Deaf Ears

The first time I heard "Deaf Ears" on the "Official Ironmen Rally Song" single, I misheard the lyric and thought Robert Pollard was singing "My final words have fallen upon idiots." I've been there, and found it easy to embrace Pollard's sentiment. Of course, I was wrong, as he sings instead, "My final words have fallen on deaf ears" (Hence the title, I know).

The song starts off surprisingly raw and lo-fi, a throwback of sorts to Guided by Voices' pre-Under the Bushes, Under the Stars days. It's fitting, however, Pollard singing seemingly from a distance, his echo-laden voice letting the listener know that "This tear will never wash away on any human sanitation day."

The lyrics are twisted from there, Pollard seemingly portraying a Christ-like figure and the one who scorns him from line to line. He sings, "I will starve to death until you feed me with your tenderness," sentiments contradicted a few lines later when he sings, "You beckon me with open arms, you offer salvation and I salivate. But it's too late," the savior suddenly the one needing saved.

Musically, the song is very effective, that lo-fi call given fire as drums kick in and some fidelity is restored on the chorus. The song was apparently slated to lead off the aborted The Flying Party is Here album, scrapped and changed radically to become Under the Bushes, Under the Stars. It's yet another sign of just how prolific Pollard was during this time, and further evidence that this may well have been the height of his powers.