I have not listened to much Guided By Voices in the past. Sure, I have heard the odd song here and there, but just never got around to jumping into the pool. Admitting this in 2012 is the musical equivalent of someone saying, “Hey, I just saw this show Law and Order. It was pretty good. So what happened on the show before I came in...”
Bob Pollard, the guide and voice of Guided By Voices is nothing if not prolific. This is true to form on their new release Let’s Go Eat The Factory (Rockathon Records 2011) which throws 21 new songs at you in under 42 minutes. If there is one that is not exactly your cup of tea (and this will probably be true for most people), just stick with it because a new one is coming at you in less than two minutes. This album reunites the “classic” 90‘s GBV lineup, and has your local indie record store clerk as excited as the older ponytailed record store clerk was when Neil Young got back on the Crazy Horse.
GBV likes to experiment, but that is what makes them all the more interesting. They certainly know their way around a hook and will surely have you singing along even if it is only for a minute at a time. Check out how pretty they can be on the great “Doughnut For a Snowman” -
And then they hit you with a left hook of an anthemic rocker like “The Unsinkable Fats Domino” just to let you know they can beat you at that game as well -
And yes, the bassist did bust his tail on national TV. But the lesson here is that he got back up and kept on rocking. That is exactly what Guided By Voices have done and will continue to do for years to come. They are one of the few bands who make music exactly the way they want. And after all, that is what true rock and roll is all about. All hail the Unsinkable Guided By Voices.
- PLC
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be sure to check out Pat's other awesome music monday reviews:
- last week - Toro Y Moi
- last month - Smoking Popes
- full archive of Music Monday with PLC - HERE
