Cherub and the Great Child Actor is the closest actual GBV song has got to that Tim Heidecker Universe of cry! rantâŠ
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So, I mentioned earlier how I feel this album is totally dominated by those three sky-scraping preview tracks. Having listened to the album some more this week, Iâm happy to add a fourth to that list of stellar tunes, namely âSpanish Coinâ - driving flamenco guitars and Mariachi trumpets represent such an unusual detour for the band sound-wise, but one which works brilliantly even if Iâm not totally convinced by its role as the album opener.
The rest of the album is still a bit so-so to these ears. âCherub & The Great Child Actorâ is great and uplifting, whilst âBlack & White Eyes In A Prismâ and âI Share A Rhythmâ are both worthy of mentions as well. The rest just kinda passes me by to be honest.
Oh and Iâm sorry @mrmrongov but Razor Bug is absolutely 
Just going back to âSpanish Coinâ for a minute, and this song inadvertently encapsulates a minor frustration I have with the current lineup. I can imagine how a band such as, for example, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard would probably devote an entire album exploring all sorts of interesting deviations to that particular sound and vibe, but with GBV - nope, one song in that style and thatâs your lot!
Itâs probably a stretch to hold out for the GBV Mariachi double-album (!), but Iâve never understood why Bob doesnât occasionally lean heavily into a particular genre for an entire album e.g. a jangly REM-esque album, or even better a full-on GBV post-punk album.
hi, have you met the previous 30-odd GBV albums? 
Yep, and theyâve never done that! 
Theyâre good at mixing things up within a tracklisting (the Four P influences), but what Iâm talking about are instances of an entire album leaning into one particular sound/genre for the duration.
oh yeah, i meant we have 30 albums evidence that they have no interest in doing so - of all the artists to hope for a change of style from this late into the game, Bob isnât one to rest your hopes on
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although âŠ
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Ah right, I getcha - I thought you were about to point out a GBV vaporwave album which Iâd somehow overlooked
mum check
Liking Mirrored Aztec, especially I Think I Had It and Show of Hands. Although it gets weirder as it goes on
Liking Electronic Windows to Nowhere. I think heâs channeling Syd Barrett on Roll me to Heaven! I liked most of Styles, think itâs a strong album
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itâs time for THEM
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- Spanish Coin
- High In The Rain
- Dance Of Gurus
- Flying Without A License
- Psycho House
- Maintenance Man Of The Haunted House
- I Share A Rhythm
- Razor Bug
- I Wanna Monkey
- Cherub And The Great Child Actor
- Black And White Eyes In A Prism
- People Need Holes
- The Bell Gets Out Of The Way
- Chain Gang Island
- My (Limited) Engagement
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Feels like another solid decently enjoyable album in a pretty long run of them. Have happily listened to this several times over the week, but equally am not surprised I skipped over it at the time (or maybe one cursory listen at best). The times when they try something unusual is really what stands out in this era, as so much of it is decent mid-paced rock but without the sky-scraping melodic genius of past eras
hovering in that 5-6/10 space which is starting to get crowded. Feels harsh in a way when I see plenty of reviews giving it good 7s or 8s, from people whoâre less into GBV than I am. But always going to be hard to review something like this purely on its own merits when a long-term fan might feel ⊠âwell, thereâs 25 other albums by them Iâd rather listen to, whatâs this one doing for me?â If there was the goodwill of ooh itâs new GBV havenât had one for 12-18 months then theyâd hit better, but having so many consistently fine albums in a row does dull the impact
not to shit on this album or era, just feels like a bit of summary on my feelings of recent entries
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on the unusual front, Spanish Coin is such a cool opener - styles weâve never heard from them before, working well, and those big strings will always win me over
High in the Rain and Dance of Gurus make for a solid pairing, but the outros of both are the best parts - the dramatic strings elevate Rain, and killer solo section in Gurus. I like the moodiness of Flying Without a License, but the main riff is really really driven into the ground
Psycho House is my surprise standout from the album. Usually feel these tracks drag the albums down, but the weird discordant riffs do something to make this one more memorable. Also think Bob just sounds quite relaxed and singing right in his strongest range, just makes it all quite fun - riding this one-note groove into the distance. Hypnotic
Maintenance Man is one that doesnât do much on its own for me, but as a change up halfway through an album I think it works well. Dramatic and ominous, flows quite well from Psycho House. I Share a Rhythm bounces along nicely, Bob in fine voice, and a fun drum pattern that keeps catching my ear. The little drum breaks are the best part of I Wanna Monkey too, think interesting drums are a consistent feature of this lineup
Cherub is sweet, vaguely power ballady? âThere was a moth man in the closetâ always catches my ear hah. Feels of a piece with my fav tracks from Styles. I love the build and melodies of Black and White, sounds positively huge when it all comes together - those strings maaan. Why is it 4.5 minutes long though?? every time it came back in I thought I had it on repeat by mistake hah, needs trimmed
Bell is another sweet chiming track, but a bit less momentum to it so it isnât as memorable. Enjoy the weird little muted section where it just drops back to one guitar, and the brass strings ending is gorgeous - thatâs one of the best moments on the whole album
My Limited Engagement is a good closer, donât think I like it as much as some do but itâs peppy and bright which is always welcomed, another excellent Doug guitar break. Gives me Glad Girls energy for some reason - tails off a bit fast though, it had earned another 20-30s riding that riff!
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I donât like this one so much. Largely because of the terrible cover and title. It is OK.
IIRC Pollard had wanted to use this title for several projects over the years, which is baffling.
An underrated part of the GBV world are the collages and art style Pollard has brought (with some notable exceptionsâŠ). This cover just seems very out of place in the second reunion period.
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feel like some slackers are falling behind. They should repent and go to see the âŠCRYSTAL NUNS CATHEDRAL
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weâve nearly caught up to his reviews also! and he seems to have been dormant for a while
man, iâm a long long way from his views on this era also
The question is not whether Crystal Nuns Cathedral as a whole is the best new âreunion record,â but possibly one of the best Robert Pollard related albums of all-time?
on first impressions I liked it less than THEM lol
I see weâre entering the âGBV albums that donât existâ period
iâm still a week behind but finding it hard now to summon up the motivation to listen to two of these in one week
The answer, of course, is no
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This one is good imo
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