Guided By Voices, Nirvana and Joy Division & Shows # 778, 779, 780, 781

In the month of June Revolution Rock celebrated the 25th anniversary of Guided By Voices Bee Thousand album, the 30th anniversary of Nirvana's Bleach and the 40th anniversary of Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures. Find playlists and download links below this post featuring a bit of info on each of these albums.

Guided By Voices - Bee Thousand (1994)

Guided By Voices Bee Thousand was originally released on June 21st, 1994. At the time, GBV had already released several albums and Bee Thousand would be their seventh album. Prior to this, all of the band’s albums had been recorded in studios. Bee Thousand would be different. Instead of recording the album in a studio, GBV recorded this album on a variety of four track recorders in different garages and basements of the various band members. The results were very lo-fi, a lot of the recording sounds like it could be from an old bootleg. This was part of band leader Robert Pollard’s intention. He stated that he wanted the album to resemble Beatles bootlegs. Musically, the songs draw on British invasion rock, punk rock, pop, psychedelic and progressive rock influences. The majority of the music found on Bee Thousand was made up of overdubbed, re-edited versions of older, unused material by the band. Lyrically, the songs featured words that have drawn comparison to the cut-up technique that was once used by writer William Burroughs. The songs would draw on many themes that seemed fantastical, but due to the lyrical technique of Pollard, they are layered with many different potential meanings.

At this point in time Guided By Voices was more of loose collective of musicians. Pollard has stated that the band during this period was made up of whatever friends were available to play. In addition to the music created by Robert Pollard, there are also the songs written by Tobin Sprout, who would be part of the GBV classic lineup from 1987-1997 and again from 2010-2014. Songs such as “Awful Bliss”, “Mincer Ray”, Ester’s Day” and “Hot Freaks” all add to the uniqueness of this album and when combined with the other songs such as “I Am A Scientist”, “Hardcore UFO’s” and “Gold Star For Robot Boy” create something unpredictable and spontaneous. Originally Bee Thousand was going to be the last album for Guided By Voices, due to pressure to focus on Pollard’s teaching career and family, in addition to the financial issues that arose with being in a band. However, Bee Thousand pulled Guided By Voices out of obscurity and turned out to be a new beginning for the band.

Nirvana - Bleach (1989)

Originally released on June 15th, 1989 on Sub Pop Records, Bleach was the debut album by Nirvana. The album featured a heavier, grungier sound, as opposed to Nirvana’s Nevermind and In Utero albums. When Bleach was released it only featured eleven songs. It wasn’t until after Nirvana released Nevermind that Bleach would be re-released with two additional tracks. It would chart at number 89 on the Billboard 200 upon the re-release in 1992. The music on Bleach reflected the Seattle music scene at the time blending elements of punk, metal and classic rock.

Nirvana recorded Bleach with Jack Endino at Reciprocal Studios in sessions that took place between December 1988 and January 1989. Before Dave Grohl joined Nirvana as their drummer, the band went through a series of drummers. Prior to being called Nirvana, they went by several different band names and Aaron Burckhard played drums with them. He quit the band in December of 1987. In January 1988, Kurt Cobain asked Dale Crover (of The Melvins) to record a demo session with Nirvana so that it could help them find a new drummer. The band recorded ten songs on January 23rd, 1988, including vocal overdubs and had a rough mix of the songs done in roughly six hours. Dale Crover is featured on three songs on Bleach “Paper Cuts”, “Floyd The Barber” and “Downer” that originate from this session. Most of the others that he recorded during this session would be spread out over other releases such as 1992’s Incesticide and the 2004 box set With The Lights Out. Chad Channing joined Nirvana in 1988 and shortly after joining recorded the Love Buzz single with them. Other than the three noted songs, Channing is featured on the remainder of the songs on Bleach.

Lyrically, the songs on Bleach have a bleak and claustrophobic outlook. Cobain has said that most of the lyrics are about his life in Aberdeen. “Negative Creep” is one of the many tracks with heavy guitar riffs, “School” was said to be a critique of the Seattle music scene, and “Mr. Moustache” was inspired by Cobain’s dislike of macho behaviour. In addition to the heaviness found on Bleach, the song “About A Girl” shows the pop abilities of Kurt Cobain. This song has been described as a “Jangly R.E.M. type of pop song”, but also one influenced heavily by The Beatles. It stands out on Bleach, but also shows that Kurt Cobain and Nirvana were more than just another band in the Seattle music scene.

Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures (1979)

On June 15th, 1979, Manchester band Joy Division released their debut album Unknown Pleasures on Factory Records. A high-water mark of postpunk music, this atmospheric release from the Manchester quartet made a significant impact in the realm of independent music. Before recording Unknown Pleasures, Joy Division was known as Warsaw. They signed a recording contract with RCA Records in 1977 and recorded demos for the label, however, they were unhappy with the results. The recordings were eventually released as Warsaw. Before that happened however, four of the songs from the RCA sessions were selected and self-released by Joy Division on their own Enigma label as An Ideal For Living. Heavily influenced by bands such as Sex Pistols and Buzzcocks, this EP reflected the band’s early punk sound. It was also around this time that Joy Division’s manager Rob Gretton convinced the band to sign to the label Factory Records. They signed to Factory Records in 1978 with Martin Hannett in the producer seat for their first album.

The recording of Unknown Pleasures took place at Strawberry Studios in Stockport, England over three weekends in April of 1979. Martin Hannett, who had produced the first Buzzcocks EP Spiral Scratch as Martin Zero took Joy Division’s punk sound and added his sense of experimentation to it. Hannett added space and atmosphere to Joy Division’s sound, which when combined with the music of Joy Division and the lyrics of Ian Curtis created a world of mystery and darker textures to the Unknown Pleasures landscape. Unusual production techniques were employed by Hannett such as using the sound of a toilet, breaking glass, someone eating crisps (played backwards), in addition to the use of tape echo, digital delay (on the drums) and time modulators. Ian Curtis’ vocals for the song “Insight” were also recorded from a telephone line.

