalescence of the current band, that makes <em>Warp
and </em>Woof feel that much more necessary, and less like a repackaging
of previously released material. Presented in this different context, the flow from
track to track opens new avenues into these songs, giving them new
meaning and feeling. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Warp and Woof </i>straddles the fine line of sharp and loose
throughout the entire 36 rapid fire minutes of its grooves. When one idea
doesn’t quite gel, fear not, because a new one is just a short track away.
Sometimes, those rapid fire ideas are just a couple chords away in the same
track. Its that spontaneity that gives the whole album the feel of classic GBV
of yore. This collection of free
flying melodies, choppy guitar heroics, and warbled Pollard lyrical snippets-and is enough to bring a tear after a few spins.
Not everything here is a gem, as is the case with the dense GBV output, but the
torrent of ideas runs deep and quick, attacking with such brevity and ferocity
that it’s tough not to lift the needle up and drop back at the beginning. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">SIDE A:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Bury the Mouse</u>- <b>4 </b>The most metal GBVs ventured in
a long while? Is "metal" the right word here? A delightful dirge of an opening
that gets better with ever spin. A snarled punchy, punk number delivered with
deadpanned Pollard stiff-upper-lip delivery, minus the jest. The whole affair is
only heightened by the expansively brief bridge. Fans will also lose their mind over Pollard singing "same place the fly got smashed." <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Angelic Weirdness</u>- <b>4 </b>Case in point of the title
defining the entire song. In fact, and I am purely curiously speculating here, this could very well be Pollard flying his
Ween appreciation freak flag. If this were on Ween's <i>The Pod </i>or <i>GodWeenSatan:
The Oneness</i>, would we question it? With that said, this is not to be
missed. Pollard's vocal delivery is off-putting at first,
yet somewhat heavenly thanks to studio effect, sounding almost ghostly. Dropped over the
acoustic backbone of the song, it's oh-so-sweet, and sinks its hooks into you
slowly but surely. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Foreign Deputies</u>- <b>4 </b>The absolute perfect
stop-gap-track that makes GBV so magical in the first place. On its own, at
first, the song is almost a sneeze in the wind. Yet, it's so cryptic, haunting,
it keeps you salivating for more. The perfect transition song that lightly fades into...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Dead Liquor Store</u>- <b>5 </b>Sounding like some mash up of a
Sega Genesis game meets caffeinated punk track, the song is tough not to root
for through gritted teeth and jittery eyeballs. Between Kevin March's high
tension drumming, Gillard and Bare's rope-taut guitar stabs, and Shue's
warbling, see-saw bass pummels, it's pure aural gratification. Harkens back to <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html">Space
Gun</a></i>'s impeccable "Daily Getups" a bit. The tacked on swooning
end part of "might get a taste of you, might get a taste of me," seals
the deal as new GBV classic. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Mumbling Amens</u>- <b>3 </b>Moody and prickly. Like a
cold mid-summer's day mist rolling in off Lake Erie into the industrial
compounds of Cleveland, there's beauty here, but perhaps not apparent at first.
A breath of air, or one best suited for moments of looking out at the gloom
with hands planted firmly in pockets.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Cohesive Scoops</u>- <b>4 </b><span style="background: white;"> Has all the ingredients of GBV classic-in-the-making. A thin line
keeps this "really good" tune from becoming a "great" one.
Pollard's vocals, whether by production or unsteady single take performance,
sound off kilter at times. The warbled harmonized lead out, though, comes
together as trustworthy GBV gold. Breezy and worthy of a high leg kick. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Photo Range Within</u>- <b>3 </b>A real blink-and-you'll-miss-it track. Pollard and company roll lightly into whimsical
country meets child-like simplicity here. Catchy in an somewhat idiotic way,
anchored by Shue's lead bass, and given life by the prickly guitars of Gillard
and Bare. Almost sounds like a thrift-store rendition of a passable Pavement
outtake, a band that made their living on thrift store ideals. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>My Dog Surprise</u>- <b>2 </b>Musically, this could've fit
somewhere buried in <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0">Universal
Truths and Cycles</a></i> era, or perhaps a leftover from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html">ZOC</a></i>.
A mid-tempo number lagging in much of note, only dragged down by Pollard's
horrid vocal posturing. Still not sure if it's a dog named "Surprise,"
or titled so as in giving one a "dog surprise." I'm not sure which is worse? A
lumbering affair that sticks in your brain for the wrong reasons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Tiny Apes</u>- <b>4</b> Another
over-before-it-starts number, one that relies mostly on its surf ravaged guitar
bending and scratching. The song goes from surf rock graveyard, to salvageable
for about 6 second mid song. Eventually the song finishes surprisingly solid,
begging for a replay. Pollard kills it throughout vocally. This is what happens when a
dumb soundcheck song become a full-fledged tune, and then continues to somehow
become your minor weirdo favorite. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Blue Jay House</u>- <b>3 </b>Starts off sounding like this
could be one propulsive song! A simple guitar riff we've heard lead off
countless songs in the rock universe before. You just know it's gonna slay.
