Sonic Youth: Classic or Dud/S&D?

I don't know if you've heard the Live In Chicago album recorded in 1985 (but released last year) - it's dead exciting and gives me the same feeling I had when I first heard them... fuck's sake... 27 years ago. They're also planning on making this the first of a series of 'classic' Sonic Youth concert live albums to cover what they consider to be all the main points of their career.

I usually listen either to podcasts or pop/dance music at the gym, but I put on Dirty the other day, and it was kind of awesome. I biked so fast.

xpost - I haven't heard it, I will def check it out since I'm in the 'zone'

They're also planning on making this the first of a series of 'classic' Sonic Youth concert live albums to cover what they consider to be all the main points of their career.

Sounds like what they did 20 years ago through their fan club?
Sonic Death
Gila Monster Jamboree
Walls Have Ears
Hold That Tiger
Goo Demos
...?

I also have this thing where whenever I listen to Goo I have to listen to Dirty immediately after. I had (sadly chopped versions of) them on Side A & side B of a cassette in high school and I'd just listen to it over and over. They feel like a double album to me now, haha.

My favorite SY albums are "Goo" and "Daydream Nation."

Which means that I envision in a world where Sonic Youth are a pop band.

not such a bad world

No, but I wonder if in this world where Sonic Youth is a pop band who is the noise band?

Albert: As far as I know these are going to be as yet officially unreleased full length concert recordings from their own archive of full gigs, i.e. like the Smart Bar CD from last year.

Sounds like what they did 20 years ago through their fan club?
Sonic Death
Gila Monster Jamboree
Walls Have Ears
Hold That Tiger
Goo Demos
...?
--Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli)

Live at the Continental Club

I don't know how I feel about The Eternal in general, but Anti-Orgasm was a huge jam. I got into Sonic Youth all over again after I heard that.

I don't know if you've heard the Live In Chicago album recorded in 1985 (but released last year) - it's dead exciting

captures that moment when the plane leaves the runway and you sense the earth falling away and see the clouds surround

^^^This is a great way of putting it.

Everybody get ready for the official Sonic Youth ILM poll - coming up in just a few short weeks!

ooh yay I may participate!

Something opened up in my brain this week that has finally allowed me to glom onto Daydream Nation. Maybe I should try to squeeze everything else in there before the poll starts.

doitdoitdoit

I can't believe we haven't done that poll already!

No idea how I'd vote.

Suggestion: do an albums poll AND an "eras" poll

I've got a few ideas about side polls already, but I hadn't considered eras. I'll think about it.

A songs poll will be fascinating because people found them in different eras. My first introduction to them was 100% and Sugar Kane, so both those songs mean a lot to me. I also adore Murray Street and Sonic Nurse. Disintegration Notice may be my pick for #1 at the moment. Wow. Looking forward to that a lot.

Despite this piece I wrote, I will be voting for Washing Machine.

obv obv obv it's Murray Street

concise
clean
o'rourke

obv obv it's Sonic Nurse

tones
stones
o'rourke

Don't be over optimistic - Sister will win.

Confusion is Sex and only Confusion is Sex

'Bad Moon Rising' is the best Sonic Youth album!

it's either sonic nurse or washing machine. Though I will be tempted to vote A Thousand Leaves, since that's mostly the album that made Sonic Youth one of my favorite bands

I'm sure sister will win, and if so it would be deserved. I can't really say Nurse is an obvious or clear winner but I can call it my favorite. I love that record.

A Thousand Leaves isn’t my favorite Sonic Youth album, but its super underrated.

I might be the only person who loved the A Thousand Leaves-NYC Ghosts & Flowers J. Crew era.

Dunno what J. Crew means but that era is about when I was in a peak of SY fandom. I wasn't massively into NYCGAF but I saw them for the first time around then and it was a great show. I think it was around the same time they got a load of flack for playing at ATP and just playing a noise jam the whole time, but they played a regular set at the gig I was at. But I think because it was that time I would take A Thousand Leaves over the previous 2 albums no problem.