The music while punk based was different. It would be known as post-punk. The basslines played by Peter Hook were played in higher registers, in a way that had not been done before. The baritone vocals by Curtis combined with minimalist guitar by Bernard Sumner and the manic, precise drumming of Stephen Morris created something unique. The lyrics of Curtis influenced by writers such as J.G. Ballard, William Burroughs, and Gogol, touched on many topics that weren’t being addressed at the time and that people still identify with today. Although the band were initially displeased with the sound of Unknown Pleasures, the album has had a long lasting legacy. Hundreds of musicians would claim influence from this album, ranging from rock acts like U2 and The Cure, to hip-hop artists like Danny Brown and Vince Staples. Its influence does not stop at music. It has also inspired books, film and even graphic design. Unknown Pleasures is an album that has been written about many times. There is something different for the listener to discover when listening to it. Whether it is the darker themes addressing depression, existentialism, the sense of alienation that people identify with or the other themes that run through this album, Unknown Pleasures creates an air of mystery that is not easily defined. It is one that keeps people returning to it and will do so for a long time to come.

Show 781 (Originally Aired On June 29th, 2019)(Guided By Voices Bee Thousand - 25th Anniversary):

1. Guided by Voices - Hardcore UFO's (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
2. Guided by Voices - Buzzards and Dreadful Crows (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
3. Guided by Voices - Hot Freaks (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
4. Guided by Voices - Smothered in Hugs (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
5. Necking - Spare Me
6. Feels - Awful Need
7. Sebadoh - Vacation
8. Kiwi Jr. - Wicked Witches
9. Dumb - Columbo
10. Guided by Voices - Yours to Keep (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
11. Guided by Voices - Echos Myron (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
12. Guided by Voices - Gold Star for Robot Boy (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
13. Guided by Voices - Mincer Ray (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
14. Guided by Voices - A Big Fan of the Pigpen (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
15. The Electric Cows - Shattered Glass
16. Vondells - Snakes Eyes
17. The Mighty Swells - Runaway
18. West Ends - Belle v. Sebastian
19. Guided by Voices - Her Psychology Today (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
20. Guided by Voices - Kicker of Elves (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
21. Guided by Voices - Demons Are Real (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
22. The Oh Sees - The Great Crush
23. The Oh Sees - Ghost in the Trees
24. Little Girls - Delaware
25. Pottery - The Craft
26. Kim Gray - Hand in Glove
27. The Flowers of Hell - Destroying Angel
28. Guided by Voices - Queen of Cans and Jars (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
29. Guided by Voices - You're Not an Airplane (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)
30. 3ft - 21st Century Drone
31. Cosmonauts - Medio Litro
32. Cate Le Bon - You Don't Love Me
33. Guided by Voices - I Am a Scientist (Bee Thousand - Scat Records - 1994)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 29.

Show 780 (Originally Aired On June 22nd, 2019)(Nirvana Bleach - 30th Anniversary):

1. Nirvana - Floyd the Barber (Bleach - Sub Pop - 1989)
2. Nirvana - School (Bleach - Sub Pop - 1989)
3. Ty Segall - I Worship the Dog
4. Titus Andronicus - (I Blame) Society
5. Lungbutter - HONEY
6. Jinns - Death Wish
7. LTD - Get Them Talkin'
8. Fecal Matter - Downer (Illiteracy Will Prevail - 1985)
9. Nirvana - Spank Thru (1988 Dale Crover Demo)
10. Nirvana - Tolken Eastern Song )With The Lights Out - 2004)
11. Drive Like Jehu - Human Interest
12. Fontaines D.C. - Chequeless Reckless
13. Salt Horse - Weekend Medicine
14. The Space Plan - Trail the Rails
15. Atomic 7 - Skynrd
16. Rodriguez - I Wonder
17. Nirvana - About a Girl (Live) (Bleach: 20th Anniversary Edition - Sub Pop - 2009)
18. Nirvana - Love Buzz (Bleach - Sub Pop - 1989)
19. Nirvana - Papercuts (Bleach - Sub Pop - 1989)
20. Mudhoney - Blinding Sun
21. Lubriated Goat - He Moves in Mysterious Ways
22. Bad Hoo - Confuse Bouche
23. Alex Little & The Suspicious Minds - No Control
24. Foxhart Fishman - Ramblin' Dan's Righteous Manefesto
25. No Museums - Fangs That Once Were Teeth
26. Smokey and the Feelings - Fields of the Bored
27. Sturgill Simpson - The Dead Don't Die
28. Nirvana - Blew (live) (Bleach: 20th Anniversary Edition - Sub Pop - 2009)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 22.

Show 779 (Originally Aired June 15th, 2019)(Joy Division Unknown Pleasures - 40th Anniversary):

1. Joy Division - Exercise One (BBC Session 1979)
2. Queen's Rug - Untitled Demo
3. The Organ Fire - In The Ocean
4. Blue Peter - Radio Silence
5. Dumb - Some Big Motor Dream
6. Joy Division - Living in the Ice Age (Warsaw Demo)
7. Joy Division - Disorder (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
8. Joy Division - Day of the Lords (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
9. Joy Division - Candidate (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
10. Joy Division - Insight (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
11. Joy Division - New Dawn Fades ((Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
12. Joy Division - She's Lost Control (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
13. Joy Division - Shadowplay (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
14. Joy Division - Wilderness (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
15. Joy Division - Interzone (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
16. Joy Division - I Remember Nothing (Unknown Pleasures - Factory Records - 1979)
17. Teenanger - It Works with my Body
18. Psychic Void - Gutter Butter
19. Leather Uppers - Slow Puke
20. Pretty Matty - Kicked Out
21. Odonis Odonis - Hollandaze
22. Protomartyr - Ypsilanti
23. Walrus - Fur Skin Coat
24. The Prefects - Faults
25. The Nightingales - Idiot Strength
26. Controller.Controller - PF
27. Joy Division - Transmission (Live) (Les Bains Douches 1979)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 15.