Eventually it sort of dribble about over 2 minutes, recalling more of a 90s The
Fall feel (backed by acoustics and keyboard jabs), rather than anything
resembling propulsion. Pollard's melody and delivery feels too uninspired to
make this stick as anything more than a dude singing over mid-tempo
repetition. Oddly arresting. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Down the Island</u>- <b>4 </b>Is it the thunderstorm effects
in the background? Is it the reverb-set-to-11 cloak shrouding the vocals? The
harpsichord keyboard noodling? Whatever the case, this skeletal tune gets
better with every listen. A real for-fans-only track, perhaps. Equal parts haunting,
humid, and hopeful comprise this understated Pollard ballad. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Thimble Society</u>- <b>4 </b><span style="background: white;">Repetitive, low budget industrial-prog guitar and drum backbone holds it
together as Pollard lays down a strong double vocal showing. When living on the
odder side of life, this one begins to pay off with repeated listens. With low
lights at the next GBV show, may you bask in its glory, raise a hand, in a sea
of marijuana haze as the guitars wash over you. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">SIDE B:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>My Angel</u>- <b>5 </b><span style="background: white;"> Instant classic, and perfect way to kick of Side 2. This
almost feels like cut and paste Pollard material, but one you're never too
tired to revisit. So simplistic, so joyous. The hooks throughout are pure. Additionally,
the guitar crunch on this is fantastic. All at under a minute and a half. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>More Reduction Linda</u>- <b>4 </b>Guitar wise, brings about
dizzying memories of "Field Jacket Blues" off Pollard's <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/from-compound-eye-2006.html">From
a Compound Eye</a></i>. Epileptic in both its guitar and tom rolls approach
while allowing for momentary 2 chord pop moments. Great Pollard double vocals
on the "she always knows" parts, along with top notch Gillard guitar
noodling. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Cools Jewels and Aprons</u>- <b>5 </b>Perhaps the single greatest GBV
throwback to the days of your since anything off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2014/05/cool-planet-2014_26.html">Cool
Planet</a> </i>or <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2014/01/motivational-jumpsuit-2014.html">Motivational
Jumpsuit</a></i>. This is straight from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/under-bushes-under-stars-1996.html">Under
the Bushes Under the Stars</a> </i>era. A to-die-for descending
guitar pattern in the choruses, and short-as-shit verses complete with two-part
harmony. At a hair over a minute long, this is Pollard gold. Amazing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Even Next</u>- <b>4 </b>Time to fly the Pollard ballad
flag once more. Somewhere between the timeless turning wheels of a grandfather
clock and a far off nursery rhyme, you'll find this foggy dream sequence of a
lullaby waiting for you. Eventually the wafting tempo gives way to
steadier Kevin March drum part, anchored by Gillard's added strings. Only wish
the blown-out ending could last one more measure. All the more reason to make
you revisit. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>It Will Never Be Simple</u>- <b>2 </b>A perfectly fine and harmless
track. But in my GBV universe, do I really need to hear a Doug Gillard solo
INSTRUMENTAL<span style="background: white;"> front and center here? This two and a half minute track feels like an epic compared to all the other off-the-cuff
tunes. Didn't make sense to me on the <i>100 Dougs</i> EP. Still
doesn't make sense to me in the middle of Side 2. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>The Stars Behind Us</u>- <b>4</b> Ageless GBV territory
here. <span style="background: white;">Bare holds this together with steady
guitar chug and Gillard flies off the rails on some twisted leads. The song
does feel like it misses the opportunity to cash in on several killer hook
moments, but the lead-out is a solid payoff along with Pollard's stony,
yet tuneful delivery. Steadfast GBV gratification. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Skull Arrow</u>- <b>1 </b>How dumb is too dumb? Every GBV
record needs 1 pure dud, I guess? Here it is in all its terrible glory. Feels
like it was conceived and recorded in the same brain cell it took for the "skull
arrow" to kill. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Out Of the Blue Race</u>- <b>1 </b>Speaking of dumb
ideas... <span style="background: white;">Constipated Bob is back! As if in
the midst of drunken bowel troubles, Uncle Bob digs into his baritone moments
for this lackluster guitar boner of a tune. For such short tune, this
feels like such an exercise in patience. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Coming Back From Now On</u>- <b>2 </b>Speaking of dumb ideas.... This
is the only section of the LP where it feels the throw-aways, and worst ideas
were banished to skip-ability island. Here, <span style="background: white;">Pollard announces the track over screaming-fan sound effects. The song
awkwardly transitions between mind-numbing rock tune and near high-kick
