Pop Zeus: Creating the Guided By Voices Tribute Comic Book

Ich Bin Ein Nerd

2009-02-04T09:39:00.000-08:00

Doug Gillard Live Residency At Pianos In NYC!

2009-01-02T21:17:00.000-08:00

Doug Gillard and his band will be playing every Wednesday night in January at Pianos in New York City, starting this Wednesday, January 7th! And each show will feature special guests and friends. Here is the schedule thus far...

January 7th - Regal Standard (acoustic version), including Chicago's own Jason Narducy (of Ascended Masters and Boston Spaceships fame) and Larry Schroeder will lead off at 9 PM. Doug Gillard and band will take the stage at 10 PM.

January 14th - Gramercy Arms with Dave Derby (Dambuilders) at 11 PM, DG and band at 10 PM.

January 21st - Arrow (Russ Fink), Nights (NYC) at 9 PM, followed by DG and band at 10 PM.

January 28th - Mascott featuring the great Kendall Meade at 9 PM, DG and band at 10 PM.

And while there, make sure to pick up a copy of Gillard's brilliant new LP Call From Restricted!

Guided By Voices - Matter Eater Lad Live 1996 Video

2009-01-02T20:20:00.000-08:00

Along time ago (1996) in a galaxy far far away (Canal Street Tavern, Dayton, Ohio), Guided By Voices had a release party for Under The Bushes Under The Stars and played the lost (and comic book related) classic Matter Eater Lad. Behold and Happy 2009!..

Robert Pollard / Boston Spaceships Music & Merch Now Available at Rockathon Records!

2009-01-02T20:03:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of updates in late oh-eight, good people. December was a beastly month for your boy- mountains of life, work and holiday stress. But the good news for you fans is that Robert Pollard's Facebook page has had consistent updates by yours truly for much of 2008. And the simple interface makes it a lot easier to keep up with than this blog. So if I disappear round here, you can rest assured that all the latest news and updates can be found over there.

Speaking of long overdue updates, Rockathon Records has continued to be your one-stop source for all Bob music and merch in spite of my lack of reportage. So here's a list of what you may have missed from October to December...

1. Boston Spaceships Tour Merch, including tour tee shirts, EAT 6 (another all-collage issue), and the Bostons Spaceships sticker. And don't forget that every purchase of a BS tee shirt includes a MP3 download card with a song from new and upcoming Robert Pollard/Boston Spaceships/Circus Devils releases!

2. Robert Pollard - The Butler Stands For All Of Us 7"- released on November 4th, the latest Robert Pollard EP features the magnificent first "single" off of January's The Crawling Distance and 4 non-album b-sides, which are...

1) First Wave
2) Elevator To Far Worse
3) The Throat Is Young
4) I Would Be A Fish Tank

This vinyl-only release is limited to 500 copies on black vinyl, so get your order in before they are gone!

3. Boston Spaceships - Headache Revolution 7"- the incredibly powerful remake of the classic Suitcase 2 track off of February's The Planets Are Blasted includes 3 full band non-album b-sides...

1) Dementia Is Rising
2) Take That Off (And Put This On)
3) 7 Is The Hot Noose

Again, this is a web-only limited edition release. So order now or be prepared to bid later...

4. Robert Pollard - The Crawling Distance LP/CD. In spite of its January 20th release date, pre-orders of Bob's latest solo LP have already been shipping and arriving! Every vinyl order comes with a free promo CD of the record, as well! And you will get a break on shipping if you combine this order with the Headache Revolution 7", using the special buttons on the order page.

And while you are at Rockathon's music page, give a listen to the lovely yet creepy Imaginary Queen Anne MP3, track 8 off of The Crawling Distance!

More news to come...

Guided By Voices Music Featured In Soderbergh 3-D Movie Musical- Updated!

2009-01-02T18:36:00.000-08:00

1/2/09 Update- As reported by Defamer and Variety, Hugh Jackman is out for leading man role Marc Anthony in Cleo, citing "scheduling conflicts"...

