Are you *trolling*, Cos? How could I resist the easy outrage offered by pearls like this: "The most important story of the year in indie rock is that Elliott Smith didn't release a record", the first sentence of the piece. Elliott Smith (who, let's not forget, didn't release a record this year) didn't release a record in which he would have sounded like Neil Young if Neil Young weren't influenced by country music, i.e. not like Neil Young at all. In other news, major labels are skimming indies for talent. Message for Kurt Cobain: don't die, your time will come soon.

Thank goodness for sadcore, because without it we wouldn't have a slack way of describing music or Chan Marshall, who *is* indie rock. Matador sure must be glad they have an artist on their roster: Thrill Jockey must be hoping that she gets itchy feet and moves to Chicago. And we can only hope that K's long habit of releasing records with no songs on them breaks soon.

Good news as well in the latest Guided By Voices outing, which whilst combining all the elements of awfulness performs the kind of alchemical transformation into really quite good that only discipline and belief can produce. Where were these guys hiding? What happened between 1987 and this record, what personal journey had Disciplined Doug Gillard and Rigorous Robert Pollard embarked upon? About eighteen albums as it turns out, not that you'd know it from this review. Grrr.