Indie Rockers Stand Test of hi-fi

by Jay Boehmer
For The Post

When Guided By Voices burst into the national music scene in 1994, they were unlikely candidates for indie-rock royalty.

Their album Bee Thousand was a montage of 90-second oddities and catchy low-fi rock tunes that were recorded on sparse equipment. Now comes their latest, Isolation Drills.

Seven years later and several record labels afterward, the alt-rockers have replaced their minimalist recording devices with modern technology, and moved from the garage to the studio. Their edgy, fuzzy sound has progressed into a new era of rock refinement.

At the core of the band's sound is singer/songwriter/guitar player Robert Pollard, along with his wacky sense of songwriting and nonsensical wordplay. Although Pollard sounds more serious on Drills, his unique brand of rock is still rolling in a puddle of quirkiness.

On the album's opener, "Fair Touching," Pollard warns the listener, "And perhaps at last the song you sing will have meaning."

One may wonder, "A GBV song with lyrical meaning?"

The thought is as absurd as their catalogue of lyrics. But on Drills the band is making a drastic step toward lyrical continuity and literal sense.

This newfound meaning does not apply to such lyrics as "A scoffer's clutch karma issue, want one?" on the CD's loudest rocker, "Want One." But lyrical content aside, the band still knows how to rock.

Musically, GBV's direction compliments their last studio album, Do the Collapse. Although they have exchanged former producer Ric Ocasek (The Cars) with new producer Rob Schnapf, the sound is sonically similar and the production equally slick. But the album contains a far more consistent catalogue of songs than the many hits and misses on Collapse.

Formed in Dayton in 1985, the band's ever-changing lineup has seen upwards of 40 musicians come and go. Drills is no exception to the band's instability. And although the album utilizes a few musicians never heard on other GBV albums, the overall sound is unaffected.

Elliott Smith, another indie-rock favorite, makes an appearance behind the keyboards on three of the album's 16 tracks. His piano on "How's My Drinking?" adds heartfelt texture to the melancholy dirge. The piano part could have been played by anyone, famous or otherwise, but Smith's addition to the CD is testament that the band still beckons admiration in the world of rock.

The CD is filled with guitar driven hooks and hummable, radio-friendly melodies that stick in the listeners mind long after listening. With Isolation Drills Guided By Voices prove their position in the higher echelons of indie-rock royalty.