Up the Nails

While Tobin Sprout's song beds for the Airport 5 project are almost universally compelling, he threw Robert Pollard a curve ball on some by not offering easily recognized verse-chorus-verse structures. That's part of what makes the songs so consistently rewarding simply as instrumental creations, but it forces Pollard to be more crafty when creating melodies and lyrics.

On "Up the Nails," Sprout offers something that could stand on its own as an instrumental, and Pollard responds by improving on that with a solid melody that grafts verse and chorus together in a chain of subtle hooks. Though the music doesn't change appreciably, Pollard knows when to turn things up a notch, building up to the line, "But how can you believe/ that patience brings reward?"

It's hard to pinpoint where it happens along the way, but the song slowly builds in intensity over the course of its run time, giving Pollard's vocal a sense of urgency.

One More

Robert Pollard's odd vocal personas often turn me off of a song. I like the way he sings, which is why I have purchased more than 100 (probably way more than that) records with his music. So, when he takes on a different voice or tone -- usually some false aggression that seems designed to inject tension or menace where it isn't needed or wanted, it seems a waste.

So, the fact that I like "One More" runs counter to my usual tastes. It's a fairly generic chugging rocker, with Tobin Sprout playing a steady guitar riff, adding a bit of echo-laden wankery in the background. Pollard's first utterance is a scream, followed by an emphatic "whoo!" "hey!" and "yeaaaaah!" Then he starts to "sing."

Somehow, it works. Pollard seems possessed, as if he must sing this song to experience some relief. And he peppers his lyric with some great couplets:

Moses from the mountain/ give us another rule/ one more
noses to the window/ eyes that can see/ one more

a stunt learned/ a microsecond burned/ one more

another stage dive/ another headache/ one more

It's unremarkable, but it's further evidence that Pollard can make something good simply by sheer force of will. The problem is that he has increasingly tried to do so with songs that don't warrant the effort. Here, at least, it is.

Circle of Trim

Ignoring the potential reference to female sex in the title, the most interesting thing about "Circle of Trim" may be that it is among the handful of performances by Guided by Voices "Manager for Life" Pete Jamison, who is credited with "handclaps" and "shout-outs and room noise." He is joined by Robert Pollard's brother and frequent foil, Jim Pollard, in this endeavor. The handclaps are inaudible, but Jamison and Pollard are responsible for an odd little hook, answering Pollard's chorus of "Find a fine citizen in the circle of trim" with their own "Whereby, we dig the beauty."

All of this is offered over a nice little jangly guitar figure from Tobin Sprout. It's the kind of thing that someone might bring to a band jam session and see fleshed out or discarded. Here, Sprout offers it wholesale and Pollard finds a way to turn it into a catchy song. Par for the course for these two.