territory. Unfortunately, Pollard's melodies are DOA throughout. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>The Pipers, The Vipers, The
Snakes!</u>- <b>4 </b>Late LP
redemption! Cl<span style="background: white;">unky mid-tempo rocker that is more
wholly familiar GBV territory. Solid harmonies, great delivery. Musically;
short on ideas, but rewarding after a few spins on the turntable, bolstered by
harmonic vocal outro. Repetitive, hitting all the right spots. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Time Remains In Central
Position</u>- <b>4</b> During
the recording of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/mag-earwhig-1997.html">Mag Earwhig!</a></i> and
<i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html">Do
the Collapse</a></i>, maybe... just maybe... Pollard penned this tune, and
resurrected it from the boombox tapes. One can dream, but this is vintage mid
to late 90s. Takes its time to unfold at mid-tempo, feeling like it
swells, but remains on first raising auto pilot. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong></strong>
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>End It With Light</u>- <b>5 </b>Perhaps not since <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html">Do
the Collapse</a></i>'s "An Unmarketed Product" has a closer felt so
immediate and catchy. Brief, pounding, profound. Top notch LP closer, one that
requires only a minute in change of your time. Like a lost gem from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/alien-lanes-1995.html">Alien
Lanes</a>, </i>"End It With Light," truly does as its title implies,
reminding us why GBV is number 1 in our hearts and on our score cards. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div align="center">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>
Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-4125692681211577102019-05-14T17:23:00.001-07:002019-05-14T18:24:44.846-07:001901 Acid Rock (2019)<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>1901 Acid Rock</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>(2019, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKHuaioLANPf_PHRRvXlyvr9P_sV22V-cZa8lp1ez2KwOY2a33qnP1qA-Ww7PT6eTap9CETN5e1v2z728KBuK96_So0WUegZftHUVGL9hJ-rEl5zLevUYfBRk5JRB-CTYU1InnzIg3sziH/s400/guided_by_voices_1901_acid_rock_large.jpg" width="400" /></b><br />
<strong></strong><br />
On March 29, 2019, round two of the GBV EP saga continued. 3 months removed from the first two entries in the quintet, <em>1901 Acid Rock </em>and <em>Umlaut Over the Ozone</em> hit stores. Like the first 2, each EP was pressed on black wax and limited to 1000.<br />
<br />
And like the first two, each song featured the current line-up firing off song snippet shots from the hip. No place is this quality of material greater in the collection that <em>1901 Acid Rock</em>, as if vying for greatest GBV EP of all-time!<br />
<br />
Each of these songs were collected less than a month later on the <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/05/warp-and-woof-2019_14.html"><em>Warp and Woof</em> </a> LP. <br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
SIDE A:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Dead Liquor Store</u>- <b>5 </b>Sounding like some mash up of a Sega Genesis game meets caffeinated punk track, the song is tough not to root for through gritted teeth and jittery eyeballs. Between Kevin March's high tension drumming, Gillard and Bare's rope-taught guitar stabs, and Shue's warbling, see-saw bass pummels, it's pure aural gratification. Harkens back to <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html">Space Gun</a></i>'s impeccable "Daily Getups" a bit. The tacked on swooning end part of "might get a taste of you, might get a taste of me," seals the deal as new GBV classic.<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Cools Jewels and Aprons</u>- <b>5 </b>Perhaps the single greatest GBV throwback to the days of your since anything off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2014/05/cool-planet-2014_26.html">Cool Planet</a> </i>or <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2014/01/motivational-jumpsuit-2014.html">Motivational Jumpsuit</a></i>. This is straight from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/under-bushes-under-stars-1996.html">Under the Bushes Under the Stars</a> </i>era. A to-die-for descending guitar pattern in the choruses, and short-as-shit verses complete with two-part harmony. At a hair over a minute long, this is Pollard gold. Amazing.<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Down the Island</u>- <b>4 </b>Is it the thunderstorm effects in the background? Is it the reverb-set-to-11 effect on the vocals? The harpsichord keyboard noodling? Whatever the case, this skeletal tune gets better with every listen. A real for-fans-only track, perhaps. Equal parts haunting, humid, and hopeful in this understated Pollard ballad. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