Huge news! As reported by Variety and Ain't It Cool News, Guided By Voices and Robert Pollard music will soon be the cornerstone of a 3-D rock opera entitled "Cleo", scripted by former GBV bassist Jim Greer and directed by longtime GBV fan Steven Soderbergh!

As you may recall, Robert Pollard music was an integral part of a earlier Soderbergh indie film, Bubble. But a big-budget musical extravaganza based on the life of Cleopatra, (potentially) starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Hugh Jackman with Bob singing the vocals for one of the characters, is a whole other thing entirely!

Apparently, this project has been in the works for quite a while, with Soderbergh hand-picking a bunch of appropriate Bob songs (Little Lines rumored to be among them) and Greer, Pollard and Soderbergh rewriting some of the lyrics to match the story. If I were to guess, the film shouldn't be hitting the theaters until sometime in 2010, considering the early phase it's in. But count me among those in line on opening day! And the pontential for Bob's music to get wide exposure and acclaim is limitless. So congrats to Bob and keep your eyes glued to this spot for updates as they come in....

Guided By Voices - Alone, Stinking And Unafraid Live 2001 Video

2008-11-27T11:51:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Here's a special holiday treat to savor while you loll off into a ubiquitous food coma- Guided By Voices (the Jon McCann on drums configuration) performing the classic Alone, Stinking And Unafraid on the rarely seen 2001 HBO Reverb show. And is that Bababooey in the crowd at the beginning of the clip!? Anyway, enjoy the music and see you in December!

Doug Gillard's New LP "Call From Restricted" Now Available For Download!

2008-11-24T16:03:00.000-08:00

Doug Gillard's fantastic new album Call From Restricted is now available for download on iTunes! Physical CD copies (and with any luck, vinyl?) will follow and be available shortly- stay tuned.

I had the pleasure to preview many of the tracks on Call From Restricted, both live in 2007 and as a regular MySpace and Facebook friend of Gillard's. And that early excitement was more than confirmed over the last few days of careful listening. The same brilliant musicianship and unique pop/rock songwriting of 2004's Salamander (if you don't own this, for shame!) comes roaring back with a vengeance on Call From Restricted. Highlights include the relentless guitar blast of the title track, From What I've Done's anthemic wall-of-sound, the angular pop of No One Above You, and my favorite surprise- the moody timelessly melodic (When Will You Be) Driving By. Juicy harmonies, guitar solos to make you weep, sweet production- the Doug Gillard you know and love is back.

And if you are lucky enough to live in the Austin, Texas metro region, go see Doug and his band tomorrow night (11.25.08) at Club Deville, with Cavedweller and Jacob Schulze...

Robert Pollard Limited Edition Collage Prints

2008-11-24T15:03:00.000-08:00

Hey now! Long time, no post. Been uber busy with work and life- you know the deal. And as always with the ever-prolific Mister Pollard and Co., there are tons of news items to catch up on. So please stay tuned to this blog in the coming days for more noteworthy updates...

First on the docket is Robert Pollard's debut set of art prints, the first of which, "Greetings From Camp Confusion", is already for sale at Rockathon Records and Hard Pressed Studios (each website selling half of the run)! Produced in conjunction with Hard Pressed Studios, this set of five high quality fine art screen prints are strictly limited to 100 copies each. Every 15" X 20" print is numbered and signed by Robert Pollard. So don't delay- this low cost alternative to purchasing original Pollard collages won't last forever...

Upcoming Doug Gillard NYC Live Shows - Updated!

2008-10-23T10:01:00.000-07:00

Guitar god Doug Gillard and his band will be appearing at New York City's CMJ Music Marathon And Film Festival next Wednesday, October 22nd and Saturday, October 25th! The first Wednesday gig will be at Alphabet Lounge on Avenue C in Manhattan starting at 8 PM, followed by an 11 PM appearance at Southpaw on 5th Avenue in Brooklyn for a Surfrider Foundation Fundraiser.

