Indie rock icons Guided by Voices are celebrating their 40th anniversary this weekend in their hometown of Dayton, OH with a two-day mini-festival. Fans came from around the world, including actor Paddy Considine (House of the Dragon, 24 Hour Party People) who has an awesome GBV tattoo on his right shoulder (pic below).
Things kicked off Friday night at the Dayton Masonic Center. In addition to the classics classic riffs, mic swings, high kicks, and many beers drunk, there was a tribute to frontman Bob Pollard. Matador Records representatives took the stage before the band’s encore to present Bob with the 40th Annual Gerard Cosloy Award for Most Valuable Lead Singer which they said he had won every year.
The award statue, which was a bowling trophy with a king atop a glass of beer, featured the inscription, “Guided by Voices – 40th Anniversary. King Shit and the Golden Boys We salute you! Love, Matador.” You can watch them present Bob the award, and see a picture of it, below.
Other than the general festive revery it was an otherwise business-as-usual marathon set full of indie rock standards like “Teenage FBI,” “I Am a Scientist,” “Tractor Rape Chain,” “Game of Pricks,” “Shocker in Gloomtown,” “Glad Girls,” and more.
Night 1 also featured two of bands who have similar names: the equally iconic Dinosaur Jr and Toronto up-and-comers Kiwi Jr. You can check out the GBV and Dinosaur setlists from Friday, plus fan shot video and pics, below.
GBV40 continues tonight with probably an entirely different setlist plus sets from Built to Spill, and Wednesday.
SETLIST Guided by Voices @ The Dayton Masonic Center 9/1/2023 (GBV40 Night 1)
Meet the Star
Cruisers’ Cross
Romeo Surgeon
My Impression Now
Cut-Out Witch
Planet Score
Released Into Dementia
Tractor Rape Chain
Alex Bell
Everybody Thinks I’m a Raincloud (When I’m Not Looking)
Queen of Spaces
Motor Away
Dance of Gurus
Seedling
My Kind of Soldier
Instinct Dwelling
Boomerang
Focus on the Flock
Man Called Blunder
The Best of Jill Hives
Your Name Is Wild
Never Mind the List
The Goldheart Mountaintop Queen Directory
Unfun Glitz
Razor Bug
Haircut Sphinx
Peep-Hole
Jane of the Waking Universe
The Rally Boys
Teenage FBI
Game of Pricks
Non-Absorbing
I Am a Scientist
Encore:
Time Without Looking
I Am a Tree
Love Is Stronger Than Witchcraft (Robert Pollard song)
Shocker in Gloomtown
Glad Girls
SETLIST Dinosaur Jr @ The Dayton Masonic Center 9/1/2023 (GBV40 Night 1)
The Lung
Garden
Been There All the Time
Kracked
Sludgefeast
Little Fury Things
Feel the Pain
Start Choppin
Mountain Man
Freak Scene
Just Like Heaven
Gargoyle