Show 778 (Originally Aired On June 8th, 2019)(Dr. John, 13th Floor Elevators & Roky Erickson):

1. Dr. John - Right Place, Wrong Time
2. Dr. John - Jump Sturdy
3. Dr. John - Ice Age
4. Dr. John - Gut Bucket Blues
5. Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio - Al Greenery
6. Charles Bradley - You Think I Don't Know But I Know
7. Mark Sultan - The Other Two
8. Reigning Sound - What Did I Tell You
9. Kim Gray - Eugene Vampire
10. Constantines - National Hum
11. Women - Robert Starratt (Locust Valley) (CBC Radio 3 Session)
12. The Jam - Down in the Tube Station at Midnight
13. The Spades - You're Gonna Miss Me
14. The 13th Floor Elevators - Fire Engine
15. The 13th Floor Elevators - She Lives (In a Time of Her Own)
16. Roky Erickson & the Aliens - Night of the Vampire
17. Roky Erickson & The Black Angels - Thank God For Civilization
18. The Neins Circa - The Astoria Hotel
19. No Aloha - Generational Divide
20. Greys - These Things Happen
21. LTD - Chief Sleeps In The Park
22. Young Canadians - Where are You
23. Pow! - Connecting
24. Nots - Floating Hand
25. Outrageous Cherry - Sign o' the Times
26. Neil Young & Stray Gators - Time Fades Away (Live 1973)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 8.

Guided By Voices August By Cake, Doug Gillard Interview & Show # 665

Guided By Voices latest release, August By Cake starts off in a momentous way. It starts with an announcement by singer, songwriter and mainstay of the group since their early beginnings, Robert Pollard. The song itself features horns, handclaps, intertwining guitars and rolling basslines, which at times come off with a John Entwhistle R&B slant. Lyrically, the song seems like it could be partially autobiographical. August By Cake also marks the 100th release by Robert Pollard (when you count all of his affiliated releases with other bands and as a solo artist) since 1986. In addition to this, August By Cake is also the first double album to be released by Guided By Voices. The album appropriately is different from other releases in the Guided By Voices/Robert Pollard cannon, but also has many similarities to past music that has been created.

The previous release by Guided By Voices, 2014’s Please Be Honest, featured instrumentation recorded solely by Robert Pollard. Prior to this GBV released five albums and an EP with the classic 1992-1996 era GBV line-up featuring Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Kevin Fennell, Greg Demos and Robert Pollard. This release is a reunion of previous GBV band line-ups as well as a new one. The band lineup features guitarist Doug Gillard (who played with the band initially from 1997-2004), Kevin March (who played drums with the band in the early 2000’s and 2014) and Robert Pollard. The new lineup also features bassist Mark Shue and guitarist Bobby Bare Jr. This album is a strong effort that marks a second reunion of sorts. With 32 tracks clocking in at 71 minutes, there is plenty of material here to sift through.

“When We All Hold Hands At The End of the World” is a short song that seems to poke fun at getting older and adult life, “We Liken The Sun” is a song with plenty of arpeggios and guitar distortion, reflecting a sound from 1996’s Under The Bushes Under The Stars and abstract lyrics, “Packing the Dead Zone” seems to be a social commentary about our current social media trends, “What Begins On New Year’s Day” is an acoustic pop song with heavy segments of drum hits and guitar stabs and chords. This song is reminiscent of 90s era GBV songs and lyrically seems to be addressing proposed promises/failures in a reflective fashion. The song is very short, like many GBV songs they seem like they could be not completed or perhaps a demo in some cases. But, this is part of what makes GBV so interesting, there are hidden gems throughout this release, and all GBV for that matter. They are brief, but memorable.

For this album, Robert Pollard wrote songs initially intending to release a single album, but he had too many songs for a single album. Instead, he decided to proceed with a double album and asked each member of the band to contribute two tracks each. As a result, there is a new freshness to the songs found on this release. “Goodbye Note” is one of two songs written/recorded by guitarist Doug Gillard. With it’s descending guitar patterns the song seems to call for understanding in a relationship that involves life with a band on the road. “Deflect/Project” with lyrics such as “Deflect/project oh your actions are never circumspect” and “Planned obsolescence is the goal” this song emphasizes a dichotomy between being relevant and taking risks in a post-punk musical aesthetic. “Absent the Man” is a song by bassist Mark Shue with lyrics that seems to reflect a disconnect in band life/home life. “Chew The Sand” another Shue track, is an instrumental of sorts with mumbling lyrics, heavy drums and dusty guitar effects that at times drift into prog rock territory (Shue also contributes the song “Sudden Fiction” to this album as well). Bobby Bare Jr.’s contributions include the angsty garage song “High Five Hall of Famers” and “Upon The Circus Bus” an acoustic song with loud talking/banter in the background with allusive lyrics. “Overloaded” a song by drummer Kevin March, is a jangly pop song reflecting a situation showcasing someone that may have put a bit too much on their plate and is sorting through it. “Sentimental Wars” musically is an acoustic, drum filled and organ-dominated affair. Lyrically, March is searching for sentimentality or connection with lyrics such as “We are all fighting/Can we ever find the time to be alone?” and “Just take my hand/I will be with you always”.