Then on Saturday afternoon (1:45ish), Gillard and band will play a free show at the BrooklynVegan party at NYC's Knitting Factory. Don't miss this opportunity to see Gillard's amazing solo work live and in person, including kick-ass tracks from his upcoming LP!

Also, Doug will be appearing tomorrow evening, October 16th, sitting in as guest musical sidekick (along with Moby and Walter Schreifels) for The Dave Hill Explosion comedy show at the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theatre in Manhattan! And admission is only 5 bucks, cheap. Very cool!

And if you are a part of the Facebook revolution (or something like that), be sure to check out Doug Gillard's new Facebook music page. You can find news updates, show info and preview tracks from Doug's entire musical career...

Guided By Voices - "Wished I Was A Giant" 1996 Soundcheck Video

2008-10-23T09:41:00.000-07:00

Guided By Voices (including Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Kevin Fennell and Greg Demos) broke out into a spontaneous "Wished I Was A Giant" during a soundcheck at Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, Ohio on April 6th, 1996. And thankfully, Dayton resident and frequent mid-90's videographer Scott (aka Chapter 18) was there to capture the moment. Great stuff and look for more of the same in the upcoming Some Drinking Implied 2 DVD. Thanks Scott!

The Textbook Committee At Chicago's Beat Kitchen - This Friday!

2008-10-14T15:35:00.000-07:00

The Textbook Committee, Chicago's own brilliant Guided By Voices tribute band, will be hitting the stage of Beat Kitchen this Friday, October 17th at 10PM! TBC played a private party for Robert Pollard, family and friends in Dayton this past summer and completely blew the roof off the dump. So if you live in the greater Chicago area, don't miss your chance to see Blob Pollard, Tobin Stout and the boys in action. And sharing the stage with TBC are Georgia's mighty Ninja Gun. Rock on, Chicago!

Upcoming Robert Pollard Projects - Late 2008 Edition... Updated Again!

2008-10-13T11:01:00.000-07:00

Updated with 2009 Boston Spaceships, Robert Pollard solo and Circus Devils previews and tracklists, "The Butler Stands For All Of Us" EP news, EAT 6 and much more...

So we find ourselves more than half-way through the Year Of The Rat (my Chinese astrological sign, by the by), aka 2008. And it's about time to update one of the more popular posts on Pop Zeus, namely the upcoming Robert Pollard release calendar! Info has been scarce for projects beyond October. But here is what we know, including stuff from July and August in case you missed it...

Carbon Whales "South" EP/CD
(Happy Jack Rock Records. July 15th, 2008.)
Happy Jack Rock Records continues to deliver the goods with the release of Carbon Whales' 4 song EP entitled South (now available)! The tracklisting is...

01 Welcome To Miami
02 Work Into Me
03 False Teeth
04 The Jeep

But who are Carbon Whales? The liner notes provide only cryptic names and the press release claims that the are an Ohio band from the 70's with a singer that sounds like Bob Pollard, but it actually "Bob Evans". Rumors abound that the backing band are actually Paddy Considine's (Bob friend and fan) Riding The Low. I have also heard that the bass is unmistakable Chris Slusarenko. For years, Bob similarly denied that the psych band Nightwalker were Guided By Voices (they were). The truth is out there somewhere.

Robert Pollard "EAT 5 - The Dogshit Chronicles" Art/Literary Journal
(Rockathon Records. July 15th, 2008.)
EAT 5: The Dogshit Chronicles, an all text issue of Robert Pollard and Rockathon Records' series of literary/art journals, is something special. Check the word from my main man, Rich T...

EAT 5 will be out shortly and it is unlike any of the other EATs. It is actually a book of stories written by Bob. True stories of his times in Northridge. Really crazy stories written about some really crazy people.

And Bob sez...

