Farewell GbV and Centro-matic

     Maybe Gene Simmons is right and rock is dead. At least it feels that way to me as my two favorite bands, Guided by Voices and Centro-matic, decided to shut it down this past week. I shouldn't be upset. Both of these bands are prolific and have left behind an amazing catalog of music that I will treasure for the rest of my life. Hopefully, my kids will discover my hoard some day and be touched by these bands as well. Selfishly, I am upset. Guided by Voices' breakup was perhaps the most abrupt thanks to social media. When I checked my Facebook feeds the other day (more about that in a future post), there was a post about GbV adding shows in Detroit and Columbus. I wasn't particularly interested because I already had a ticket for their upcoming show at The Grog Shop in Cleveland. I couldn't believe what I was reading a few posts later when they announced their breakup and cancellation of the remainder of their tour. It really sunk in when I received a refund notification for my ticket. I didn't want a refund, I wanted an effin' rock show! What the hell could have happened in a couple hours where you go from adding shows to breaking up? I'm sure Kevin Fennell can attest that Pollard is a hothead and a loose cannon, but come on. Apparently, there isn't a straight forward explanation coming from Uncle Bob anytime soon. However, he did seem to leave open the possibility of reuniting another iteration of GbV in the future.
     If you are a loyal Sound Mind reader, you know Robert Pollard and Tobin Sprout are two of my favorite songwriters of all time. Tobin has a true gift for pop song craft, whether as Pollard's "George Harrison" or as a solo artist. If you aren't familiar with his work check out some of his songs, such as, "Atom Eyes", "It's Like Soul Man", "Scissors", "Dodging Invisible Rays", "E's Navy Blue", "All Used Up" and "Paper Cuts". I've recently had to wrap my head around the fact that he has political views that I don't agree with, but I've managed to compartmentalize that from his music.
     Robert Pollard is a savant who seems to hold the entire history of rock music in his brain. His unique gift is word collage. I'm confident he will continue to churn out music at an alarming rate with his various side projects and solo albums. I do have to admit one thing though. Back when I did a post on his best non-GbV songs, I realized that with the exceptions of Not In My Airforce and From A Compound Eye his solo albums are not very good. I much prefer him in the context of GbV and hope he revives one of the Doug Gillard lineups in the future.
     Then there's Centro-matic. Loyal Sound Mind readers also know Will Johnson is my favorite songwriter, bar none. He is also very prolific, but Centro-matic is my preferred Will Johnson vehicle. Their breakup is more gradual as they opt for the farewell tour approach. Sadly for me, they will not be coming to Ohio. As much as I love them I can't drive to Buffalo in the middle of December. I saw them once and they played to a very small crowd at the Beachland Tavern. Not to be that guy again, but it's discouraging that a band like Centro-matic couldn't breakthrough on even a Kings of Leon or Death Cab For Cutie level. Ironically, I probably never would have heard of them except they came up on a search I did for similar bands to Guided by Voices. Redo The Stacks is every bit a lo-fi masterpiece as Bee Thousand. I wish I had the ability to quantify why Will's songs mean so much to me. It's an emotional, soul level connection that defies explanation. Yet, you can't even walk into an independent record store and find a copy of one of their albums in stock. Well, maybe in Austin.
     I hope Gene Simmons is wrong. I hope kids still work out their chops in the garage and dream of making it big. Gene has probably never listened to "The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton" by The Mountain Goats, but John Darnielle wrote a line that he may want to heed. "When you punish a person for dreaming his dream don't expect him to thank or forgive you". Even if their dream will likely never come true. Peace.