In our first episode of 2026, we’re joined by Brian Seemann to talk about Guided By Voices, the indie rock band he discovered as a teenager and has followed for decades.

We start the episode by catching up on how we’re *really* doing and, as it turns out, this involves sports mascots, happy worms, and the world’s little known need for more hype people. Then we talk Friendsgiving, because we recorded this back when all the holidays were still ahead of us.

At the 13:10 mark we get into all things Guided By Voices (and to answer your question, no, it’s not a Christian band). Brian tells us about Robert Pollard, who started the band when he was an elementary school teacher in the 1980s and has kept it going (minus, like, a short breakup) ever since. We also learn about the magic of their live shows, including the scissor kicks. Oh, the scissor kicks.

Brian gives us his origin story--how he discovered the band in the ‘90s, when learning about music was vastly different from how it is now (there were no algorithms in sight). He tells us about connecting with other lovers of Guided By Voices, and the devoted fandom the band has developed over the years.

We talk about music as art versus music as background sound. We talk about the process of creation and what makes a work of art resonate with an audience. Fair warning, we also rag on the band Sublime a lot. Then Brian gives us our homework. Luckily for us, it involves listening to music and no scissor kicks.

References:

https://www.gbvdb.com/home.asp

Logo design by Marielle Martin

Song: Upbeat Drums with Stomps and Claps by music_for_video

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