It’s just going to be the very best drinking, crazy-ass party stories that I can conjure. The “How the hell did I survive that?” kind of thing. Kind of like the Basketball Diaries, but it’s the Dogshit Chronicles. It mainly has to do with alcohol, not heroin or whatever... I’ve got shitloads of them. But I can’t always come up with them, because they’re not like we went out and fucking burned a building down or something. It’s just where we went out and shit that we didn’t expect to happen would happen. The next day we go, “Jesus Christ, we’re lucky we didn’t kill ourselves.” Those kinds of things.

This issue of EAT is a hilarious "can't miss", trust me!

Boston Spaceships "You Satisfy Me b/w Impossible Octopus" 7" single
(Happy Jack Rock Records. August 5th, 2008.)
You Satisfy Me is the "promotional" red vinyl 7" single from the new Boston Spaceships album Brown Submarine. And the B-side is Impossible Octopus (written by Trebor Drallop), You Satisfy Me played backwards. It's a hauntingly beautiful track and a taste of the softer side of BS. And this vinyl-only, internet-only 500 copy limited edition is sure to go fast...

Robert Pollard "Town of Mirrors : The Reassembled Imagery of Robert Pollard" Hardcover Book
(Fantagraphics Books. Late August 2008.)
This may be the 2008 project I'm most excited about. Following a December art gallery show in Manhattan, Fantagraphics Books (home to many of my favorite comic books) will be releasing this deluxe 10"x10" coffee-table book collection of over 140 Bob-picked collages and favorite song lyrics! If you already love Pollard's literary/art journal EAT, Town Of Mirrors is a no-brainer. Operators are standing by for your pre-order with Rockathon Records...

Boston Spaceships "Brown Submarine" LP/CD
(Guided By Voices Inc.. September 16th, 2008.)
The band's debut album, Brown Submarine (dropping [pun intended] on Pollard's own label Guided By Voices Inc.) was recorded in Portland with Chris Slusarenko on everything but drums (The Decembrists' John Moen). Bob's vocals were recorded sometime later by Todd Tobias at Waterloo Studios. And the tracklisting is...

01 Winston's Atomic Bird
02 Brown Submarine
03 You Satisfy Me
04 Ate It Twice
05 Two Girl Area
06 North 11 A.M.,
07 Zero Fix
08 Psych Threat
09 Andy Playboy
10 Rat Trap
11 Soggy Beavers
12 Ready to Pop
13 Still in Rome
14 Go for the Exit

If you have been paying attention, you will instantly recognize Go For The Exit as a re-titled and re-worked Suitcase 1 song (and one of my personal favorites) Go For The Answers. And that's one of the coolest things about the Boston Spaceships project. Pollard is using the band as a way to fully realize old songs that were either released only on Suitcase or weren't released at all. Suitcase songs like Soggy Beavers, It's Easy and Dorothy's A Planet will be among the "brown nuggets" on Boston Spaceships' docket. Another 1/3rd of the songs will be old songs never heard. And the final 1/3rd will be brand new Pollard compositions. Unlike The Takeovers, all the music will be penned by Pollard.

The news gets even better. Bob considers Boston Spaceships to be his new band. So a new BS album will be released every year! The follow up to Brown Submarine is already in the works. This is not to say that the yearly solo and Circus Devils albums will cease production. Never underestimate the Pollard work ethic!

Soon after Brown Submarine launches, the fully formed Boston Spaceships (supplemented by the excellent Tommy Keene on lead guitar and keyboards and Jason Narducy on bass) will hit the road to bring you the rock! Expect to hear an all-new setlist (GBV free, so I've heard) of Boston Spaceships tunes, new solo Pollard and other surprises. Here are the dates and opening acts...

