Guided by Voices: Styles We Paid For ( 2020 )

      So, we have arrived at the current midpoint of the catalog of the "new" lineup of Guided by Voices. When Styles We Paid For was released in 2020, I vaguely remember thinking the cover was weird and that the album wasn't that great. Turns out, I was wrong on both counts. It's remarkable how confident and free-wheelin' Styles We Paid For sounds, considering the band members recorded separately due to the covid lockdowns. And the album cover is a fun throwback to Robert Pollard's pre-Guided by Voices days. In the Watch Me Jumpstart documentary, Pollard talks about how he would come up with band names and make album covers and invent song titles based on what he thought the imaginary band would sound like. I can imagine this album being made by the stylish dudes on the cover of SWPF. There is also a word search on the cover that has the last names of the Guided by Voices lineup hidden in it. 

     SWPF kicks off with "Megaphone Riley". This track starts at a menacing mid-tempo and builds to a crescendo while Pollard provides all the dynamics with his vocal delivery and excellent lyrics. Uncle Bob really delivers on this whole album. His lyrics are inspired, and his voice is confident. Musically, this album is full of tension and release. This is no more evident than on the 4:33 epic "Slaughterhouse". The track, "In Calculus Strategem", sounds like an outtake from the album Universal Truths and Cycles, which featured Doug Gillard on guitar. The standout track is the exuberantly strutting "Mr. Child". This swaggering rocker can stand proudly in the great Guided by Voices canon. Then Pollard follows that up with the beautiful, slower tempo song "Stops". There are so many killer songs on SWPF, "Endless Seafood", "Electric Windows to Nowhere", "Liquid Kid" and "Time Without Looking", to name a few. And it ends with "When Growing Was Simple", which is an autobiographical exploration by Pollard. I know I'm repeating myself, but this is such a confident album. Styles We Paid For is the biggest surprise of this deep dive, so far. I don't remember why I dismissed it out of hand upon its release, but I have it at a solid 4.5 stars. 

     Since I'm at the halfway point of this particular discography, I will take a break to do my 1974 deep dive. I'm down to a few more albums, then I will compile my lists. 1974 was a weird year. It falls between the outstanding years of 1973 and 1975. It is stronger for singles, not albums. Most of the top songs of 1974 were holdovers from 1973. However, I discovered several really good records, and my Mt. Rushmore is in shambles. Peace.