SIDE B:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>My Dog Surprise</u>- <b>2 </b>Musically, this could've fit somewhere buried in <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0">Universal Truths and Cycles</a></i> era, or perhaps a leftover from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/01/zeppelin-over-china-2019.html">ZOC</a></i>. A mid-tempo number lagging in much to note, only dragged down by Pollard's horrid vocal posturing. Still not sure if it's a dog names "Surprise," or as in giving one a "dog surprise." I'm not sure which is worse? A lumbering affair that sticks in your brain for the wrong reasons.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Even Next</u>- <b>4 </b>Time to fly the Pollard ballad flag once more. Somewhere between the timeless turning wheels of a grandfather clock and a far off nursery rhyme, you'll find this foggy dream sequence of a lullaby waiting for you. Eventually the wafting tempo gives way to steadier Kevin March drum part, anchored by Gillard's added strings. Only wish the blown-out ending could last one more measure. All the more reason to make you revisit.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Time Remains In Central Position</u>- <b>4</b> During the recording of <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/mag-earwhig-1997.html">Mag Earwhig!</a></i> and <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html">Do the Collapse</a></i>, maybe... just maybe... Pollard penned this tune, and resurrected it from the boombox tapes. One can dream, but this is vintage mid to late 90s. Takes its time to unfold at mid-tempo, feeling like it swells, but remains on first raising auto pilot. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-91953312698664291082019-05-14T17:10:00.000-07:002019-05-14T18:25:13.179-07:00Umlaut Over the Özone (2019) <div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Umlaut Over the Özone</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>(2019, Guided by Voices Inc.) </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwwWrMW7YSKAHrBoGepiA3triojouOVw0K22oKaMd1nH2ac6YqEiDbQiRbnWFiKxaEv19X5FMAA5NFr5hHFJHO3AnZesg6GoVnaZpS4D7lUW8SHuWPH0x-rtjHXDPYWeFhY-wWK4DgOhQZ/s1600/guided_by_voices_umlaut_over_the_ozone_large.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwwWrMW7YSKAHrBoGepiA3triojouOVw0K22oKaMd1nH2ac6YqEiDbQiRbnWFiKxaEv19X5FMAA5NFr5hHFJHO3AnZesg6GoVnaZpS4D7lUW8SHuWPH0x-rtjHXDPYWeFhY-wWK4DgOhQZ/s400/guided_by_voices_umlaut_over_the_ozone_large.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
On March 29, 2019, round two of the GBV EP saga continued. 3 months removed from the first two entries in the quintet, <em>1901 Acid Rock </em>and <em>Umlaut Over the Ozone</em> hit stores. Like the first 2, each EP was pressed on black wax and limited to 1000.<br />
<br />
And like the first two, each song featured the current line-up firing off song snippet shots from the hip. <em>Umlaut Over the Ozone </em>proves to be a strong EP full of "angelic weirdness" and haphazard GBV ideas tightly packed into an enjoyable slab of wax. The only deterrent is having to flip this gem over, repeatedly. <br />
<br />
Each of these songs were collected less than a month later on the <em><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2019/05/warp-and-woof-2019_14.html">Warp and Woof</a></em> LP. <br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
SIDE A:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Angelic Weirdness</u>- <b>4 </b>Case in point of the title defining the entire song. In fact, this could very well be Pollard flying his Ween appreciation freak flag. If this were on Ween's <i>The Pod </i>or <i>GodWeenSatan: The Oneness</i>, would we question it? With that said, this is not to be missed. Pollard's vocal delivery is somewhat off-putting at first, yet somewhat heavenly thanks to studio effect. Dropped over the acoustic backbone of the song, it's oh-so-sweet, and sinks its hooks into you slowly. <br />
<br />
<u>More Reduction Linda</u>- <b>4 </b>Guitar wise, brings about dizzying memories of "Field Jacket Blues" off Pollard's <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/from-compound-eye-2006.html">From a Compound Eye</a></i>. Epileptic in both its guitar and tom rolls approach while allowing for momentary 2 chord pop moments. Great Pollard double vocals on the "she always knows" parts, along with Gillard guitar noodling.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Blue Jay House</u>- <b>3 </b>Starts off sounding like this could be one propulsive song! A simple guitar riff we've heard lead off countless songs in the rock universe before. You just know it's gonna slay. Eventually it sort of dribble about over 2 minutes, recalling more of a 90s The Fall feel (backed by acoustics and keyboard jabs), rather than anything resembling propulsion. Pollard's melody and delivery feels too uninspired to make this stick as anything more than a dude singing over mid-tempo repetition. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b></b><br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
SIDE B:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Photo Range Within</u>- <b>3 </b>Blink-and-you'll-miss-it simplicity here. Pollard and company rolls lightly into whimsical country meets child-friendly simplicity here. Catchy and an almost idiotic way, anchored by Shue's lead bass, and given life by the prickly guitars of Gillard and Bare. Almost sounds like a thrift-store rendition of a passable Pavement outtake, a band that made their living on thrift store ideals. <br />
