Guided by Voices rock Bluebird

True to form, college rock revolutionaries Guided by Voices ambled on stage in a drunken stupor Friday night at the Bluebird. However, unlike most artists, their inebriation didn't detract from the show. If anything, it enhanced their set and established camaraderie between them and their hard-drinking fan base. \nLead singer Bob Pollard even went so far as to dispense beers to the audience, and in return fans obliged him innumerable smokes. Few can work a crowd like this man. Oddly enough, Pollard was a fourth-grade teacher prior to pursuing music full time. The same man who embodies everything great about rock music -- the source of many parents' fears -- once sculpted the minds of their youth.\nThe Dayton, Ohio-based quintet comes from good stock. Kim Deal (the Pixies), also a Dayton native, is a fan of GBV's unique brand of ironically brief rock ditties chock full of resonance. And with good reason, these guys put on one hell of a good show that clocks in at somewhere near three hours and is void of lapses, mistakes or intermissions. By show's end I found myself as tired as, if not more so than, the band. These guys rocked like few others can.\nGBV's set was comprised mostly of cuts off its revolutionary breakthrough album Bee Thousand and its most recent effort Isolation Drills, as well as its upcoming album From a Voice Plantation. However, highlights of the show came from the band's 1995 release Alien Lanes. These included stirring renditions of "Game of Pricks," "Watch Me Jumpstart," "As We Go Up, We Go Down" and "My Valuable Hunting Knife." Crowd favorites "Chasing Heather Crazy" and "Glad Girls" were played to perfection. \nThe only real disappointment of the set was the exclusion of their gorgeously-produced and infinitely-moving "Chicken Blows," from Alien Lanes. The show was wondrously capped off with an inspired take on the Who's "Baba O'Riley." \nThe show marked the debut of new drummer Kevin March, filling the skins of recently departed drummer Jon McCann. March, who previously made his mark with Those Bastard Souls and The Dambuilders, acquainted himself admirably with the band and was capably aided by bassist Tim Tobias. Guitarists Doug Gillard and Nate Farley sported fingers that must be seen to be believed. And Pollard, true to reputation, was a maestro of the microphone spin, jump-kicking, hilariously grooving and hissing his way through the set. There may be a more tightly constructed live act out there, but you would be hard pressed to find it.\nAll things considered, I was very fortunate to have seen this immensely-talented band, right within the confines of Bloomington. Rarely are shows this enjoyable. I'd highly recommend fans of expertly-crafted rock to check out Guided by Voices. It's well-worth the trip and the cash. Drunk or not.