All of these songs, whether they are Robert Pollard originals or by other band members, feature a certain cohesion to them. There is a flow to this album, that makes all of the songs seem seamless, but not in a stereotypical way. “Dr. Feelgood Falls Off The Ocean” as do several of the songs on this release, resembles a 90s era GBV sound. Lyrically, the song is a tale about suburban life. “The Laughing Closet” is a melodic track with abstract lyrics, “Whole Tomatoes” is an acoustic song that sounds like it could be a demo, while “Amusement Park is Over” reflects on a past, but once joyous memory.

August By Cake ends with the song “Escape To Phoenix”. An upbeat rock song with lyrics such as “Grand destinies/New hot topics/The escape scene” and “Watching eternity/The people demand an answer”, the song seems to be about a character always wanting to do more. The song ties in with the album’s opening and boisterous track “5 Degrees on the Inside”, but ends with a chant that is taken from lyrics in “Circus Day Hold Out”, another track found on August By Cake. The words “Crank up your monkey and organ without me” end the album. They fade out in what sounds like an abstract phrase and sense of camaraderie. With Guided By Voices, a lot of their songs are like abstract art. There are certain phrases and titles in the songs found on their albums that are open to interpretation and more open ended, despite their usual short length and lo-fi quality at times. This has been something present in all music released by Robert Pollard and Guided By Voices and is part of what sets them apart from other bands.

A lot of areas are covered on this album. A song like “Packing The Dead Zone” for example touches on social commentary on current social trends. There may be a vast amount of data and information out there today, but there is also a limitation. With GBV who have always had lots of material on their releases and many releases for that matter, more GBV is a good thing. For the 100th release featuring Robert Pollard, it certainly doesn’t sound stale. August By Cake has many layers to fill the listeners plate. And while this album features 32 songs, there is not too much on their metaphorical plate here. There is just enough to satisfy newcomers to the band’s music and diehard Guided By Voices fans alike.

Check out my interview with Doug Gillard here:



The Playlist:

1. Juliana Hatfield - Good Enough For Me
2. Tacocat - I Love Seattle
3. Slowdive - Don't Know Why
4. Chad Vangaalen - Clinically Dead
5. No Fun - Planet
6. Gem - Suburban Girl
7. Doug Gillard - No Perspective
8. Guided By Voices - Goodbye Note

DOUG GILLARD INTERVIEW

9. Robert Pollard & Doug GIllard - Pop Zeus
10. ESP Ohio - Royal Cyclopean
11. Guided By Voices - An Unmarketed Product
12. Zoom - Sweet Desperation
13. Cousins - Lullaby
14. Tuns - Throw It All Away
15. Slow Down Molasses - Secret
16. Construction & Deconstruction - Onomatopoeia
17. Shotgun & Jaybird - Borrowed Minivans
18. Woods - Bleeding Blue
19. Warm Soda - Don't Stop Now
20. The Finks - Now
21. The Scenics - Western Hills (Live - Toronto 2016)
22. Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs - Judy
23. Pavement - Unfair
24. Tim Darcy - You Felt Comfort
25. Guided by Voices - Dr. Feelgood Falls Off the Ocean
26. Guided By Voices - Universal Truths and Cycles
27. Guided By Voices - Hold On Hope


To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for April 29.

2014 Highlights & Show # 540

The following is a collection of some of my favourite releases from 2014. Songs from these albums plus several others can be heard in the podcast below. It can be downloaded below the play list.

As a bonus, this year Revolution Rock featured a co-host on several occasions. I have included Adam’s (my occasional co-hosts) top ten in this post as well.

1. Thee Oh Sees - Drop

After announcing that the band will be taking a hiatus last year, Thee Oh Sees released their eighth full-length album at the end of April. Entitled Drop, the album brings in an intense focus to the band’s already established San Franciscan psychedelic garage sound. Apparently recorded in a banana ripening factory, there’s gritty garage sounds with scruffy guitars, psychedelic solos, a bit of kraut rock and elements found on 2012’s Putrifiers II and 2013’s Floating Coffin. Drop is victorious in its savage, primitive and unrelenting garage psych riffs, while the pop elements sink in deeper amongst the synthesizers and crude album cover artwork.

2. Teenanger – E P L P

E P L P is Teenanger from Toronto’s fourth studio album. The album has an undeniable garage punk sleaze to it. The sound on this album is one that is difficult to describe specifically, it is the sound of a band in their element. On E P L P the new wave/post punk influence from previous albums is still apparent, but there seems to be more voluminous guitar riffs that are like shards of shrapnel. Basslines sound thick and at times fuzz addled, as analog sounding drums, snotty vocals by Chris Swimmings and backing vocals provided by Melissa Ball add to the overall battlefield of dynamics found here. With E P L P Teenanger does not misfire. Throughout this nine-track launch the band hones their sound and are right on target.

3. White Fence - For The Recently Found Innocent

Aesthetically, For The Recently Found Innocent finds a balance between the last two releases from White Fence, 2013’s Cyclops Reap and Live In San Francisco, the later of which was an album that showcased White Fence in a full band and in a more revved up fashion. The album features not only Segall on some drum tracks, but also Nick Murray from White Fence’s live band further connecting his last set of releases. On the album’s front cover we see a painted self-portrait of Presley, not unlike Bob Dylan’s own self-portrait cover image from the 1970 album Self Portrait, but those two albums only have a connection with the artwork, not the music. We can see the same gritty canvas beneath the smeared messy painting on the cover, it is still the same White Fence. On For The Recently Found Innocent, Tim Presley has merely stepped out of his home and upgraded to a more proper studio environment utilizing an 8 track recorder (instead of a 4 track) with the help of Ty Segall and in the process, displays a new type of innocence.