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Mumbling Amens</u>- <b>3 </b>Moody and prickly. Like a cold mid-summer's day mist rolling in off Lake Erie into the industrial compounds of Cleveland, there's beauty here, but perhaps not apparent at first. A breath of air, or one best suited for moments of looking out at the gloom with hands planted firmly in pockets.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>End It With Light</u>- <b>5 </b>Perhaps not since <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/do-collapse-1999.html">Do the Collapse</a></i>'s "An Unmarketed Product has a closer felt so immediate and catchy. Brief, pounding, profound. Top notch LP closer, one that requires only a minute in change of your time. Like a lost gem from <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/alien-lanes-1995.html">Alien Lanes</a>, </i>"End It With Light," truly does as its title implies, reminding us why GBV is number 1 in our hearts and on our score cards. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b></b><br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1296276308922609437.post-68786197243274877462019-02-18T20:46:00.000-08:002020-03-27T07:00:49.987-07:00Zeppelin Over China (2019)<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>ZEPPELIN OVER CHINA</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>(2019, Guided by Voices Inc.)</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjguMEyiWlDSfY-Yji2SItV8-A1gXnwu8hdPItJlu9KHSJ0Ljx0WlS-uKJ0JvJoSsk_GpuPltpR96OVOLNxDfUKKX_nMaEuZFBxQAZafW_BhEeL2npF5A7XU2MUzucBR0eWZ_UVFG5vhNLJ/s1600/guided_by_voices_zeppelin_over_china_large.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjguMEyiWlDSfY-Yji2SItV8-A1gXnwu8hdPItJlu9KHSJ0Ljx0WlS-uKJ0JvJoSsk_GpuPltpR96OVOLNxDfUKKX_nMaEuZFBxQAZafW_BhEeL2npF5A7XU2MUzucBR0eWZ_UVFG5vhNLJ/s400/guided_by_voices_zeppelin_over_china_large.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
There are two types of GBV fans (as a matter of convenient comparison here): Those who are familiar and enjoy the '90s output, and those who hang on to and swear by the Pollard gospel (owning LPs with names like <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-completed-soundtrack-for-tropic-of.html">The Completed Soundtrack For the Tropic of Nipples</a></i>) . The former is free to go about their lives, dipping in and out, enjoying other worldly hobbies and recreation. The latter hangs by the man's every note and beer soaked breath, reluctant or unwilling to slander anything he's so graciously released to us over the years.<br />
<br />
I, for better or worse, find myself in the latter category. Rejoicing with every release, I am selfishly hungered to the point of starvation, needing more more more, as the ravenous fan so often does. Tracking down, listening, and loving (well....) everything is part of the addiction (hence, this site you are currently on). However, I try to take the blinders off from time to time.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
So it pained me to no end when <i>Zeppelin Over China </i>came out of my stereo the first time, and continued to for the next 75 minutes, dragging, banging, clanging; falling flat. Upon first spin, I thought; <i>I actively dislike about 5 Bob records... and now this could be #6.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Zeppelin Over China </i>follows much in the same vein as some other Pollard double LPs of the past (<i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/let-it-beard-2011.html">Let It Beard</a></i>, <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/from-compound-eye-2006.html">From a Compound Eye</a></i>). The songs are longer, darker, leaning heavily towards prog rather than pop (<i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/04/universal-truths-and-cycles-2002.html?zx=c64af2d36e0f9dd0">Universal Truths and Cycles</a></i>, comes to mind). Hooks are hidden, or buried beneath the ebb and flow of instrumentation, taking a back seat to post-punk groove, middle of the night balladry, and tom-tom propelled dirges.<br />
<br />
Like many Pollard records, <i>Zeppelin Over China </i>is a grower, but a dense and murky one at that. It's challenging, but is it necessarily a good challenge? Many of these songs, to say the least, do merit repeated listens. It's a lot to take in with one listen, however, one finds themselves succumbing to many moments, hidden hooks poking out from darkened corners when you least expect it. That is, if you can make it through the myriad of tracks that run into the 3 minute zone. The LP could've greatly benefited from many songs being chopped in half in classic GBV fashion.<br />
<br />
Being only the 2nd double album of Guided by Voices long and storied career (and coming less than two years after their first double), it's so tempting to want to proclaim this as a new masterpiece of the canon. How <i>I</i> wanted to love this record so badly, after the triumphant <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/04/space-gun-2018.html">Space Gun</a></i> LP, and the dizzying experimentation of their previous double, <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/03/august-by-cake-20017.html">August By Cake</a></i>. While <i>Space Gun </i>stood as the lone GBV album release of 2018, it was an album I heralded as one of GBVs all-time best.<i> August By Cake</i>, while flawed, felt like a disorientingly fun experience, bolstered by contributions from all four members not named Pollard. On this double LP, however, it was as if Pollard said "Oh yeah, I can write 32 songs all by myself!" and then delivered a giant brick of ideas, and occasionally in-tune vocals he had to get down before the first lunch break.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Zeppelin Over China</i> is not for the faint of heart, but it is sure to satisfy many fans while bringing many to debate the merits of these songs. Hang with it, at the very least, it stands as a head turning doorstop in the middle of an incredible reunion run with this invigorating lineup. Perhaps one day, it will achieve that masterpiece status, leaving me kicking myself... alone, stinking, and unafraid.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
