C/D: Sonic Youth's GOO

I like chuck's bit on 'kool thing' too. they are now on a major label and they can get chuck D to guest on a track. I never got the 'down with the kids' thing at all nicole.

Its a good rec.

What's right with it?

In all seriousness, it's less an example of "singing" and more of a recitation. There's nothing necessarily wrong with that part of it, but Gordon's lifelessly deadpan delivery, coupled with what I consider to be a rather churlishly contrived narrative (ooh, look, I'm eulogizing soft-rock demi-goddess Karen Carpenter in a relatively shallow way...am I being ironic? You decide!) renders the whole thing embarassing and unlistenable.

when I listen to music I listen to sound. I find it very hard to concentrate on the lyrics (so I didn't know what it was abt).

''again. I love daydream and sister and Goo is beautiful rec but I can't rank 'em really. i have seen SY live so I don't know how diff the songs on DN are.''

that should be ''haven't'' seen SY live.

Can you walk and chew gum at the same time, Julio?

it's not ironic, i don't think: KC wz a good singer and hers wz a sad story

Inarguably, but I don't feel said story was presented in a necessarily sincere manner in "Tunic." I'm not suggesting that Kim Gordon was intentioally MOCKING Karen Carpenter, but to address this issue so blithely ("you look so underfed") and then augment the story with the most tired cliché in the book (that Karen Carpenter is in heaven and has made friends with fellow dead rock stars and formed a band) is beyond trite. That I find it irritatingly distasteful has less to do with any reverance for the Carpenters and more to do with my disgust at Sonic Youth's pretentiousness.

Goo is uneven, and parts seem forced. "Hey, we need a noise track! We're Sonic Youth, dammit!" (imagined origin of "Scooter + Jinx"). "Hey, we need a song where we scream and freak out! We're Sonic Youth, dammit!" (imagined origin of "Mildred Pierce"). Despite the throwaways, I think it turned out well. I remember thinking when it came out that it was all over for them - "Kool Thing" being the first single (hated it at first, can tolerate it now) and signing to Geffen. No, not quite...that would have to wait until Dirty.

''[Kim]
dreaming, dreaming of a girl like me
hey what are you waiting for - feeding, feeding me
I feel like I'm disappearing - getting smaller every day
but I look in the mirror - I'm bigger in every way

she said:
you aren't never going anywhere
you aren't never going anywhere
I ain't never going anywhere
I ain't never going anywhere

I'm in heaven now - I can see you Richard
goodbye Hollywood, goodbye downey - hello Janis
hello Dennis, Elvis - and all my brand new friends
I'm so glad you're all here with me, until the very end

dreaming, dreaming of how it's supposed to be
but now this tunic's spinning - around my arms and knees
I feel like I'm disappearing - getting smaller every day
but when I open my mouth to sing - I'm bigger in every way

she said:
you aren't never going anywhere
you aren't never going anywhere
I ain't never going anywhere
I ain't never going anywhere

hey mom! look I'm up here - I finally made it
I'm playing the drums again too
don't be sad - the band doesn't sound half bad
and I remember mom, what you said
you said honey - you look so under-fed

[background voices singing various covers]

[Kim]
another green salad, another ice tea
there's a tunic in the closet waiting just for me
I feel like I'm disappearing - getting smaller every day
but I look in your eyes - and I'm bigger in every way

she said:
you aren't never going anywhere
you aren't never going anywhere
I ain't never going anywhere
I ain't never going anywhere

goodbye Richard - gotta go now
I'm finally on my own - but Dan's got a gig
keep the love lights glowing - little girl's got the blues
I can still hear momma say: "honey don't let it go to your head"''

oh yeah, love "Tunic"... I feel there's more tribute than piss-take going on, too...

experimental jet set (aside from "bull in the heather") is so much more lamer than daydream nation.

Ok so you prob haven't got it but the main quibble that ppl have with it is that the production doesn't do the riffs any favours. It sounds fine to me though i haven't heard it all the way through for a long while (and only in sections).

