Tonight, the people of Dayton, Ohio will sleep a sound sleep. Children, tucked tight in their beds, will dream dreams of twirling microphones, of feet flying far above gray-haired heads, of striped white pants and barely coherent Who covers. For the day has come that many feared they would never see: their dubious hero, Robert Pollard, the Silver Captain, has released a decent post-Mag Earwhig! Guided by Voices record.
Perhaps that isn't entirely accurate. Robert Pollard has always pointed out that, for the most part, people in Dayton couldn't give two shits about him or his band. Furthermore, it doesn't seem all that likely that the children of Dayton will be comforted in sleep by visions of indie rock instead of Celebi, the mystery Pokémon. I can, however, think of one demographic that will undoubtedly be affected by the release of Isolation Drills.
Tonight, formerly disillusioned Guided by Voices fans will sleep a sound sleep. Indie kids, shuffling into record stores, will dream dreams of catchy melodies, of tasteful production, of quirky song structures and sloppy, beer-soaked rawk. For the day has come that many feared they would never see: their dubious hero, Robert Pollard, the Silver Captain, has released a decent post-Mag Earwhig Guided by Voices record.
Which is not to say that the archetypal Guided by Voices fan is getting what he or she wanted. Isolation Drills is not a return to the crusty four-tracks of days of yore. It is not a Beatlesque pop album bursting at the seams with indelible hooks. It does not feature hastily fingered, partially tonal, and obviously inebriated guitar solos. It is, however, a solid, riff-driven rock record that may disappoint those still awaiting Bee Thousand II, but which offers plenty of treats for those who are willing to approach it with open ears.
Like its predecessor, the vastly disappointing Do the Collapse, Isolation Drills is a fully produced record, with Beck, Foo Fighters and Elliott Smith producer (and Reverbaholics Anonymous member) Rob Schnapf twiddling the knobs. But whereas Ocasek's production covered up inherently weak songs with layer after layer of extraneous studio garbage, Schnapf's production never interferes. Guitars crunch, drums crash, bass rumbles, and Robert Pollard's vocals resonate with that oh-so-adorable faux-British accent. There are occasional touches of backwards guitar, strings, and a few seconds of Elliott Smith tapping away on his organ, but these additional flourishes always remain sonically distinct, preventing Isolation Drills from succumbing to the kind of sloppy sonic stew that marred Do the Collapse.
While the production has certainly changed since past efforts, it's the character of the songs themselves that mark the biggest difference between this album and the band's back catalog. Pollard flirted with arena rock swagger on Mag Earwhig!'s "Bulldog Skin", and here, he takes the big rock aesthetic to its logical next step, constructing tracks centered around big riffs rather than poppy vocal hooks. Which is not to say that Isolation Drills is bereft of compelling vocal melodies. Whereas many of the tracks on Do the Collapse ("Zoo Pie", "In Stitches") had practically no vocal melody to speak of, this album couples its increased instrumental presence with some of the better melodies Pollard has penned in recent years-- most notably the poppy sing-alongs of "Glad Girls", and the album's first single, "Chasing Heather Crazy".
If Pollard's vocals are much improved on Isolation Drills, the tight instrumental interplay amongst Pollard's backing band really makes the album shine. Ex-Breeders drummer Jim MacPherson, whose playing seemed utterly lost in Ocasek's mix, comes through on the new record as a truly frenetic skin-beater. And guitarist Doug Gillard, whose technical prowess transformed the very essence of Guided by Voices circa Mag Earwhig!, is joined by his Gem bandmate Tim Tobias on bass, resulting in some excellent guitar and bass interplay.
Yet, though Isolation Drills does attain a degree of big rock attitude that its predecessors never quite approached, it's far from a perfect album-- in fact, it's perhaps the most homogenous Guided by Voices release to date. Sure, there are subtle differences between the sneering, pouting rock of "Want One?" and the subtle balladry of "Fine to See You", but gone are the days when a single Guided by Voices record covered everything from sparse bubblegum pop to fuzzed-out rock to wacky four-track experiments. And while Isolation Drills is, without doubt, a much, much more consistent offering than Do the Collapse, none of its 16 tracks are effortlessly catchy enough to lay claim to "GBV classic" status.
Still, Isolation Drills is the most mature, darkly sophisticated record Guided by Voices have laid to tape (or, in this case, DAT), and Pollard's untainted love for rock 'n' roll makes it a fully serviceable record. And if nothing else, Robert Pollard has finally answered the question of what he'll do when he runs out of pop songs: he'll write rock songs instead.
