Mulling over Robert Pollard's perplexing one-thousand-plus discography of sing alongs, it becomes apparent that any argument lives and dies by personal preference. With six albums pinned down for 2009, his mind couldn't stretch to an expansive limit. This sort of becomes a problem for fans; Pollard, now extended limit to limitless, cares more about releasing than writing. And this is a problem to anyone that can see through new projects such as the drunk haze of Boston Spaceships or the copious, ever present solo work. With Guided By Voices, the split came for exactly this reason - his 'tiring' of being a ringleader. Unfortunately, any fan of that deranged lo-fi era of indie icon albums (Bee Thousand, Alien Lanes, Under The Bushes Under The Stars), a 'personal preference' equates to wanting the old way back. Those days when a drunken fool would stumble around the stage and chant 'HEY KIDS!', as opposed to the drunken fool who stumbles in and out of a studio.
It'd be useless to ask for a reunion, since the questions would be trivial: Which lineup is he gonna call? Where's Tobin Sprout? What will they play? Still, as he keeps on expanding and keeps never diversifying, it's important to remember old habits. The oldest, of course, are no better than the newest; Devil Between My Toes is the debut album from the Ohio group, with the oldest of lineups chanting songs that sound more R.E.M. than Murmur ever could. Tracks such as "Discussing Wallice Chambers" almost idolise the group, Pollard's vocals more a tribute than anything else. It's an underrated, silly 'n' tickled fan-album, but it shares some distinct qualities with anything up until the band's final release: pop off-the-wall and overly revealing lyricism that ends hollow and fun. Above all, it has all that indiosyncraticy - so who cares who they're ripping off.
3 comments:
so yeah moar plz
Not trying to bust your B's, but GbV is not from Boston. That place does not deserve that credit.
my bad, slip of the tongue :(
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