Guided by Voices Play Beer-Soaked Show in Chicago

Posted on Oct 14th 2010 10:00AM by Garin Pirnia
Comments

Denise Truscello, WireImage

Almost six years after playing what could've been their final show on New Year's Eve in Chicago, reunited rockers Guided by Voices arrived back in the Windy City Wednesday night to perform with their classic lineup at Riviera Theatre.

The quintet was back to its old tricks, mainly with lead singer Robert Pollard's rants, gratuitous cursing, athletic windmills and limber scissor kicks. Of course, Pollard also had his cooler full of beer bottles planted next to the raised drum set, which was illuminated with a neon sign that read "The Club Is Open," a lyric from 'A Salty Salute.'

Beginning with 'Weedking' from 'Propeller,' Pollard guzzled beer and swung his mic around while maintaining his composure as the band burned through 38 songs in less than two hours. They stuck mainly to cuts from 'Bee Thousand,' 'Alien Lanes,' 'Under the Bushes Under the Stars' and 'Propeller,' but occasionally wandered into obscure songs like 'Break Even' from 'The Grand Hour' EP and 'My Impression Now' from 'Fast Japanese Spin Cycle.'

"We got the band together, all five of them," Pollard said. At times his mutterings were incomprehensible, but he did mention something about "I have grandkids and s---," how they recorded 'Hot Freaks' during a garage sale and how he gets annoyed when people tell him not to introduce the songs before singing them: "'Quit saying names. The kids wanna be surprised,' they say. All I have to say is f--- you," he said.

After swigging whiskey and chain smoking, profuse sweat drenched Pollard's button-down shirt, but he didn't seem to mind. For a couple of songs, he took a break and sat on the drum riser, toweled himself off and sung bits of 'A Good Flying Bird' and 'Awful Bliss.' GBV sped through 'Pimple Zoo,' 'My Valuable Hunting Knife,' 'Cut-Out Witch,' 'Watch Me Jumpstart,' 'Echos Myron,' 'Lethargy,' 'Motor Away' and 'Game of Pricks' before ending the regular set on 'I Am a Scientist.'

Guided by Voices then came back for their first of three encores, which included 'Postal Blowfish' and 'Don't Stop Now' followed by 'Quality of Armor' and 'Smothered in Hugs.' For the third encore, Pollard noticed the empty beer cooler and quipped, "We drank ourselves into oblivion. Thanks for staying." The band performed 'Johnny Appleseed' and finally ended with 'A Salty Salute.' Opening act and fellow Ohioans Times New Viking joined GBV for a rollicking rendition, and even though the sign still advertised "The Club Is Open," the theater was, in fact, about to close.

Watch Guided by Voices Perform 'Lethargy' in Chicago