Which is why I put Human Amusements At Hourly Rates on my list. We all know most "best of" collections are bullcrap, but this one really gives you a "compact" (over 77 minutes) 411 on GbV from '87 until '03. Just as an example, Isolation Drills, from 2001, may not have the lo-fi charm, but who gives a shit — it features MEGATONIC rockers like "Chasing Heather Crazy" and "Glad Girls".

By the way, guest: THE endless debate among Guided By Voices fans is whether Bee Thousand or Alien Lanes is their greatest album. Faces have been punched over this issue! :D So please think about getting those bad boys next.

all the indie ladies in the 90's loved them some mid-tempo alt-rock GBV.

Also, as deeply as I love unimpeachable ultraclassics like "Echos Myron" and "I Am A Scientist"... I think Earthquake Glue's "The Best Of Jill Hives" (2003) may be my favorite Guided By Voices song.

All the indie ladies I've ever known were into The Cure and some such crap.

Fucking nice choices Lee! I reckon mine would be similar. Maybe Alien Lanes instead of Bee Thousand. I dunno. But gotta love King Shit.

I'm totally with you on Human Amusements at Hourly Rates.

It's true... not all bands work in the "best of" format, but some bands do. GBV does, and I actually probably find myself listening to Human Amusements and Live in Austin more than any of their proper albums.

"Chasing Heather Crazy" is a great song. I like "Frostman" too. A lot. Nice, gentle little tune that captures a feeling in a minute and a half. Just lovely. I like to listen to that one around Christmas time.

And now, the opinion after which I'll be chased to be burned at the stake:

Guided By Voices > Pavement

[seeks asylum in Dayton, OH]

Dayton would welcome you and provide much good local
music for your listening enjoyment.

Also, while many a daytonian would agree with you, there are many who believe

Brainiac > Guided by Voices

GBV actually played the first concert I ever went to.

my top 3 (hard shit):
1. Bee Thousand
2. Tonics & Twisted Chasers (underrated as FUCK!)
3. Alien Lanes

but they got a shitload of good albums

I forgot to include my list

1) Vampire on Titus (the first I heard after seeing them live that time)
2) Bee Thousand
3) Isolation Drills

I'm far from a completist though. There are several albums I've not heard including propeller

I can see this, actually. It's not an opinion I share (like, at all) but I can see it. I can see how GBV at their career best (like, say, 1990-1999?) might be more appealing than Pavement's discography, especially if you're into rollicking rock tunes, of which Pavement never had many.

But I like to take the whole into consideration. And Pavement's career is one of more hits and fewer misses than GBV's, in my opinion. GBV stopped being great many many moons ago. Now you're lucky if you can get an album that's more decent songs than throwaways. Just sayin'.

OK.

Pavement > Braniac > Guided by Voices.

That's not to say GBV isn't a tremendous band when they're at their best, and I've been a fan for as long as I can remember, but it's been almost as long since I've been pumped about anything other than playing their older, golden era records.

Pavement was, for a time, the best rock band in the world. Slanted & Enchanted and Crooked Rain are more transcendent than Bee Thousand and Alien Lanes. More boundary pushing, for the time. More interesting over the long haul. And way back when, man, Pavement was just the gold standard for indie rock. They didn't stick around long enough to sully their legacy, and that's important. I'm not going to get into the finer points of their latter discography, because not all the points are fine, but Pavement was pretty fearless for a while there, and they called it quits before they could start to really repeat themselves or flush their quality away.

Brainiac had some perfect records, and they also called it a day before shit could get too embarrassing.

Nothing but respect for GBV, but they aren't exactly living up to their legacy, and haven't for some time.

I fell you. GBV's career is inconsistent, and few bands come to mind with more than 20 years of staying power other than Sonic Youth.

The end of Brainiac's run was very tragic. And two out of three full lengths being pretty much perfect is a great track record.

Yeah. If GBV had closed up shop in 1999 (or sooner) they'd be fucking legendary by now. As it is, they kind of have to make sure people still know they're a thing whenever they drop a new album (or five), and they look a bit desperate and uninspired compared to most of their contemporaries. Even the ones that have long since ceased to exist. It's a shame really.

This is online now, so it's OK to share it :) : http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2017/0...mpression-now/

Pavement only have 1 good album.

Lies. All lies.