This Clown is No Question, Bro

As the clock struck 2012, reunited indie champs Guided By Voices implored the world to go eat the factory and critics and fans happily obliged, resulting in glowing reviews and warm relief from hopeful loyalists. With the reunion deemed a success, the fact that they had another album already recorded sounded like fun, but seemed like a bit of a reach. A fair critical discussion of Bob Pollard's career in music must touch on the fact that self-editing is not his strongest suit. His solo work, though littered with quality buzzing pop tunes, epic rockers and tiny oddball dictaphone gems, is not always focused and can be a chore to navigate. 

To his credit, Bob clearly does not give a shit and is very content to put out the next batch of songs as they come to him, but for the GBV name, the goodwill earned by comeback LP #1 could slip if quality control measures were not effected.

And really, how could they top that swell "first" album a mere six months later and where would it ultimately sit in the band's Moby Dick sized catalogue?

Removing all such doubts, Class Clown Spots A UFO ultimately proves that Pollard & Co. are now a functioning unit. Not content to sit back and rest their scissor kickers, striped pants and livers for a few summer live dates, the band issued itself the challenge of making the (albeit smallish) world so soon again care about another batch of songs. And we do. We really do. Class Clown Spots a UFO leads with a haymaker and is expertly paced throughout with rafter-reaching anthems, short, sharp ballads & fewer than ever proggy smoke breaks.

Guided By Voices: Abusing lite beer for 2 solid decades

At this point, GBV is a lean, veteran indie rock machine and on CC delivers a perfect balance of joyous resilience and engaging quiet moments.

The exhilarating, Who-styled opener "He Rises! (Our Union Bellboy)" is the finest new classic-era song yet: rolling toms and a familiar Pollard minor chord chime give way to Mitch Mitchell's power chords setting-up a triumphant, roaring close. It's the game Pollard perfected with "Goldheart Mountaintop Queen Directory" and "Don't Stop Now" but really never better than here. The last minute of this killer kick-off track is brilliantly cocky - King Pollard walking down from the mountaintop firing melody bolts off with in every direction.

Next up, the band stomps through the power chorded "Blue Babbleships Bay" with Pollard in full Paul Rodgers mode (as heard on classic b-side "Break Even" & Propeller's "Weed King") followed by Tobin Sprout easing the pace with the hypnotic crawler "Forever Until It Breaks", a sentiment which seems to sum up this stage in the band's career - we are here til it don't work no more. 

Song 4 is the title track (their best title track ever?): an exuberant, 2 beers to the sky, straight-up powerpop killer. Originally entitled "Crocker's Favorite Song", a murkier, lo-fi version was recorded and shelved in the early 90s, fittingly appearing on the 3-record re-issue of the classic Bee Thousand a few years back. Pollard has done this a couple of times recently ("A Good Circuitry Soldier" was a suitcased demo brought to life in 2009 by his swell Boston Spaceships) and could presumably do this all day - sift through the sock drawer and pull out straight-to-the-encore ditties. The invigorated comeback spirit has tellingly transformed a sad song of uncertainty into an anthem of hope. Drum major Kevin Fennell leads the band and the sing along chorus lets us know "you never never can go down". Great stuff.

There really are no tracks to skip over. Tobin Sprout again proves the perfect foil to the colossal Pollard sound throughout CC. The drum machine and fake strings of "Starfire" cool out the jam along with the soothing jangle of the stellar "All of This Will Go". Tobe's melodicism is vastly understated, even within his own songs! If hooks were elastics, Tobe pulls long and holds steady while Pollard snaps you in the face and quickly pulls back and snaps you again. The two come together in the appropriately propulsive "Keep It In Motion"; a crackling synth-pop ditty with Tobe echoing Bob's lines. It works wonderfully which begs the question - why don't they sing together more?! It works! 

Comparing briefly CC to last season's Let's Go Eat the Factory, the rockers are catchier and more fun: "Hang Up and Try Again" is built for the live show - a snake and ladder stop and start riff topped with distorted vocals, "Roll of The Dice, Kick In The Head" is a 46-second Mersey beat gem followed by the superb "Billy Wire", a fiery melodic bruiser complete with bizarro parlor piano break/bridge and ah ah ahs over the fade out. Spot on. "Jon the Croc" is another of the louder highlights with Pollard refraining "let him cry like a crocodile around you now" over a full-on guitar grind and thunderous rhythm section. Not coincidentally, CC is overall a better produced record than LGETF - the time together has strengthened the band's sound and they've captured better takes. The guitars are cleaner and brighter and the snare drum lands every punch.

For all of the fun and diversity, an absolute star here is Bob's striking "Be Impeccable", a longish (almost 3 minutes!) and plaintive lo-fi guitar and vocal ballad where he sings "be what you are, be impeccable, the untrackable star / I'll shine my flashlight to where you are". What he has done is turn the flashlight on himself, on his band, on their lives. The honesty of age. Essentially this is the spirit that infuses these songs with life and is responsible for making this album such a success  - it is straightforward and honest. Themes of perseverance and hope run throughout CC in the lyrics and in the immediacy of the performances. These are familiar rock n roll themes and certainly not groundbreaking but good advice always sounds better from someone with experience. And rock n roll doesn’t get much better than this. I'll drink to that.