best Sonic Youth album of the '80s

Daydream Nation is going to win though, because it sounds like REM.

Yeah. Sister always reminded me of Jody Watley.

also in the sy influences corner, monitor's "in terrae interium" and "I saw dead jim's shade"

and The Breakfast Club's "Right On Track."

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKAunVtF-xs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojRgNfBRR4g

tbh i was kind of bummed that the last time I saw them most of the token '80s songs (Tom Violence, Death Valley, Shadow Of A Doubt) were the same ones they were playing when i started seeing them live a decade ago.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

awesome results!!! glad bad moon rising got so many votes too. these days i would far rather hear evol/sister/bad moon rising ahead of daydream.

in honor of this momentous occasion, i just posted a great Sister-era SY show on my blog: http://doomandgloomfromthetomb.tumblr.com/

Do you know what town that show was in? I saw a bunch of the Sister shows, and it was interesting how half-formed the performances of the songs were at the start, even though the record was already recorded. Pacific Coast Highway fell apart so much at the Electric Banana, they didn't even finish it, IIRC. By the end of the year, they were killing it though.

It's from a show at the Cat's Cradle in North Carolina ... http://www.luxnet.at/sonic-youth/record-180.html (i only posted the 1987 tracks, there are bonus tracks from later on)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hsXXEcIwM0&feature=related

i think that whole gig must be on youtube

that's a lot of votes. I think I agree with the order, except with Confusion is Sex above Bad Moon Rising. I've never heard Made in USA, which is odd since a late teenage obsession finds me owning about 40 Sonic Youth releases, a good number of which I'll probably never listen to again.

When I was about 18 Confusion is Sex was my favourite, I can't remember if I was being a silly contrarian or if it was because it tapped into something that I had wanted for years but in my limited knowledge didn't know actually existed.

fascinating lookback from original sy drummer richard edson, beautiful detailed portrait of early 80s downtown nyc scene in the bargain.

http://www.salon.com/2015/11/28/growing_up_in_sonic_youth_partner/

My memory isn't perfect. I know I've read that anecdote about Thurston bleeding all over the drums, but part of my brain keeps thinking that I read it in an interview with Jim Sclavunos (maybe in BB Gun). I could be completely wrong. My old zines got destroyed in a flood, so checking would be a pain. Does anyone have access to the source material?

Wait, so the parking valet in Ferris Bueller's Day Off was the original drummer in Sonic Youth?
*mind blown*

fun read, but even better is that it made me listen to Konk. never heard them and they're great.

sister without a second thought

― goole, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 17:52 (6 years ago) Permalink

I didn't vote, but yup

Tbh, the huge amounts of love EVOL gets at the top of this thread kinda makes my day

EVOL is one of the greatest albums of the 80s, absolutely monumental

^cosign

kind of stunned at the idea of there being 200 ilxors who know all these albums well enough to vote. not a zing or anything - just don't think of there being that many people here at all, let alone that much consistent overlap in listening taste, but i probably hang out on the wrong threads. or is this lurker vote syndrome?

i don't know any of these albums btw. i own murray street and i remember liking sonic nurse when my roommate would play it, as with jim o'rourke's insignficance. does 80s sonic youth deliver the same goods or am i good with the 2000s stuff?

does 80s sonic youth deliver the same goods or am i good with the 2000s stuff?

Yes, it delivers a great deal of goods. Daydream Nation is as good as advertised. Sister too.

Different goods, but I mean if you like those 2000s records you should go listen to the earlier incarnation. Every single 80s SY album has at least 2-3 absolutely killer songs (though that is a low estimate, I like way more than 2-3 songs on each album, just feel that there are 2-3 UNDENIABLE songs on each one).

If "Murray Street"/"Sonic Nurse" worked for you, head immediately to "Expressway To Yr Skull" form EVOL and "Schizophrenia" from Sister and see if they wet your whistle. Obviously everyone on here would have their own songs to throw in, but those are pretty good gateways to the early-ish days. Certainly two songs that do not get old for me.

cool, thanks! will check 'em later. i remember being surprised by those albums and how song-y and melodic they seemed. my impression had previously been that sonic youth were more of like a wall of random aggressive noise or something.

what's a good sister-era show to get a recording of? liking the brixton academy show (post-dirty) and i wish i could hear more of the sister songs in non-album performances

(and is there really no sister thread?!?)

"Hold That Tiger" was available thru their website for a time:

▸ A1 Intro 0:43
▸ A2 Schizophrenia 4:30
▸ A3 Tom Violence 2:43
▸ A4 White Cross 2:57
▸ A5 Kotton Krown 4:05
▸ A6 Stereo Sanctity 3:27
▸ A7 Brother James 3:22
▸ A8 Pipeline / Kill Time 4:03
▸ A9 Catholic Block 3:55
▸ B1 Tuff Gnarl 3:26
▸ B2 Death Valley '69 4:50
▸ B3 Beauty Lies in the Eye 2:40
▸ B4 Expressway to Yr. Skull 4:32
▸ B5 Pacific Coast Highway 4:59
▸ B6 Loudmouth 2:01
▸ B7 I Don't Wanna Walk Around You 1:33
▸ B8 Today Yr. Love, Tomorrow the World 2:00
▸ B9 Beat on the Brat 2:41

oh yeah i used to have that somewhere

any other bootlegs?

Be My Sister In Death?

"Hold That Tiger" is really good imo. I am sure there are copies out there if you want it, but a good set list and good quality recording.

I sold my Hold That Tiger CD a few years ago, only got a few quid for it so it's not rare if you want a physical copy (I did rip it first)

there's a few shows from Maxwell's in early 87 when they're debuting the Sister material that's a great listen - everything's falling apart, Thurston starts playing Crucifucks songs, they've got TVs up on stage with them that cause tons of hum, etc. I don't have a copy anymore unfortunately, but I'll take a look around and see if it's still up somewhere. Sister's my favourite album period, so over the years I've heard most of the shows.

https://www.themckenzietapes.com/tapes/2018/4/24/0trmkz2yal6ct5d4xusp9s1swy4eym

https://www.themckenzietapes.com/tapes/2018/4/24/sonic-youth-at-maxwells-04-23-1987

^ this guy oughta wear a trench coat with wares hanging from the inside

I knew Tyler would know exactly what I meant, which is half the reason I didn't bother to look it up first, haha. Thanks man.

Hold That Tiger is on Spotify, btw (not if this fact was implied in the above convo)

*not sure if...

(btw - I'm not a big SY fan, but I'm enjoying this particular live album!)

the ramones covers on Tiger are wonderful

my fave version of Today Your Love