09-25 Cincinnati, OH - Midpoint Music Festival *
09-26 Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop *
09-27 Washington, DC - Black Cat *
09-29 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's *
09-30 Boston, MA - Paradise #
10-01 New York, NY - Highline Ballroom *
10-03 Ann Arbor, MI - Blind Pig *
10-04 Dayton, OH - Dayton Music Festival
10-06 Chicago, IL - Double Door *
10-07 St. Paul, MN - Turf Club *
10-09 Champaign, IL - Higher Ground *
10-10 St. Louis, MO - Bluebird *
10-11 Memphis, TN - Hi-Tone *
10-14 Austin, TX - The Parish *
10-15 Dallas, TX - The Loft *
10-17 Atlanta, GA - The Earl *
10-18 Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge *

* with the High Strung
# with Big Dipper

And while you are enjoying the live performance, the merch table will be featuring 2 brand new Boston Spaceships tee shirts. And if you are so inclined to buy one, you will get a free download card which will download the following mp3s...

1) Robert Pollard - Gratification To Concrete
from the album Robert Pollard Is Off To Business - 2008
2) Boston Spaceships - Go For The Exit
from the album Brown Submarine - 2008
3) Circus Devils - The Girls Will Make It Happen - 2008
from the album Ataxia - 2008
4) Carbon Whales - Welcome To Miami
from the single South - 2008
5) Circus Devils - Every Moment Flame On
from the album Gringo - October, 2009
6) Robert Pollard - By Silence Be Destroyed
from the album The Crawling Distance - January 20, 2009
7) Boston Spaceships - Heavy Crown
from the album The Planets Are Blasted - February 17, 2009

Wow!

Robert Pollard "EAT 6" Art/Literary Journal
(Rockathon Records. September 2008.)
Like EAT 4, EAT 6 will be another all-collage issue. And the latest news is that EAT 6 will be on sale at merchandise table at all upcoming Boston Spaceship shows (along with 2 styles of BS tee-shirts, Town of Mirrors, Carbon Whales, You Satisfy Me, Brown Submarine, etc). Looking forward to picking one up!

Circus Devils "Ataxia" LP/CD
(Happy Jack Rock Records. October 31st, 2008.)
The follow-up to Sgt. Disco (what many consider to be the best Circus Devils album) is already recorded and on its way! According to inside sources, Ataxia "fucking rocks", is the heaviest Pollard release in years and is influenced by Black Sabbath and Devo(?). And it looks to be another "October Surprise" for Ataxia, as Circus Devils returns to their traditional Halloween release date. Here is the final tracklist...

01 Under Review
02 I-Razors
03 Freedom's Monster
04 That's The Spirit
05 Backwash Television
06 The Girls Will Make It Happen
07 Mayflower Brought Disease
08 Stars, Stripes And Crack Pipes
09 Ataxia
10 Nets At Every Angle
11 Hi I'm Martha, How Are You?
12 Lunatic Style
13 Get Me Extra!
14 I Found The Black Mind
15 He Had All Day
16 Fuzz In The Street
17 Rat Faced Ballerina

Robert Pollard "The Butler Stands For All Of Us" 7"/CD
(Guided By Voices Inc., Mid-Late November, 2008.)
Want to hear a bit of what Bob has in store for us in 2009? Well, you won't have to wait too long. The Butler Stands For All Of Us will feature 4 non-album B-sides off of January 2009's Pollard solo album, The Crawling Distance (see below). Dig it!

Guided By Voices "Some Drinking Implied 2" DVD
(Rockathon Records. Tentative release date late 2008, early 2009?)
Even though this home brew Guided By Voices DVD from the folks at Rockathon didn't see the light of day in 2007, 2008 might just be our lucky year! Already confirmed for the DVD are videos for "Bughouse, War Horsies, Love Is Stronger Than Witchcraft, The Best of Jill Hives, Circle Saw Boys Club, Get Me Extra!, Bogus Reactions, Shadow Port, Eye Razors, Sons Of Apollo as well as some amazing vintage footage of GBV performing in Dayton and all sorts of other crazy clips." I'm in!