SIDE A:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Good Morning Sir</u>- <b>3 </b>If there is one thing Pollard nails nearly every time, it's kicking things off with a bang. Rarely has he opened a record, especially a GBV record with nothing short of a stunner. As the song limps into is wobbly ending, it becomes apparent that what's ahead may not be par for the course. However, after a few listens, this meandering snippet of a tune grows legs of its own and clings to the brain. Still, this minute track feels like it has multiple opportunities to become a stone-cold classic, but never fully develops.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>Step of the Wave</u>- <b>2 </b>The song title is about as catchy and interesting as the song itself. A lifeless pulse of a gray track. Monotonously beats you over the head for 3 tuneless minutes. The chorus shows a spark of life from the band, but the melody, and (lack of creative) turn is a true snooze. The repetitive, building post-punk ending, complete with Gillard solo, is a minor treat that almost saves it. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
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<u>Carapace</u>- <b>1 </b>The fact that this mind numbing '70s rocker song is 3 and a half minutes in itself is a sin. Pollard repeats the phrase "turtle shell" about 50 times, and does some mumbled repeated delivery of "sarcophagus" halfway through that's enough to make one's skin crawl. It may be one of the dumbest vocal moments he's ever committed to tape. About the most uninspired, repetitive riff one could come up with. Would be proud if my non-existent 10 year old kid wrote this, but otherwise...? Stiff and lifeless, never-ending, and chocked full of cowbell. </div>
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<u>Send In the Suicide Squad</u>- <strong>3 </strong>A mid-tempo soft rocker that takes its time to unfold. Pollard does a nice job bellowing about, nearly turning this song into something much more memorable than it deserves to be. Unlike the last two tracks, a tidy 2 minutes of near joy.<br />
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<u>Blurring the Contacts</u>- <b>2 </b>Sluggish downer song feels like boulder upon the brain. On pure mood alone, I tip my cap, but there's little here to hang said cap on. Kevin March pounds away at his mighty toms. The band trudges along as Pollard does some mild tuneful speaking. Another middle-of-the-road Circus Devils' song that got away and found its way onto a GBV record. </div>
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<u>Your Lights Are Out</u>- <b>4 </b>Creepy, tuneful, destitute, rocking. Yup, that sums it up! Simple yet twisted guitar lead stands as the center piece. Pollard's hollow vocal yelps fit snuggly in the percussive stabs throughout the song. Mid-way through, the icy track manages to pick up steam, as hooks abound in coy fashion. The only downfall; at nearly 3 and a half minutes, the song could've benefited from a shave. </div>
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<u>Windshield Wiper Rex</u>- <b>3 </b>Unfortunately there is now a GBV song called "Windshield Wiper Rex." Luckily the song has some some life to it, and nearly has a hook, but again, Pollard never brings the hammer down throughout the first section. The mid-section shows a bit of sunshine, and dips its toe into classic GBV hooks, but never quite commits. </div>
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<u>Holy Rhythm</u>- <strong>3 </strong>Damn, Kevin March <i>REALLY</i> gets to pound the shit out of his toms on this bleak record, don't he? Another mood track, that picks up into mid-tempo rocker, that eerily marches on to the end. Continuously pulse pounding, as Pollard stands vocally strong to the finish line. </div>
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<u>Jack Tell</u>- <b>2 </b>What should be a one minute gap track turns into an unnecessary multifaceted slog. The first part of this song is a near perfect GBV snippet of a tune accented by a soaring Pollard. The band eventually kicks in at the 2 minute mark, Pollard living out more arena rock fantasies about being in The Who, as the tune goes nowhere.</div>
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<u>Bellicose Starling</u>- <b>3</b><strong> </strong>A sterile ballad of sorts, mildly saved by the "that's what you are" chorus. Grows more engaging with repeated listens. Reminiscent of a forgettable track on a mid-00's Pollard solo record, the song is saved by Gillard's string arrangements, which breathes some fresh air into a track that nearly feels dead on arrival. </div>
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<u>Wrong Turn On</u>- <b>2 </b>What kind of title is this? Actually, what kind of titles are any of these? Seriously this record may take the cake for having the worst collection of GBV titles of all time. "Jack Tell?" "Vertiginous Raft?" The fuck? Oh, yes. The song! Some spring in the step here that ultimately gets wasted by Pollard's unmemorable chorus. Seemingly tries for a monumental ending of double vocals, but remains drab for the course. </div>
