This song does subsequently rock.
Guided by Voices - “Over the Neptune/Mesh Gear Fox/Circus World” (To Trigger a Synapse boot; rel. late 90s; rec. early 90s)
This is one of those KFG posts. You know the kind.
- If you’re all “meh” about GbV (±99.9%)? Well, you know. You’ll still be all meh. But.
- If (like me, Scoots, Jas-Per, and maybe 4 other people), you’re all “GEE-BEE-VEE! GEE-BEE-VEE! GEE-BEE-VEE!” (±0.1%)? You will freak to hear this.
From the To Trigger a Synapse bootleg (and via the must-[subscribe/listen] “Wilfully Obscure” blog), arrives this lovely demo1 of three songs from Guided by Voices’s outstanding 1992 pre-breakthrough album, Propeller.2
Starts with, appropriately enough, “Over the Neptune”—the very tune that serves as the source of the titular Guided by Voices chant. Which chant I’ve personally shouted to Budweisery hoarseness at the glorious half-dozen shows I was ever able to catch.
Gold. And, for what it’s worth, it’s now become clearer that my all-consuming GbV renaissances appear to be settling into an entirely manageable quarterly schedule. It’s like menses for drunks.3
And, yes. The idea that Bob made “demos” that are even more fidelity-impaired than his actual records is hilarious and awesome. ↩
Fellow Zero Point One Percenters: do yourselves a favor and check out some of the ridiculous number of one-off covers that Pete and the guys made for Propeller. Wow. Lots more at The Propeller Gallery. ↩
“Thiz iz a song from th’ Budweisery Hoarsness record—it’s called, ‘Menses for Drunks!’ One-Two-Three-FOH! [kick]” ↩
Count me among that 0.1%. (Though don’t let me take up a complete slot: someone can squeeze in next to me if it’s crowded; there are only four left after all.)
I first picked up Propeller (probably?) around the same time I got into Pavement back in 2008.1 I went on from there to Vampire on Titus, Bee Thousand & Alien Lanes — all great albums but I personally count Propeller as my favorite. It’s the opening and titular chant; the “Back to Saturn X Report” medley; the wistful Tobin Sprout–penned “Fourteen Cheerleader Coldfront”; the balls-to-the-wall rock and roll of “Exit Flagger”. All of these are things found on later albums (Bee Thousand is probably the runner up in my pantheon) in addition to GbV’s trademark unpretentiousness and humility (at least to a lo-fi asthete like myself) but the latter pair is somehow more on Propeller. It’s rawer, lo-fi–er, in your face–er. Or maybe I’m just nuts.
Oh, I was lucky2 enough to see the GbV “Classic” lineup at the Warfield earlier this year and it was an absolute treat.