Robert Pollard "The Crawling Distance" LP/CD
(Guided By Voices Inc., January 20th, 2009.)
A little birdy from Cleveland told me that Robert Pollard's next solo album (and follow up to this year's "Robert Pollard Is Off To Business") is already in the can! As expected, ace producer Todd Tobias is behind the board once again. And By Silence Be Destroyed can be downloaded for free with purchase of a Boston Spaceships tour tee shirt (see above)! The rest of the LP tracks (including two Suitcase gems, It's Easy and On Short Wave) are...

01 Faking My Harlequin
02 Cave Zone
03 Red Cross Vegas Night
04 The Butler Stands For All of Us
05 It's Easy
06 No Island
07 By Silence Be Destroyed
08 Imaginary Queen Ann
09 On Shortwave
10 Too Much Fun

Boston Spaceships "The Planets Are Blasted" LP/CD
(Guided By Voices Inc.. February 17th, 2009.)
Boston Spaceships returns at the speed of light with the follow-up to 2008's Brown Submarine! Chris Slusarenko (all guitars) and John Moen (drums) will return with, of course, Robert Pollard penning the tunes and singing the melodies plus guest appearances by ex-GBVer Greg Demos, Gary Jarman of the Cribs, and Chris Funk of the Decemberists. As with all records in the Boston Spaceships oeuvre, expect to hear unearthed old songs, brand new songs and newly realized songs from the Suitcase box sets- case in point being Heavy Crown, the first revealed track off of The Planets Are Blasted, available for free download with purchase of a Boston Spaceships Tour tee shirt! And the rest of the tracklisting is...

01 Canned Food Demons
02 Dorothy's a Planet
03 Tattoo Mission
04 Keep Me Down
05 Big O Gets an Earful
06 Catherine From Mid October
07 Headache Revolution
08 Slyph
09 UFO Love Letters
10 Lake of Fire
11 Queen of Stormy Weather
12 The Town That's After Me
13 Sight on Sight
14 Heavy Crown

Full band versions of Catherine From Mid-October from the Zoom EP and Suitcase classics Dorothy's A Planet and Headache Revolution? Booyah!

Circus Devils "Gringo" LP/CD
(Happy Jack Rock Records. February 2009?)
Following up on an anonymous tip in the comments of this very post, our friends the Circus Devils are ready to blow your mind once again with Gringo, the follow up to October 2008's Ataxia (described above)! Lead-off single Every Moment Flame On is available for download with purchase of a Boston Spaceships tour tee shirt (see above). The entire tracklist is as follows...

01 Witness Hill
02 Every Moment Flame On
03 Shipped From Prison to Prison
04 Bad Baby Blue
05 Easy Baby
06 Before it Walks
07 Monkey Head
08 When the Beast Falls Down
09 Letters From a Witch
10 Arizona Blacktop Co.
11 Hot Water Wine
12 In Your Hour of Rescue
13 The Ants
14 Stars Out all Night
15 Gasoline Drinkers
16 Yellow Cloud

Circus Devils "Untitled" LP/CD
(Happy Jack Rock Records. October 31st 2009?)
Rumor has it that there will be not one, but two Circus Devils records out in 2009! Huzzah!

And that just about covers it for this year (and a chunk of 2009), kids!

3 New Circus Devils' Ataxia Tracks Available For Free Download!

2008-09-26T10:18:00.000-07:00

Been an exciting couple of days for Robert Pollard fans! The Boston Spaceships tour launched last night at the historic Southgate House in Cincinnati. And reports are overwhelmingly positive. The setlist was one of the most diverse and exciting in a long time (I will post it in the comments section below, for those who don't care about spoilers... like me). And the band supposedly blew the roof off the dump. Rawk!

For those of us stuck at home (like me), don't despair! There are 3 new tracks off of Circus Devils' Ataxia available for free download at the official Circus Devils website to get you through! This album is shaping up nicely- I'm already a huge fan of I-Razors and Get Me Extra. And my instant favorite of these new tracks is the spooky and beautifully sung He Had All Day...

And The Winner Of The Boston Spaceships Video Contest Is...

