Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Language available : english
Alien indie rock giants Guided by Voices' tendency toward prolific output became more or less a given after their 2010 reunion. Though there were different breakups and recalibrations along the way, between 2012's Let's Go Eat the Factory and 2021's dynamic and grandiose It's Not Them. It Couldn't Be Them. It Is Them!, various versions of the band released no less than 16 other full-length albums, sometimes arriving at a rate of three in a single year. With that much music being generated so quickly, even the strongest creative minds could risk running in place, but at this point in their trajectory, Guided by Voices albums are all about the subtle differences that separate them from the one (or five) that directly preceded them. The group's 35th studio album, Crystal Nuns Cathedral, follows It's Not Them by a matter of months, and there are moments where the record continues the focus on string arrangements and dense instrumentation that graced It's Not Them. The flamenco guitars, brass, and dramatic strings on the last album recalled Forever Changes-era Love at times, but on songs like "Climbing a Ramp," strings meet with moody overdriven guitars and Robert Pollard's laser-focused vocal harmonies for a more cinematic, rock-oriented application. Tracks like this and "Eye City" use strings to emphasize how much more involved the arrangements on this album can be than work from even a few years earlier.
Guided by Voices have been known to turn on a dime from heartfelt melodic rock to futuristic prog, but Crystal Nuns Cathedral finds a route closer to the middle by turning in 12 relatively concise slices of only occasionally angular power pop. Guitar-driven tracks like "Never Mind the List" and "Come North Together" are fantastically incomplex, exemplifying Pollard's time-honored pop songwriting sensibilities with meaty drums pushing his hooky melodies forward. "Excited Ones" is similar, adding a glammy stomp and reverby handclaps to the mix. Consistency isn't always a hallmark of GbV albums, but Crystal Nuns Cathedral walks a fairly straight line, only wandering into experiments with dissonance in moments like the jumbled "Huddled" or the slow-to-start "Birds in the Pipe" yet always returning to a core directive of anthemic, exciting rock. As with every Guided by Voices album, fans will find some songs excellent and some unmemorable, but Crystal Nuns Cathedral's steady approach and considered construction make for more keepers than duds, and one of the band's stronger entries.
© Fred Thomas /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From 12,49€/month
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Guided By Voices, MainArtist - Robert Pollard, Composer
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Albumbeschreibung
Alien indie rock giants Guided by Voices' tendency toward prolific output became more or less a given after their 2010 reunion. Though there were different breakups and recalibrations along the way, between 2012's Let's Go Eat the Factory and 2021's dynamic and grandiose It's Not Them. It Couldn't Be Them. It Is Them!, various versions of the band released no less than 16 other full-length albums, sometimes arriving at a rate of three in a single year. With that much music being generated so quickly, even the strongest creative minds could risk running in place, but at this point in their trajectory, Guided by Voices albums are all about the subtle differences that separate them from the one (or five) that directly preceded them. The group's 35th studio album, Crystal Nuns Cathedral, follows It's Not Them by a matter of months, and there are moments where the record continues the focus on string arrangements and dense instrumentation that graced It's Not Them. The flamenco guitars, brass, and dramatic strings on the last album recalled Forever Changes-era Love at times, but on songs like "Climbing a Ramp," strings meet with moody overdriven guitars and Robert Pollard's laser-focused vocal harmonies for a more cinematic, rock-oriented application. Tracks like this and "Eye City" use strings to emphasize how much more involved the arrangements on this album can be than work from even a few years earlier.
Guided by Voices have been known to turn on a dime from heartfelt melodic rock to futuristic prog, but Crystal Nuns Cathedral finds a route closer to the middle by turning in 12 relatively concise slices of only occasionally angular power pop. Guitar-driven tracks like "Never Mind the List" and "Come North Together" are fantastically incomplex, exemplifying Pollard's time-honored pop songwriting sensibilities with meaty drums pushing his hooky melodies forward. "Excited Ones" is similar, adding a glammy stomp and reverby handclaps to the mix. Consistency isn't always a hallmark of GbV albums, but Crystal Nuns Cathedral walks a fairly straight line, only wandering into experiments with dissonance in moments like the jumbled "Huddled" or the slow-to-start "Birds in the Pipe" yet always returning to a core directive of anthemic, exciting rock. As with every Guided by Voices album, fans will find some songs excellent and some unmemorable, but Crystal Nuns Cathedral's steady approach and considered construction make for more keepers than duds, and one of the band's stronger entries.
© Fred Thomas /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 12 track(s)
- Total length: 00:38:03
- Main artists: Guided By Voices
- Composer: Robert Pollard
- Label: GBV Inc
- Genre: Pop/Rock Rock Alternative en Indie
(C) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc. (P) 2022 Guided By Voices, Inc.
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.