How is Chelsea Light Moving?

The Murray Street-Sonic Nurse-Rather Ripped era is my favorite example of bands making fantastic music into their forties and fifties.

Yep it's a great run of records. Up there with their best stuff. It's almost perfect that they then stopped. Sad, but kinda nice. I saw them in the main room at ATP after Rather Ripped and they sounded so wonderful.

where is that 'no one album is the favorite' thread in which SY features heavily?

these are the words, but not the truth

j: every one's a winner: the sonic youth syndrome

thanks! i wanted to point to that to say in response to

Something opened up in my brain this week that has finally allowed me to glom onto Daydream Nation. Maybe I should try to squeeze everything else in there before the poll starts.

― how's life

... that my experience was always that you couldn't just make the jump from one SY album (or period) to another. they're as second-nature to me as anything now and i still haven't cracked the last one. so i would be surprised if squeezing their career in would really work (but hey if you can swing it).

i'm listening to daydream nation now for the first time in years and, even though it was never my favourite (that trajectory from age 17-24 went something like confusion is sex -> washing machine -> sister), i can't believe i've deprived myself of it for so long :'(. i forgot how 2 rock.

discussing the relative merits of SY's songs will be fun but lord knows we've done it with the albums to death (partially my fault obv)

i'm listening to daydream nation now for the first time in years and, even though it was never my favourite (that trajectory from age 17-24 went something like confusion is sex -> washing machine -> sister), i can't believe i've deprived myself of it for so long :'(. i forgot how 2 rock.

it's becuz of where yr livin

if you never picked up the deluxe remaster (and the live version appended to it!) you TOTALLY should

i didn't! i saw them on the daydream nation don't look back tour and about twenty seconds into teen age riot i got clunked on the side of the head hard enough that the earplug in my opposite ear popped out and got lost in a sea of feet, so i had to head to the back and spend the night with a finger in my ear. i suppose that left me with some slightly negative sentiments, which i suppose have now dissolved.

Daydream Nation was my first SY, and a tough entry point it seemed to me at the time. The transition from punk rock, which was still good old fashioned rock and roll, to this noisescape that referenced rock but seemingly ironically, was tough. It was intimidating, like a sonic minefield or something. "Providence" was the only track that didn't make me nervous. But then after a few months it clicked and I was on the other side and ever since then, good old fashioned rock and roll has been harder to get into.

^^^^ may contain traces of peanuts, gluten and revisionist history

After I fell in love with Dirty in high school, a classmate copied a couple of the older albums for me. But on Daydream Nation, the tape cut off right after 'Hyperstation'. For years I wondered about the third part of the Trilogy. I was SO disappointed when I finally heard 'Eliminator Jr.' - I can't stand that song.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/db6313855972a5e83896da699d84249d/tumblr_mk0ylcipoC1qkqoo4o2_500.jpg

The Murray Street-Sonic Nurse-Rather Ripped era is my favorite example of bands making fantastic music into their forties and fifties.

― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, March 22, 2013 8:13 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

And, relatedly, J., Lou and Murph have been doing rather well at that on their last few records.

Not to mention the great new Wire.

Not to mention the continuing adventures of Nomeansno.

in high school DDN seemed way noisier & weird. Listening now I'm like, wtf was I so turned off by. This is RAD

http://www.metmuseum.org/events/programs/spectrum/street?eid=A001_%7b5F96B3AD-D976-4BDF-95DC-1653D756003E%7d_20130325102114

For anybody who's interested, Thurston Moore will be playing at the Metropolitan Museum on Monday, April 15. He provided the music for a video that I acquired for the Met and is the centerpiece of the show I curated that will be up through May 27. He will be performing in front of a projection of the video in our big auditorium...tickets are $22 each.

Kim Gordon will be at the MCA in Chicago tomorrow with White/Light (who are awesome) for free.