Either way, Washing Machine is the last Sonic Youth record that I really listened to over and over, unlike the albums that came after which I have given only a few listens then put on the shelf.
I still have never picked up the last one.
― earlnash, Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:01 (eighteen years ago) link
― Marty Innerlogic (marty innerlogic), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:02 (eighteen years ago) link
Hear, hear!
― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:22 (eighteen years ago) link
And I have to jump in on the EJSTANS argument: my favorite SY album, and one of my favorite albums, period. I don't know if that says anything about its objective quality, but I know that I love it.
And I know that you are WRONG if you do not also love it. WRONG.
― Deric W. Haircare (Deric W. Haircare), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:29 (eighteen years ago) link
― n/a (Nick A.), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:38 (eighteen years ago) link
― Rvssignonald's, Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:54 (eighteen years ago) link
― rssl, Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:00 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:00 (eighteen years ago) link
― Baaderonixx weaves a daisy chain for... SATAN!! (baaderonixx), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:00 (eighteen years ago) link
anyways, CLASSIC. better than Daydream! as good as Sister or EVOL!
― brontosaur, Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:05 (eighteen years ago) link
― Al (sitcom), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:14 (eighteen years ago) link
― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:27 (eighteen years ago) link
then the dramatic slide into the most severe mediocrity imaginable with A Thousand Leaves. they ain't come up since.
― Lawrence the Looter (Lawrence the Looter), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:43 (eighteen years ago) link
If you want to avoid the boring peg you have abandon SY entirely. The 80s stuff isn't as boring as the 00s stuff but its also 20 years old, so the boringness evens out.
― 'Twan (miccio), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:44 (eighteen years ago) link
― 'Twan (miccio), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:45 (eighteen years ago) link
― earlnash, Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:47 (eighteen years ago) link
― 'Twan (miccio), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:49 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 19:13 (eighteen years ago) link
― n/a (Nick A.), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 19:25 (eighteen years ago) link
― n/a (Nick A.), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 19:28 (eighteen years ago) link
― Soukesian, Wednesday, 7 December 2005 19:39 (eighteen years ago) link
― Baaderonixx weaves a daisy chain for... SATAN!! (baaderonixx), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 20:15 (eighteen years ago) link
you're lonely.
― 'Twan (miccio), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 20:16 (eighteen years ago) link
― sleeve (sleeve), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 20:23 (eighteen years ago) link
i'm not sure why i even posted, rssvldonalds and sleeve already said everything i had to say. DITTO'D
― 6335, Thursday, 8 December 2005 00:45 (eighteen years ago) link
― amon (eman), Thursday, 8 December 2005 03:19 (eighteen years ago) link
I'm a big Eric's Trip fan.
― Special Agent Dale Koopa (orion), Thursday, 8 December 2005 03:26 (eighteen years ago) link
― dali madison's nut (donut), Thursday, 8 December 2005 03:31 (eighteen years ago) link
― The Brainwasher (Twilight), Thursday, 8 December 2005 05:37 (eighteen years ago) link
well, I bought Goo this past summer and fell in love with it-- and then they came out with a deluxe version two months later. so, now i want to pick up Washing Machine, but if they're going to do a deluxe version, I might as well just wait until that comes out... yafeelme?
― poortheatre (poortheatre), Thursday, 8 December 2005 06:02 (eighteen years ago) link
K!z!K: It is 8pm here on KUCI 88.9fM in Irvine...Voice: It's 8pm...
K!z!K: Pacific time of course! And we're on the phone right now with Mark Hosler of Negativland, so, say hi.
Voice: [Gurgling] "GGGH-GHGGHG-GGHGHGHHG-GHGHHGHGHG_GGHGMmmm..... GGHGHGGHGG- GHGHGHGHHG-GHGHG-GHGHGmmmm"
K!z!K: [laugh] Well, there you go... well, anyway, you released the Fair Use book about a few months ago, and it ended on a somewhat positive note. You reached an out-of-court settlement with SST. Island records and affiliates finally agreed to give permission for the re-release of the U2 single, provided of course that Casey Kasem give permission. So that only leaves that one obstacle...the "Casey" barrier... I wanted to ask how far you've gotten along in tackling that barrier, and in perhaps convincing Casey to finally give the OK.
