Guided by Voices was one of the most popular indie-rock bands of the 1990s. Critics internationally have lauded the band’s brain trust, Robert Pollard, as a once-in-a-generation artist. Pollard has been compared byThe New York Timesto Mozart, Rossini, and Paul McCartney (in the same sentence) and everyone from P. J. Harvey, Radiohead, R.E.M., the Strokes, and U2 has sung his praises and cited his music as an influence. But it all started rather prosaically when Pollard, a fourth-grade teacher in his early thirties from Dayton, Ohio, began recording songs with drinking buddies in his basement. James Greer, an acclaimed music writer and formerSpineditor, enjoys a unique advantage in having played in the band for two years. This personal connection grants him unparalleled insight and complete access to the workings of Pollard’s muse.
James Greer is an American novelist, screenwriter, musician, and critic. He lives in Los Angeles but spends much of his time in France. Greer was Senior Editor and Senior Writer at Spin magazine in NYC in the early 90s. He then moved to Dayton, Ohio, where in 1994 he joined the influential indie rock band Guided By Voices, contributing bass guitar and vocals to the albums Alien Lanes (Matador, 1995) and Under the Bushes Under the Stars (Matador, 1996) and touring extensively across the U.S. and in Europe.
Greer is the author of the novels Artificial Light (LHotB/Akashic 2006) and The Failure (Akashic 2010), and the non-fiction book Guided By Voices: A Brief History. He is a Contributing Editor for the Los Angeles Review of Books.
