Hearing my cries, the Onion's AV Club started an excellent feature a while back called Gateways to Geekery, in which they help the layman find his way into various geeky obsessions. And this week, they in fact did Guided By Voices. (Others I've enjoyed: Steampunk, West Coast G-Funk, David Foster Wallace. And since I know several Stephen King obsessives read me on LJ, feel free to share your opinion with the world.)
The problem with GBV (and even moreso with Pollard's solo ventures) is that even the most forgiving fan admits that his oeuvre is a sea of shit with islands of brilliance. And the brilliant moments take some time to reveal their brilliance. As a friend pointed out in an email earlier this week, there's just too much music out there these days; I can't remember the last time I gave an album a chance to grow on me.
Wait, yes I can--it was the Hold Steady's Separation Sunday. I listened to it here and there for months before it finally clicked with me, and as you've probably read, I've been obsessed ever since. So maybe I need to make an effort to let some more growers grow.