Not lame: Teenage Riot, The Sprawl, Eric's Trip, Total Trash, Hey Joni, Candle, Trilogy (Pts. 1-3)

Since that makes up more than half of the album, I'd have to disagree.

i think my favourite sy album is dirty. i didn't realize how good it was initially (it was my first sy album) though i always loved it. but when i listened to murray street which is a very good effort next to dirty dirty happened to be so much more varied so much more dynamic so much more lively i couldn't believe it.

goo is a very fine record and i don't really get what the other alex is on about. the karen carpenter song isn't pure genius lyricwise but which sy song is? sy is not really about lyrics. they take as lyrics whatever they can get. sometimes it turns out to be funny sometimes it turns out rubbish. i couldn't care less.

and karen carpenter's voice is probably the most beautiful voice i have ever heard.

Cop-out argument.

"sy is not really about lyrics."

Strictlly your opinion.

alex- ''and then augment the story with the most tired cliché in the book (that Karen Carpenter is in heaven and has made friends with fellow dead rock stars and formed a band) is beyond trite.''

no alex its a tribute: its a lovely image that's being described (Ok so part opf my brain tells me its a tad corny but still). I don't think they treat KC badly.

Certainly. And, as before, I'm right and you're wrong. Hahahahaha

I saw it in the theater before it got withdrawn! Am I cool or old?

Confusion is Sex (1983) YES
Bad Moon Rising (1985) YES
Evol (1986) YES
Sister (1986) YES
Master=Dik (1987) YES
Daydream Nation (1988) YES
Goo (1990) YES
Dirty (1992) YES
Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star (1994) NO
Made in USA (1995) NO
Screaming Fields of Sonic Love (1995) YES
Washing Machine (1995) NO
Silver Session (For Jason Knuth) (1998) NO
A Thousand Leaves (1998) NO
Goodbye 20th Century (1999) YES
NYC Ghosts & Flowers (2000) NO
Murray Street (2002) YES

the first NO = i lost my job at the wire and wz v.poor and trying to write my book

On a brief listen i like GOO better than DIRTY and both of them way better than DDN and Sistah bettah still and Murray Street best of all. but y'know....

is that an official rec?

Goo is my second favorite SY album after Sister.. The first six tracks or so are incredible. It get a little less interesting towards the end.

Can you listen to "Tunic (Song for Karen)" without wincing?

Yes! Her delivery is perfect! She does sound a little like Will Ferrel doing Janet Reno, but "Don't be saaahd / The band doesn't sound half baad."

Yeah, that's the difference — their classic records were beautiful, their late-period records are pretty.

that’s fine, but i also don’t go to SY for pretty, so i don’t care!

they also lost me after murray street, which is probably my 2nd or 3rd fav album of theirs, for the most part.

i skip around sonic nurse and rr, but the highlights are worth price of admission. im especially partial to "unmade bed" and "i love you golden blue" which i think are some of their best songs.

murray street is a 10 ofc

Never quite got the DN as chill idea... Granted it's less ferocious than BMR, which I absolutely love, but it does what it sets out to do extremely well. Cross the Breeze is one of Kim's best - I love how it switches between galloping hardcore and almost-metal breakdowns. And the noise sections are some of their most beautiful. When I saw them do the DN shows, Thurston introduced Silver Rocket as their homage to Jesus & Mary Chain. Maybe that was just playing to the Glasgow crowd, but it does make sense. Some beautiful noise on that, the kinda thing they'd explore at greater length on Diamond Sea, which for me is the peak in terms of combining their mellower side with immersive noise.

That totally makes sense about Silver Rocket and JAMC.

At this point, Sister, EVOL, BMR, Goo, and DR are the only albums by them that I can't live without, and I could curate an album of selections from all their other records.

― czech hunter biden's laptop (the table is the table), Wednesday, July 2, 2025 6:56 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

Glad to hear you've come around on DiRty.

oops, obv DN lol

Tbh I can't really enjoy RR because when I listen to it (with hindsight) Thurston's lyrics seem to be about his affair with Eva (e.g. "Sleepin Around" but in my mind all of them take on that aspect).

Teaser for the Tamra Davis documentary type thing "The Best Summer" (inc SY amongst others)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZHk6rU7cWc