2008-09-16T14:43:00.000-07:00

The Man Sherm is victorious with his trippy video for Boston Spaceships' "Winston's Atomic Bird" off of their debut LP Brown Submarine (in stores today)! Congratulations! And here is the clip one more time, in higher resolution (for a limited time only, since it's messing with my formatting)...

Ataxia Pre-Order & Brown Submarine Digital Download

2008-09-12T15:02:00.000-07:00

Gentlemen, start your PayPals. Circus Devils newest foray into the musical world of the weird, Ataxia is ready for your preorder from Rockathon(g) Records! Here are the details from Richard the T, Rockathon guru...

1) Album release date is October 31 through Rockathon; in stores November 4th

2) Due to my being on the road for the Bob tour I will be closing the Rockathon online ordering pages between Sept 18th and October 21st.

3) Any orders between now and September 18th that contain Ataxia will be shipped when I return from the tour.

4) All prices INCLUDE shipping. All vinyl is shipped priority mail. If you want to combine multiple vinyl items and want a shipping break please let me know what you want to order and I can put together a better price.

5) Vinyl is limited to 500 copies; 300 to Rockathon and 200 in stores

6) Vinyl copy DOES NOT come with any digital version of the album

So get your orders in quick, vinyl peoples.

Those with one of them new-fangled iPods will be pleased that Boston Spaceships' Brown Submarine is now available for digital download, a few days before it hits store shelves! Its a great record and the perfect primer for the upcoming Boston Spaceships tour, so don't miss it...

Boston Spaceships - Video Contest Vote & New Wallpapers!

2008-09-08T14:45:00.000-07:00

The four finalists in the Boston Spaceships Video Contest have been chosen and the voting is now open to one and all! You will have until noon on my birthday, Monday September 15th (just a coincidence), to cast your ballot for the best of the best. The winner shall receive an autographed vinyl copy of Boston Spaceships LP, Brown Submarine, signed by the entire band. To refresh your memory, here are the finalists...

And while you are perusing the Boston Spaceships website, download yourself some spiffy new wallpapers for your computer desktop (as previewed at the top and bottom of this post)!

Boston Spaceships Video Contest Entry # 11 & 12

2008-09-08T14:22:00.000-07:00

Friday brought us these late but great, just-under-the-wire entries into the Boston Spaceships video contest! First, bstro75 trips us out with a psychedelic video collage of sorts. Then, TheManSherm blows us away with a reference heavy (maroon blazer, Mag Earwhig sun-head, golden tickets, etc.) trip through the looking glass...

Boston Spaceships Video Contest Entry # 8, 9 & 10

2008-09-05T09:43:00.000-07:00

This is it- D-Day for the Boston Spaceships video contest. And rounding things off are three under-the-wire entries from R. Stacey Palmer (lo-fi psychedelia), Scott Oullette (Americana softball) and foolishslug (monkey-kid weirdness)...

Boston Spaceships Video Contest Entry #7

2008-09-03T09:21:00.000-07:00

BillyBaloney2000 has whipped up this animated late entry into the Boston Spaceships video contest. Excellent stuff! Only 2 more days left, future Spielbergs...

Boston Spaceships Video Contest - Entry # 4, 5 & 6

2008-09-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

As the Boston Spaceships video contest enters its final week, the competition heats up with three new entries. Here are the clips in chronological order from their YouTube posting, created by Jarrod Holloway, CILANTRO and yetigolfcourse respectively. Nice work, folks!

Boston Spaceships Video Contest- Entry #3!

2008-08-27T10:00:00.000-07:00

Director Mike Postalakis throws his hat into the ring with this provocative entry in the Boston Spaceships video contest. Nice work, Mike! The contest forges on until September 5th, so get cracking kids...