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<u>Charmless Peters</u>- <b>4 </b>"Charmless?" Somewhat. Luckily, this downer of a tune is fleshed out, and gets stronger as it unfolds. Even though it drags on too long, lacks much power, and is about a half dozen hooks short of a minimally supplied tackle box, the song is somehow redeeming. A slow grower for sure, but manages to rise as a surprising epic amongst the drab skies. Sure to be a killer live staple. </div>
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<u>The Rally Boys</u>- <b>5 </b>Oh praise the LORD! "The Rally Boys," saves us all from the cold pit of sludge that is LP 1. Okay, too harsh? A strong dose of pep to this, as March drives it home with solid downbeats. Then, the jubilee of a chorus kicks in. The strings are enough to induce a tear. The harmonies, layered vocals; this is a sheer moment of pop triumph. Enough to make you raise your fist, revisit, rejoice. One of Pollard's best moments. "The Rand McNally Boys!" And all under two minutes! </div>
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<u>Think. Be a Man</u>- <b>2 </b>Well that was fun while it lasted. Completely aimless, tuneless, Pollard speak-singing and stumbling his way through. Again, the drums stomp on in this minor key'd landfill of directionless chords and word soup. Feels like the bastard tune that got away from "Substitute 11" off <i>August By Cake</i> or "How To Murder A Man (In 3 Acts)" off <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2017/08/how-do-you-spell-heaven-2017.html">How Do You Spell Heaven</a></i>, but crummier. </div>
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<u>Jam Warsong</u>- <b>3 </b>An idiotic riff repeated through the entire song, as drum machine keeps time. So mindless, it almost becomes fascinatingly hypnotic. Possibly well suited for a GBV EP of "wacky" ideas, but just another track on this double LP. This one grows on you, more in a groove way than any actual memorable song. Frankly, I hate that I like this song. </div>
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<u>You Own the Night</u>- <b>4 </b>Originally released as the first single, and side A of <a href="http://www.gbvdb.com/album.asp?albumid=3360">7'' of same name</a>. "You Own the Night" is another rare example of the whole unit giving a shit, and coming out with shining results. The chorus (complete with downbeat propulsion, strings, and raging harmonies), resembles a slightly less triumphant "The Rally Boys," from a few tracks earlier. Frustratingly, the song is nearly killed by the pointless one minute of uninteresting guitar fuckery in the middle. </div>
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<u>Everything's Thrilling</u>- <b>2 </b>Alright! Dig that guitar chug. This song's going places. Any minute, the band's gonna kick in, and Pollard is going to launch this second LP into the stratosphere with a fucking banger. Any minute... oh shit. Yup, this is just Pollard chugging away on an electric guitar, by himself, singing a melody-absent, harmony-less tune for far too long. </div>
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<u>Nice About You</u>- <b>1</b><strong> </strong>Creepy, creeping, creeper of a song. Cold, cold song that meanders rather dimly about. No real purpose here; a two minute gap-track. At the minute and half mark, the song flops into a sudden pulse as Pollard hollers the word "NICE" repeatedly. No thanks. </div>
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<u>Einstein's Angel</u>- <strong>4 </strong>One of the rare classic GBV sounding titles of the record. Nearly a classic GBV sounding song too, in some fashion! A minor detractor, the whole song still feels utterly sterile, glossed over by clean production and brittle guitar tones. Pollard delivers a melody decent enough (with solid call-and-response harmonies to boot), complete with trustworthy Gillard guitar leads. Feels like a damn diamond in the rough when held against the first few tracks of this second LP. </div>
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<u>The Hearing Department</u>- <b>4 </b>So very cold, so painfully slow, that over a couple listens the song becomes morbidly alluring; like rolling down your car window in the dead of night during a 10 below zero, January evening. Oh wait, I did that! Even if listened to in summer, you can possibly see your breath in the dark while listening. Between the production, the wonderfully subdued vocal delivery from Pollard, and the Gillard string arrangements this becomes an icy ride through the darkness that's worth taking.</div>
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<u>Questions Of the Test</u>- <b>2 </b>This song is nearly catchy, until one realizes it's just plain stupid. Then, you realize it's not even catchy at all. If Pollard was replaced by John Flansburgh, I might find this a fairly forgettable They Might Be Giants throw-away. As a Guided by Voices song, it's grating. The psych-rock interludes fail to save it. However, the ending DOES <i>nearly</i> save it. Damn. </div>
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<u>No Point</u>- <b>1 </b>"There is no point, in fixing. It's out of your hands." Fucking NAILED IT. </div>
