Trust the Wizard

Robert Pollard and his band of merry men are quite simply one of the greatest rock and roll bands to ever grace the face of this Earth.

That being said, most people think Guided By Voices' essential output began with 1994's Bee Thousand (affectionally referred to as b000 by us online types). That behemoth of lo-fi pop-rock glory might have dug 4th grade teacher Bobby and his almost middle-aged buddies right back out of the obscure grave they had dug themselves in Dayton, Ohio- and it's no secret that b000 is one of the best albums of the 90s, and hell, for my money, ever- but it would be a mistake to call it their first worthwhile outing. Not even close! Guided By Voices had been making records worth hearing since 1987. And Ohio is the worst place on Earth.

But I'm not here to talk about their first album, Sandbox (1987), or their sophomore outing, Devil Between My Toes(1987). Or Ohio, for that matter. Instead I'd like to shed some light on my personal favorite of the pre-b000 period, Guided By Voice's fantastically titled third album, Self-Inflicted Aerial Nostalgia (1989).

Bob fondly recalls the experience of recording Self-Inflicted Aerial Nostalgia in an early interview:

"In 1989 we did 500 copies of Self-Inflicted Aerial Nostalgia which was recorded in the snakepit and again on Steve's 8-track. The sound got fucked up in the pressing, but I OK's it anyway because I'm so impatient."

Yes, it's noisy, yes, it's ugly, and, yes, it's downright strange at times. It's totally classic rock obsessed, too (it's no secret that Bob is heavily influenced by classic rock, and this is especially prevalent in the early albums.) And yet, all of this makes for a rather beautiful mess of an amazing record.

Reverbed out tom hits open the album in "The Future is in Eggs," and upon my first listens, I would openly make fun of how fucking weird this song is. Sure, Pollard is known for cryptic lyrics, but here his voice just sounds so eager and desperate as he hauntingly sings, "Floating on a leg/Pissing from a keg/The future is in eggs/The future is in eggs." Even the experts can't quite figure out what's being said here, and it's fitting. But it's a hook. And I'll never forget standing in a store in Scotland, singing to myself, "The future is in eggs!" and thinking, "what the fuck?" immediately after.

Is it all weird? No, but we do slide into the dark caverns of eerie and weird Pollard on a few other occasions. "Slopes of Big Ugly" might be the eeriest GBV track this side of "The Ugly Vision." On the other side of the weird token, we get the helium tinged vocals on the tiny tune and album highlight, "Dying to Try This." Fans of b000's "Kicker of Elves" need apply. And everyone else, too.

Then there's the classic rock. "The Great Blake Street Canoe Race" is an instant classic, motoring around on cock-rocking solos while it disects the banalities of daily life. It also discloses one of Pollard's more overt nuggets of wisdom: "Learn something old every day." Elsewhere "Navigating Flood Regions," "White Whale," and "Trampoline" bring the rock like it was brought in the 60s and 70s. The lo-fi noise and distortion really give the songs a new life of their own.

But when you get through the weird and the classic rock ideas GBV were developing, you're left with some of the band's absolute finest moments:

"Paper Girl" bursts out of a noisy rock record with an acoustic, hand claps, and beautiful harmonies? Awesome 60s psych pop, and early proof of Pollard's melodic genius. A gem of a song, reminiscent of something like the stunning little "Hey Aardvark" that National Pop League and I have been fawning over these last few days. Both are sublime, but "Paper Girl" has this dreamlike haze about it. Whatever they fucked up in the pressing, they need to do that again.

I owe my love of SIAN to none other than "Chief Barrel Belly." When a muppet, National Pop League, and I trekked down to Pier 54 in NYC on a whim to catch our last glimpse of the Fading Captain, he taught us much. He taught us that the fun never stops at the fun factory, and, that "this next song is off an old album called Self-Inflicted Aerial Nostalgia and it's called 'Chief Barrel Belly.'" Soon after, I had to check this album out. Because, "He said 'love/is the one/thing we needed in this world/to be happy.'"

"Liar's Tale" was always rumored by National Pop League to be one of the best Guided By Voices tracks, and I always kind of brushed it off, since it was on the obscure SIAN and all he had seen was the live rendition on his The Who Went Home and Cried DVD. Well, I saw it, and I was a believer. "Liar's Tale" was the first track of the album I ever heard, and it's probably the best. Simply put, it's a tremelo'd out cautionary tale about flighty wives and the sad characters we let inhabit our own narratives. It's one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. In fact, the album should probably end on, "Let me tell you a story/about/the way/she was."

But, you must trust the wizard. Trust him always. "Radio Show(Trust the Wizard)" is no accident, though the splicing at the end of the track might be. It closes the curtains on a solid GBV effort with another brilliant drunken sing-a-long..."it's another day today" for Bob Pollard, indeed.

Those 3 tracks, along with "Dying to Try This" make Self-Inflicted Aerial Nostalgia essential for any casual GBV fan (read: those who only know b000 and Alien Lanes), anyone who appreciates rock music, and pretty much anyone who wants to know what was going on in the basements of Dayton, Ohio in 1989.

But it's just a reminder that Bob Pollard deserves to live in a rock and roll castle and rule over Rock and Roll Land. And a reminder of how oblivious a universe you live in when such a triumphant effort loaded with such great tunes, blood, sweat, and tears is relegated to 500 12" circles of black plastic. At least you can get it now in the Box box set. I sincerely hope you do.

"Short on Posters" live from Boston, 7/17/02 on GBV.com

If you're a die-hard like National Pop League and I, you're invited to spring BBQs with lots of cheap beer and Guided By Voices blasting.