"Town Of Mirrors - The Reassembled Imagery Of Robert Pollard" Book Available For Pre-Order

2008-08-25T10:50:00.000-07:00

Strangely, one of the most anticipated Robert Pollard releases of 2008 is a book! "Town Of Mirrors - The Reassembled Imagery Of Robert Pollard" collects over 175 of Robert Pollard's hand-picked collages (as seen on most Pollard related releases) and poetry/lyrics in a deluxe 10" X 10" hardcover book. Fantagraphics Books, the publisher of Town Of Mirrors, have a long standing history of beautiful art publications, including the works of Charles Schulz, Robert Crumb, Peter Bagge, Los Bros Hernandez, E.C. Segar and Daniel Clowes, to name but a few. And here's a neat thing: check out this video preview of the book courtesy of Fantagraphics. Our long-lived friends at Rockathon Records are now taking pre-orders for Town Of Mirrors, shipping soon. So get your order in and introduce your coffee table to the Bob!

Original Robert Pollard collages are still available at reasonable prices from Bob's online art gallery. Now would be the time to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, before this book hits the shelves and the prices go up.

Boston Spaceships' "Winston's Atomic Bird" Video Contest

2008-08-22T14:20:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of updates lately. Was on vacation in Poland (of all places) for a week and really stressed out and uber busy before and after my trip.

But the good news is that the Bob train keeps on a rollin'! Pollard's new band, Boston Spaceships is sponsoring his first ever video contest, with a grand prize of a vinyl copy of their debut LP, Brown Submarine, signed by the entire band! Here is the skinny from the good folks at BS...

On this site you will find an MP3 of "Winston's Atomic Bird"-- the lead track off of Brown Submarine. We're looking for talented (and crazed) souls to create some fantastic visions to this tune. Anything is possible... straight out freak fests, sad British-styled dramas, whatever you think will do the song justice. And did you check out the grand prize above? Not too shabby. So get crackin' on these fine pieces of work and make us all proud.

The mumbo jumbo:
Post your finished videos on YouTube and then contact us at our MySpace page to notify us that your video is ready for viewing. Please don't send us any video files -- just links to your posted YouTube videos. We will then post a link to it from our lovely site for maximum viewing. Only folks who contact us about their work being online will be eligible for the grand prize. After the end date, the band will pick the top 3 and then we will have you, the jury, pick the final winner!

Videos will be accepted until noon PST on Friday Sept 5th. We will post the final 3 videos on Monday Sept. 8th and then you will have until noon PST on Monday Sept. 15th to vote for your favorite video.

And here are the first two entries! Carefully assembled (not unlike Bob's collages) from public domain footage, The Public Library's video is a lot of fun and sexy, to boot. Check it out...

The Heedonists' own Mike Jueneman has crafted his own animated masterpiece, sprinkled with inside jokes and references. Love the rock-out scene in the bandshell, especially...

Why not join in on the fun and make your own Bob-tastic music video? It's not too late...

Winston's Atomic Bird is an excellent lead off track and I am now officially incredibly stoked for Brown Submarine. Speaking of, the album is now available for pre-order from Rockathon Records! It should be shipping earlier than the official September 16th release date. And if you buy it on vinyl through Rockathon, you will get a burned CD copy of the album- cool! And don't forget about the promotional 7" single, "You Satisfy Me", now available from Rockathon and Bostons Spaceships' fall tour, coming to a city near you in September/October...

Robert Pollard - Love Is Stronger Than Witchcraft Video

2008-07-14T15:55:00.000-07:00

Wow, this came out of nowhere. Never knew of this videos existence until a few minutes ago. The clip was apparently shot in the days leading up to the final Guided By Voices show in Chicago on December 31st, 2004 (and is also the source for the Meet The King: Asshole 2 album cover). Bob and his wife Sarah are shown cavorting around his house, driving around town, at a pizza place (Marion's? Hoagie's?), writing up the setlist for the final show and behind the scenes footage shot from the edge of the Metro stage. Great video for a classic tune (off of 2006's From A Compound Eye)...

1997 Guided By Voices Interview Video

2008-07-07T09:23:00.000-07:00

Before their 1997 appearance at Summerstage in Central Park, Guided By Voices (GbVerde) sat down on the bleachers and spoke to MTV about their history and music...