4. The Black Lips - Underneath The Rainbow

Recorded with Patrick Carney (The Black Keys) and Tommy Brenneck (Budos Band), The Black Lips take their “flower punk” garage sound adding some southern and country influences. There is a brief moment in the music video that was created for the song “Justice After All” that perfectly describes what to expect from Black Lips on this album and more than likely in the future. In the video, we see shots of the band performing live and running down a street. At one point during the solo we see a shot of guitarist Ian Saint Pe playing a solo as another shot of guitarist Cole Alexander slides in and he pukes on the ground. This moment shows the listener and viewer that while they are trying new things, they are still the same band that we have all known. They may have branched out on Underneath The Rainbow, showcasing a slightly different spectrum of sound with Southern twang influences, but they are still the same Black Lips.

5. Ty Segall – Manipulator

Manipulator is a double album that contains a multitude of layers. This 56 minute double album also took fourteen months to record, every other Segall release was recorded and released quickly. Musically the album combines elements of Segall’s most recent projects Fuzz, sounds from the album Slaughterhouse with the Ty Segall Band, acoustic elements, and the garage sounds that he has been known for. Additionally, the influence of 70s glam rock and classic rock sounds dominate this seventeen track release.



6. James O-L & The Villains - On The Banks Of The Detroit River

On The Banks Of The Detroit River was recorded in Kingsville, with Brett Humber at Sound Foundry Studios and overall the album has “More of a bigger sound” and “In general the songs have gotten more aggressive”, as James tells me. Lyrically, this album pulls inspirations from its surroundings. Songs on the album seem to evoke a certain tone, one that comes with living in Essex County. Musically this album draws from the folk/country dynamic that James O-L & The Villains have displayed in the past, but it also mixes with an aggressive, punk/90s rock edge. The songs that make up this album portray the subtleties of a band mixing elements of folk, country and the heavy rains of aggressive feedback.

7. Paul Jacobs - Do It Again

Do It Again was the fourth release by the prolific garage rock machine Paul Jacobs in 2014. His first two releases, a split with Vaguess entitled I’ll Listen To This Later and the full-length I Need A Place To Keep My Stuff, both featured Paul Jacobs in his one-man band setup. Paul released the Mouldy Love EP in June of 2014, doing things a bit differently recording with a traditional full band set up and bass, something that has been absent from his solo recordings. Released in October 2014, Do It Again featured the same full band more traditional setup. This release was a collection of re-recordings from Paul Jacobs back catalog even featuring a song from Raised By Weeds, a three-piece band that he played with back in 2012. With Do It Again, Paul Jacobs reworks some of his best songs, presenting them in a compilation-like fashion. The songs still sound as fresh, exhilarating and sometimes better than the original versions. Paul Jacobs does it again, in more ways than one.

8. Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs - Gates Of Hell

Four of the album’s tracks were recorded with Ben Cook of the band Fucked Up. Sam Coffey covered the rest of the production, recording in the band’s practice space and a variety of other locations adding to the album’s character, as he has done with previous Iron Lungs recordings. Gates Of Hell covers a lot of topics lyrically and musically adds to the Iron Lungs palate. Sam Coffey originally from Waterloo, Ontario, recently relocated to Toronto and expanded his band to a six-piece group. More people in the band means there could be more complication in the overall sound of the group. The band does not fall into this trap here. The band’s sound may have expanded with more members and higher production values, but on Gates Of Hell, Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs deliver an album that deals with many hellish complex subjects, whether metaphorically or bluntly throughout the album’s lyrical content. Musically they still keep the rowdy, pub-crawl spirit that drew us to them in the first place.

9. Guided By Voices - Motivational Jumpsuit

The first of two albums that Guided By Voices released in 2014, before their eventual split. This album finds the band in one of their unique, prolific creative pockets featuring songs drawing comparison to 1994’s Bee Thousand, 1995’s Alien Lanes and 1996’s Under The Bushes Under The Stars. With Motivational Jumpsuit, Guided By Voices zip up all the loose ends, but not too tightly. Featuring twenty tracks under forty minutes, this album proves that they can still make a great album twenty-one albums into their career.



10. Parquet Courts - Sunbathing Animal

Sunbathing Animal, the band’s third full-length album was recorded in between touring, the sessions also produced an EP beforehand entitled Tally All The Things You Broke. With Sunbathing Animal, Parquet Courts lean more towards the punk, post punk and garage elements of the band with hints of their early noisy beginnings. The band also released another album Content Nausea near the end of 2014 under the band Name Parkay Quarts. The band features a slightly different line-up, but is primarily the work of Andrew Savage and Austin Brown from Parquet Courts.



Adam’s Top Ten for Revolution Rock:

1. Sun Kil Moon – Benji
2. Swans – To Be Kind
3. Perfume Genius – Too Bright
4. Iceage – Plowing Into The Field Of Love
5. St. Vincent – St. Vincent
6. Aerial Pink – Pom Pom
7. Mac DeMarco – Salad Days
8. Ty Segall – Manipulator
9. White Lung – Deep Fantasy
10. Ought – More Than Any Other Day

Best of 2014 Play List:

1. Parquet Courts - Instant Disassembly (Sunbathing Animal - What's Your Rupture? 2014)
2. Parkay Quarts - Content Nausea (Content Nausea - What's Your Rupture? 2014)
3. Guided By Voices - Planet Score (Motivational Jumpsuit - Guided By Voices Inc. 2014)
4. Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs - Hold Me Close (Gates Of Hell - South Paw Records 2014)
5. Paul Jacobs - Waking Up (Do It Again - Self Released 2014)
6. James O-L & The Villains - Late Night Drive (On The Banks Of The Detroit River - Famous Last Records 2014)
7. Ought - Weather Song (More Than Any Other Day - Constellation Records 2014)
8. White Lung - Just For You (Deep Fantasy - Domino 2014)
9. Ty Segall - Connection Man (Manipulator - Drag City 2014)
10. Mac DeMarco - Blue Boy (Salad Days - Captured Tracks 2014)
11. Ariel Pink - Nude Beach A Go-Go (Pom Pom - 4AD 2014)
12. King Tuff - Magic Mirror (Black Moon Spell - Sub Pop 2014)
13. OFF! - I Won't Be A Casualty (Wasted Years - Vice 2014)
14. Chad Vangaalen - Leaning On Bells (Shrink Dust - Sub Pop 2014)
15. The Black Angels - The Flop (Clear Lake Forest EP - Blue Horizon Records 2014)
16. Kestrels - Wide Eyes (The Moon Is Shining Our Way EP - Noyes/Sonic Unyon 2014)
17. Ty Segall - Manipulator (Manipulator - Drag City 2014)
18. St. Vincent - Birth In Reverse (St. Vincent - Loma Vista/Republic Records 2014)
19. Iceage - Forever (Plowing Through The Field Of Love - Matador 2014)
20. Perfume Genius - Longpig (Too Bright - Matador 2014)
21. The Black Lips - Dorner Party (Underneath The Rainbow - Vice 2014)
22. White Fence - Anger! Who Keeps You Under (For The Recently Found Innocent - Drag City Records 2014)
23. Swans - A Little God in My Hands (To Be Kind - Young God/Mute Records 2014)
24. Sun Kil Moon - Pray for Newtown (Benji - Caldo Verde Records 2014)
25. Teenanger - Sky Saxon (E P L P - Telephone Explosion 2014)
26. Thee Oh Sees - Drop (Drop - Castle Face 2014)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for December 27. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

For those keeping track, episode number 538 was a repeat of show number 531.  It can be downloaded here.

Motivational Jumpsuits and Cool Planets & Show # 537

The ever prolific Robert Pollard reformed Guided By Voices with their classic 1992-1996 line-up featuring Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Greg Demos, and Kevin Fennell in 2010 for a series of live shows beginning with Matador Records 21st anniversary. In 2012, they returned in recorded form with this line-up for three albums (Let’s Go Eat The Factory, Class Clown Spots A UFO and The Bears For Lunch), in 2013 they released the EP Down By The Racetrack and the album English Little League. This album was rumored to be their last, but 2014 saw the release of two more albums with this line-up Motivational Jumpsuit and Cool Planet (minus Kevin Fennell on drums). This myriad of releases rivals some of the prolific material that the band released during the 90s, but these albums mixed more modern recording techniques with the band’s lo-fi tendencies. After six albums and an EP, Robert Pollard with the reformed line-up announced announced that the band has finally called it quits.

Released in February 2014, Motivational Jumpsuit rivals some of Guided By Voices best material drawing comparisons to material found on 1994’s Bee Thousand, 1995’s Alien Lanes and Under The Bushes Under The Stars from 1996. As with these aforementioned albums, Motivational Jumpsuit features a collection of sometimes ramshackle, lo-fi sounding recordings alongside some more studio-produced sounding efforts. This album also features plenty of Tobin Sprout written songs in conjunction with material by the irreverent Robert Pollard. The album starts off with the echo filled drums and the guitar driven sound of “The Littlest League Possible”. As Pollard alludes to baseball and the music industry at the same time this song features catchy and witty lyrics in less than two minutes (one minute and 18 seconds to be exact). But this song exemplifies what Guided By Voices do best, which are short and straight to the point songs with strong melodic hooks.

“Writer’s Bloc (Psycho All The Time)” features garage rock and post punk jabs as Pollard sings tongue-in-cheek about a subject that we might not ever have thought Robert Pollard would utter. “Planet Score” has to be one of the top songs in the bands catalog as Robert Pollard sings of the haunting musical memories in the present tense with a melodic crunch. Tobin Sprout struts a psychedelic swing in “Jupiter Spin”, a candy coated Byrdsian sound in “Record Level Love”, while “Shine (Tomahawk Breath)” features a slow pop melody with fuzzy distorted Big Star nostalgia. Additionally, Sprout adds to to several of Robert Pollard sung/written tracks on Motivational Jumpsuit such as “I Am Columbus”. These songs in addition to “Vote For Me Dummy”, “Bulletin Borders”, the lo-fi tape flutter Who influenced “Evangeline Dandelion” and the gritty hook-filled “Alex and The Omegas” all count as highlights on this release. With Motivational Jumpsuit, Guided By Voices zip up all the loose ends, but not too tightly. Featuring twenty tracks under forty minutes, this album proves that they can still make a great album twenty-one albums into their career.

In May 2014, Guided By Voices released what is now said to be their last album, Cool Planet. This album differs from the previous five that were released during this 2010-2014 period of the band. It was recorded in a proper studio. While the hiss and fuzziness of their lo-fi style may be missing from this album, the scrappiness and ubiquitous nature of Guided By Voices remains strong here. This album also differs in the line-up, drummer Kevin Fennell is not behind the drum kit for Cool Planet, but Kevin March is. March originally played with GBV from 2002-2004 and was featured on what was labeled their last release in 2004, the psychedelic melancholic Half Smiles Of The Decomposed. Fittingly he returns here for what is said to be the band’s last album, again, but a decade later.

“Authoritarian Zoo” starts off Cool Planet with a gut punch of guitar riffs and drums with a sound somewhat reminiscent to 2004’s “Everybody Thinks I’m A Raincloud (When I’m Not Looking)”. This song sonically and lyrically provides something different from the opening moments of the softer dimensions of Half Smiles Of The Decomposed and even Motivational Jumpsuit’s “The Littlest League Possible”. Elements of the song “Motor Away” from 1995’s Alien Lanes pops up on “Hat Of Flames” where Pollard sings of a mysterious character with a “Magic code to the parading masses”. This song ignites with its spark inducing fuzz garage riffs amongst Robert Pollards pop hooks. Amongst the eighteen tracks on Cool Planet, we are also visited by more Tobin Sprout originals. “All American Boy” is a spiraling pop gem featuring vibrating guitar leads and pounding piano, “The Bone Church” shows Sprout spreading his wings on the heavier side of rock, tipping his hat to Black Sabbath and the piano induced “Narrated By Paul”. This song along with several of Sprout’s recent contributions to the reformed GBV have had Beatles references, whether musically or in song title variations. This influence/reference pops up again in the echo and acoustic driven “Ticket To Hide”.