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<u>Lurk of the Worm</u>- <b>2 </b>A song that almost tricks you into thinking it rules. It's like Pollard tried his hand at composing a Zappa-light tune; proggy on purpose. Many people will say after the 25th listen, they "got" this song. It nearly rules at spots, and there's some notable crunch amongst the guitar pedal/synth fuck-a-thon. At the 2:30 mark, the song stops and kicks back in with a tacked on 20 second ROCKING ending (for no fucking purpose at all), that you soon wish was the crux of the song the entire time. On a brighter note; Gillard and March shine on this!</div>
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<u>Zeppelin Over China</u>- <b>1 </b>40 seconds of acoustic nonsense as keys rattle against the hollow body of the guitar. Then someone laughs. Some people talk. Then someone yells "Yeah!" Cool, <i>ZOC</i> also contains recordings that should be on <i>Suitcase 5 </i>or an <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-great-houdini-wasnt-so-great-2007.html">Acid Ranch LP</a>. </div>
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<u>Where Have You Been All My Life</u>- <b>2 </b>Compared to most of the <i>ZOC</i> tracks, this song sounds like practical speed metal! A tight-wound, guitar chugger that barrels ahead. What feels like it should be late LP payoff instead unfolds stiff as a board. Pollard adds lifeless, monotone vocals to the soulless guitar changes. On the choruses, it's as if Pollard abandons the instinctual and familiar melodic style for out-of-tune vocal straining, as if not to plagiarize himself from yesteryear. You'll find yourself humming this, like an idiotic nursery rhyme, or children's song that makes you want hit yourself over the head with shovel. </div>
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<u>Cold Cold Hands</u>- <b>4 </b>"Cold." The centerpiece theme of the entire record. The doubled vocals add much needed life to this mid-tempo stomp. A mild melody, with a very strong vocal showing bring something of note to this short, harmless track. After a few listens, this becomes a late LP winner. This one creeps into your brain, and sounds like it could be a killer when played live. Reminds me of a lost track from <i>How Do You Spell Heaven</i>. Gillard shows some late song flair with guitar heroics. </div>
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<u>Transpiring Anathema</u>- <b>1 </b>When Pollard comes in with his off-time, drunk uncle delivery of "I've got news for you.... PUNK..." I want to die a little more each time I hear it. Is this supposed to be <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2018/11/do-not-try-to-adjust-your-set-i-am.html">funny?</a> Was this the last idea he needed to squeeze out before sent to the pressing plant. Pollard's (mostly) singular vocal take does little over this run-of-the-mill arrangement of chords. <i><a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-harold-pig-memorial-2002.html">The Harold Pig Memorial</a> </i>called and wants its outtake back. </div>
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<u>We Can Make Music</u>- <b>4 </b>Too sentimental for its own good? Possibly. But Pollard weaves some late LP magic. The band, and Travis Harrison handle this well, budding from the seams with added synths, strings, and acoustic guitar accents. Pollard sounds like a delicate old man on this, warbled, haggard, pleading for beauty. The title makes me want to vomit, but the hooks and build up make me want to weep. </div>
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<u>Cobbler Ditches</u>- <b>2</b> Some of the dumbest lyrics Pollard has ever committed to tape. Super fans will post online about how much they like it because Pollard says "Motor Away" in it. He also says "Candy bar no one" and "Candy by credit card." </div>
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<u>Enough Is Never At the End</u>- <b>3 </b>If you like <a href="http://unclebobsongfactory.blogspot.com/2016/05/please-be-honest-2016.html">"Sad Baby Eyes"</a> then you're gonna love "Enough Is Never At the End." Luckily, unlike the former, this song drags along enough old man, drunken sentiment and sincere sentimentality to stand on its own wobbly legs in a weirdly touching moment in the catalog. </div>
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<u>My Future In Barcelona</u>- <b>4 </b>The first track to premier online for the record, "My Future In Barcelona" is wholly familiar GBV comfort food stretched out into a somewhat breezy (nearly) 4 minutes! The song rides an above average fuzzy feeling throughout. It never dazzles, it doesn't surprise. The band rides an average verse into an average chorus repeatedly that adds up to a song you'll find yourself humming through the rest of your days. One of the tracks where it feels like the whole band comes together in this would-be arena anthem. </div>
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<u>Vertiginous Raft</u>- <b>4 </b>Somber, guitar chug-heavy shanty rocks us out. Hazy, fuzzed out. Pollard triumphantly sounds off in this minute plus salute, bolstered by a much appreciated string section. Brief, but totally redemptive in its pomposity. As the final note on piano rings out, may you drift out into the abyss on your proverbial raft, vertigo be damned. </div>
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Eric Truchanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04976258200679131327noreply@blogger.com23