ARTIST: GUIDED BY VOICES
ALBUM: Let’s Go Eat The Factory
RELEASE DATE: 12 JAN 2012
LABEL: GBV Inc.
BUY IT AT:
Amazon.com 
From Consequence Of Sound
Robert Pollard’s last words on Guided by Voices‘ supposed swan song, 2004′s Half Smiles for the Decomposed, are “I’ve come to start up my head/Been closed and locked up/For far too long.” Perhaps Pollard was feeling constricted seven years ago and needed a break from the band that had brought him a loyal (albeit cult) following; regardless, he hardly shied away. Following the “swan song,” Pollard formed Boston Spaceships and even saw fit to add about a dozen solo albums to his increasingly sizable discography. However, whatever feelings he had seven years ago are now moot: Guided by Voices is blessedly back.
Cut to 2010. The classic mid-90s lineup reformed for Matador Records’ 21st anniversary, highlighted by the return of the great Tobin Sprout, and followed that by mounting a national tour. The fruits of the reunion have given us Let’s Go Eat the Factory, a record that truly recaptures that lo-fi sound the band rocked and reveled in for so much of their discography. The best part about the new LP is that it proves once and for all that the band doesn’t begin and end with Pollard. With Sprout back on co-pilot duties, Factory may not be Guided by Voices at its very best, but it’s certainly Guided by Voices at its, well, Guided-by-Voiciest.
The lo-fi is apparent from the onset. “Laundry and Lasers” starts off with a couple swings through guitar chords before Pollard’s voice pops in. Before long, the rest of the band is shaking the rakes and shovels off their mountings in the garage. The kids are running up the driveway to hear the sound they didn’t know they missed. Other lo-fi moments of pop perfection include the Sprout-led minute-plus of “God Loves Us”, which thrashes and punks its way through the allotted time slot, and “My Europa”, a guitar and vocal short stack that Pollard has mastered over the decades. Uncle Bob, Pollard’s nickname among adoring fans, can also claim responsibility for the mid-tempo charm that is “Chocolate Boy”, which is short but sweet (pun absolutely intended).
Continue reading at Consequence Of Sound
