They're straight out of central casting. One's gregarious and expansive with a short attention span. The other's quiet, deliberate and stoic. Naturally, the former is the guitar player, and the latter, the drummer/bassist/producer. But together Tim and Todd Tobias, with their somewhat unorthodox production process, are one of Northeast Ohio's most prolific outfits.

Since 2001, they've released six albums with Robert Pollard as Circus Devils (with material for two more in the can) and four albums since 2004 as Clouds Forming Crowns. Todd also recorded the last four Guided By Voices albums and all of Pollard's solo work since 2004's Fiction Man. That's eight albums, each of which features him playing most of the instruments. He's also recorded a trio of albums with Pollard as Psycho and the Birds. Small wonder he no longer plays out.

"I don't think I'd [be a producer] if I was just turning knobs," says Todd when I meet him and Tim at Todd's studio in Kent. "I need to make music and perform too."

The duo's story goes back to when a 14-year old Tim got a guitar, and Todd, 8, got drums. They've been performing together ever since, in bands like Ghost Sonata, 4 Coyotes and Gem. Playing the big crowds with a great band was a dream-come-true for Tim, but he had to quit three years later. "I'd be dead right now if I hadn't," he says, demurring specifics except to note that at one point Pollard chastised him.

Burned out on the road, Tim retreated to his room, where he's spent the past five years building pieces for his various projects; indeed, this is where the albums begin, in the brothers' rather odd space. Tim will pass loads of four-track guitar compositions on to Todd, who'll pick over the tracks, recording all the other instruments himself as well as forging the texture of the song. "I just keep working on it until it sounds like it's putting me somewhere spatially," explains Todd.

Then, if it's a Clouds Forming Crowns album, Tim will record the vocals. If it's a Circus Devils album, the tracks get passed along to Pollard, who chooses his favorites, adding lyrics and voices. In the case of the Circus Devil's new release, Ataxia, Todd sent Pollard 50 to 60 tracks.

"By the time I give him a song, I'm fairly confident about it, but then I get sick of it," says Tim. "I have a very short attention span. I don't like being in the studio, and he loves it. He has a lot more patience; I'm more one-take and done."

The benefit of this process is that everyone's creativity has free reign. It's also the reason why it's so hard to describe the Circus Devils' sound - it varies with their moods, which can cycle from garage prog to psych-punk and beyond. The next album, Gringo, is largely acoustic and will be followed by The Country Singer, which, according to Tim, sounds more like AC/DC. The anything-goes ethos is Tim's favorite aspect and differs from CFC in that "there's a different thought process behind it. I'm very worried about the melody."

Tim would like for Clouds to release as much music as Circus Devils, but for the moment they're bogged down in logistics. They have three records of material socked away, including "loud, scary" and "more lighthearted rock" albums, but they're still looking for a label while weighing DIY release options.

Meanwhile, CFC gets its third workout of the year this weekend with a show at Pat's in the Flats.

With Todd bivouacked in the studio, Tim's backed live by drummer-about-town Scott Pickering, bassist Brian Noga and Coffinberry guitarist Nick Cross. Tim blames everyone's competing commitments for the infrequent shows, though there's another culprit as well.

"I get sort of depressed about playing live," he admits. "I'll be halfway through the first song, and it feels like I've never done this before. It's a wonderful feeling, and I still get a big kick out of it, but it's the aftermath, like, 'OK, now I go back to real life.' And that's kind of a drag."

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