Other tracks worth of note on this album includes the windmill rush of “Pan Swimmer”, “Cream Of Lung”, which seems to compliment Sprout’s “The Bone Church”, and “Males Of Wormwood Mars” which proves to be Cool Planet’s strongest pop success. With its watery verses, and Keith Moon styled drums provided by Kevin March, this song tucks itself away near the end of the album. “Bad Love Is Easy To Do” starts off in a fashion similar to “Teenage FBI”, but showcases the songwriting abilities of Robert Pollard and Tobin Sprout as they sing of a love song in a way only they could. This song comes off with an effortless success as it balances jittery verses, pop choruses and calming breakdowns supplied by Tobin Sprout. The album ends with its title track, “Cool Planet”.

On 2004’s Half Smiles Of The Decomposed, “Huffman Flying Field” ended a chapter in the GBV discography as Bob & company sang of visiting mysterious fields and being “Closed and locked up for far too long”. In 2014, “Alex & The Omegas” ended Motivational Jumpsuit with the lyrics “Get out alright/Nothing’s on/Everything’s over/It’s the living end” drawing a gritty connection between the band and their status. Finally on the title track to Cool Planet, the band executes a ramped up fuzzy Who-like pattern in less than two minutes as Pollard sings the abstract lines of “Heroes do matter/Insects do scatter”. If these three songs can show us anything, they reveal a sense of wanting to travel down the same path, but at the same time a desire to stop and change course. Robert Pollard and Guided By Voices have achieved a rarity in music. While at times people identify sameness in the GBV sound there is also diversity in the band’s catchy, aggressive and at times lo-fi approach to music. Lyrically, GBV has ventured into all kinds of territories. We may be saying goodbye to Guided By Voices again, but after the hiss and fade out of another chapter in the Guided By Voices catalog ends, a few lines of “Littlest League Possible” from Motivation Jumpsuit provides us with an abstract clue for Robert Pollard’s approach to music and what GBV fans having been thinking for a long time. “And Meanwhile and after too much/You’d run out of gas/But that’s not possible”.

Guided By Voices Play List:

1. A Salty Salute (Live) (Hardcore UFOS - 2003)
2. Hot Freaks (Bee Thousand - 1994)
3. Everywhere With Helicopter (Universal Truths And Cycles - 2002)
4. Postal Blowfish (Brain Candy Soundtrack - 1996)
5. Draw(In)g To A (W)hole (God Save The Clean - 1997)
6. Cut-Out Witch (Under The Bushes Under The Stars - 1996)
7. Weed King (Propeller - 1992)
8. A Good Flying Bird (Alien Lanes - 1995)
9. The Unsinkable Fats Domino (Let's Go Eat the Factory - 2012)
10. Worm W/ 7 Broken Hearts (Class Clown Spots A UFO - 2012)
11. Liar’s Tale (Self-Inflicted Aerial Nostalgia - 1989)
12. Demons Are Real (Bee Thousand - 1994)
13. Kicker of Elves (Bee Thousand - 1994)
14. Robert Pollard - Back To The Farm (Superman Was A Rocker - 2008)
15. The Other Place (Forever Since Breakfast - 1986)
16. Captains Dead (Devil Between My Toes - 1987)
17. Taco, Buffalo, Birddog and Jesus (Suitcase: Failed Experiments and Trashed Aircraft - 2000)
18. My Valuable Hunting Knife (7 Inch Version) (Tigerbomb EP - 1995)
19. Shocker In Gloomtown (The Grand Hour EP - 1993)
20. #2 in the Model Home Series (Vampire on Titus - 1993)
21. Drag Days (Under The Bushes Under The Stars - 1996)
22. Drinkers Peace (Same Place The Fly Got Smashed - 1990)
23. Little Whirl (Alien Lanes - 1995)
24. Shine (Tomahawk Breath) (Motivational Jumpsuit - 2014)
25. The Sudden Death Of Epstein’s Ways (English Little League - 2013)
26. Crybaby 4-Star Hotel (English Little League - 2013)
27. Surgical Focus - (Do The Collapse - 1999)
28. Sister, I Need Wine (Isolation Drills - 2001)
29. Girls Of Wild Strawberries (Half Smiles Of The Decomposed - 2004)
30. Can’t Stop (Sandbox - 1987)
31. Sensational Gravity Boy (Briefcase - Suitcase Abridged: Drinks And Deliveries - 2000)
32. I Am A Tree (Mag Earwig! - 1997)
33. I Am A Scientist (Live at X-Fest 1999) (X Fest 99 - 1999)
34. Smoggy Boy (The Bears For Lunch - 2012)
35. Males Of Wormwood Mars (Cool Planet - 2014)
36. Teenage FBI (Original Version) (Wish In One Hand EP - 1997)
37. Game Of Pricks (Alien Lanes - 1995)
38. The Ugly Vision (Alien Lanes - 1995)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for December 13. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Guided By Voices Alien Lanes & Show # 471

When looking at the work of Guided By Voices, fans of their ever prolific catalogue spearheaded by songwriter Robert Pollard often look to two or three albums, Vampire On Titus, Bee Thousand and Alien Lanes. Formed in 1983 in Dayton, Ohio, Guided by Voices began recording and releasing material themselves on four track tape recorders in the basement, helping to coin the term “lo-fi” and bringing it into the social consciousness of underground and College/Indie Rock fans. Alien Lanes was the first recording on Matador Records and was released in 1995. The album was one of the last to be recorded in their four track fashion, and was a mix of numerous genres ranging from Garage Rock, Psychedelic Garage and Punk to Post Punk, Folk and Pop. The album jumps genres seamlessly in an endless stream of consciousness, and the songs are intertwined with witty, often nonsensical lyrics by Robert Pollard and weird sound effects. The overall sound quality is that of an undiscovered bootleg that is to be treasured. It sounds like one of those records that you hear and want to hoard so no one else can have it.

Alien Lanes featured many songs that were to become well known songs within their plethora of a catalogue, but it is also important to mention the line up on this release. From 1993-1996 Guided By Voices featured Robert Pollard on vocals, Tobin Sprout and Mitch Mitchell on guitar, Greg Demos on bass and Kevin Fennell on drums. This line up of the band is often referred to as the “classic line up” of Guided By Voices. It should also be noted that while Pollard is regarded and for the most part the primary songwriter for this group, he often worked and collaborated with Tobin Sprout in a Jagger/Richards fashion.

Sprout would often also sing and have his own compositions and Alien Lanes is no different. That album starts off with “A Salty Salute” a constant staple of the bands live sets, with its prominent bassline, drums and humming guitar feedback. This song sticks in your head (as do many on this album) with lyrics such as “The club is open” being repeated over and over. “Watch Me Jumpstart” is as has been stated in many reviews about change. The lyrics “Watch me jumpstart as the old skin is peeled/See an opening and bust into the field/Hidden longings no longer concealed" affirm this amongst the fuzzy guitar and heavy drums. “Game Of Pricks” is definitely a highlight found on this album. With its Power Pop structure and lyrics such as “You can never be strong/You can only be free/And I never asked for the truth/But you owe that to me” the song displays an uplifting spirit, while at the same time conveying a sense of melancholy. Other notable songs are the Psychedelic Folk of “They’re Not Witches”, the hidden Beatles influence of “As We Go Up, We Go Down”, the lo-fi nugget “My Valuable Hunting Knife”, and “Blimps Go 90” which adds a string section to their already established sound. Alien Lanes features many slower songs as well, such as “The Ugly Vision” and “Ex-Supermodel” and these songs also venture into experimental territory. “Ex-Supermodel” features a predominate sound of someone snoring throughout the track, while a song like “Chicken Blows” features strange sounds and melodies that sound like someone singing underwater.

Tobin Sprout also shines on his own compositions on this album, where he also takes lead vocals as well. The catchy Velvet Underground Pop infectiousness of “A Good Flying Bird”, “Straw Dogs” and the ramped up Buzzcock sounds of “Little Whirl” are undeniable amongst this 28 song collection that is known as Alien Lanes. When recording this album for Matador, Guided By Voices were given a significant six figure sum to record the album. They decided to record on four and eight track tape recorders on the cheap, as stated in many articles about Alien Lanes. In James Greer’s Guided by Voices: A Brief History: Twenty-One Years of Hunting Accidents in the Forests of Rock and Roll, he stated that “The cost for recording Alien Lanes, if you leave out the beer, was about ten dollars." Greer was also a member of GBV contributing vocals and bass to Alien Lanes and Under The Bushes, Under The Stars. He also toured with the group. Another important significance that Alien Lanes holds is that it was recorded very cheaply and poorly on purpose and proved that you do not need a major label and or studio to make a good album. This was at a time when major labels and studios dominated the world of music in almost all aspects, but their DIY ethic and production techniques emphasize the fact that an album can still be good regardless of how much money goes into the production of it.

If 1993’s Vampire on Titus and 1994’s Bee Thousand helped to establish a cult-like following, then Alien Lanes cemented that status. Alien Lanes spans many genres, blending styles and melodies with a gritty lo-fi quality and its songs are often fragmentary like the songs found on Wire’s Pink Flag album, but they also have a sense of experimentation. Some people love it, some people hate it, but these recordings are not unlike the rough sounding Basement Tapes bootleg that Bob Dylan did with the Band in the late 60s. Alien Lanes grows in a similar style, with sound effects, lyrical nonsense, wittiness and a charming gritty bootleg tape sound. It is imperfectly perfect just like many fans favourite Guided By Voices songs and albums. And at 28 songs in 41 minutes, it is the perfect example of the Guided By Voices style and it demonstrates how prolific they are, regardless of which path it leads you down.

This week's Play List:

1. Salvia Plath – House of Leaves
2. Sunwolf – Angel Eyes
3. The Winter Coats – Not For Us To Say
4. Feels Alright – Oahu Ohio
5. Nervous Talk – Introductions
6. Wyldlife – Sonofabitch
7. No Age – Circling With Dizzy
8. Mudhoney – Don’t Fade TV
9. The Wipers – Can This Be
10. Guided By Voices – A Salty Salute
11. Guided By Voices – Game of Pricks
12. Guided By Voices – The Ugly Vision
13. Guided By Voices - A Good Flying Bird
14. The Groupies – Primitive
15. Thee Oh Sees - Two Drummers Disappear
16. Mystics – Tell Me
17. Eric Welton Band – Kill Them With Kindness
18. Klark Kent – My Old School
19. Nick Lowe – Marie Provost
20. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – You Spin Me Around 86
21. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – Vibrolux Deluxe (Previously Unreleased Version)
22. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet - Run Chicken Run
23. The Only Ones – Out There In The Night
24. The Rich Kids – Ghosts of Princes In Towers
25. Alex Chilton - I've Had It
26. Sebadoh - Arbitrary High
27. Richard Hell & The Voidoids – I Live My Life

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for August 27 Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.