Voice: [Gurgling] "GHGHGHG-GGGHGHGHGHG_GHGHG GOOOHHGmOGHGGHM GGGANNSWERR GU GGHGAT GGGESTIONGGh.... GHIM GNONT GGHGMARGHGK GHGOOSLEGLER... GHGHI GGHAAM GNOT.....[in background] he wants to know about...U2"
Mark Hosler: Hi.
K!z!K: [laugh] Did you hear my question?
MH: No, I didn't hear your question. They...they wouldn't let me use the phone. Someone else had the telephone, and I just...[LOUD BANG AND CRASH] ...got it from him. That was, man... [LOUD TONE PITCH BENDING].... wait a minute... you're going to have to repeat that question. Real sorry.
K!z!K: [laughing] No problem! The question was this: Fair Use was released about a few... well, almost a year ago...
MH: See, now everyone here is talking while you're talking...[CRASHING SOUND]...and I can't hear...the question.
K!z!K: Well, OK, then...now can you hear me? Am I coming through clear?
Voice [background]: I was not talking!
MH [to Voice in background]: Will you shut up? [SCREECH AND ANOTHER LOUD BANG] I'm trying to talk on the RADIO... in Southern California after a lame Sonic Youth song. [to K!z!K] OK, go ahead.
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 8 December 2005 06:04 (eighteen years ago) link
― thousands of tiny luminous spheres (plebian), Thursday, 8 December 2005 08:21 (eighteen years ago) link
― jdchurchill (jdchurchill), Thursday, 8 December 2005 23:33 (eighteen years ago) link
LIstening to this again now after perhaps a decade. No Queen Blues is great. Actually, the whole thing is very good.
― paulhw, Tuesday, 8 July 2008 23:02 (fifteen years ago) link
this one = good.
A Thousand Leaves = much, much, much better.
― stephen, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 00:35 (fifteen years ago) link
title track = awez
― clotpoll, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 02:31 (fifteen years ago) link
This is perhaps my favourite Sonic Youth album. It certainly was a few years ago, though Daydream Nation may edge it now, since I've become a lot more familiar with that album in the last year or so.
― krakow, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 06:48 (fifteen years ago) link
It's the only one since Sister that I really like much.
― Nate Carson, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 10:18 (fifteen years ago) link
now i want to pick up Washing Machine, but if they're going to do a deluxe version, I might as well just wait until that comes out
i doubt that this will ever happen
― akm, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 13:45 (fifteen years ago) link
I've never actually heard this album but I've played "The Diamond Sea" more than any other Sonic Youth track.
― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 13:47 (fifteen years ago) link
Then you should probably check this out...
I think this is one of their best, still a rewarding listen. A Thousand Leaves is similar and fine but a bit more on the SYR side...
― sonderangerbot, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 14:34 (fifteen years ago) link
My least fave SY album.
― Raw Patrick, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 14:37 (fifteen years ago) link
Love "Unwind" and "The Diamond Sea," can't remember anything else.
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 14:38 (fifteen years ago) link
'Little Trouble Girl' turned me off Sonic Youth for YEARS. It took a chance encounter with EVOL to change my mind about them.
― MacDara, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 16:06 (fifteen years ago) link
And the vocal melody is "Wouldn't It Be Nice" by the Beach Boys, which is a much better song.
I'm trying to work out what Vic meant by this. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" is definitely more sophisticated in terms of melody-writing craft but I don't see a strong similarity with the melody of "The Diamond Sea". Nor would it have occurred to me that SY was attempting that kind of songwriting with this song.
This was my favourite album in high school. I still really like "The Diamond Sea", as basic as its melodies are.
― Sundar, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 18:00 (fifteen years ago) link
This is one of my favorite SY records. Probably my most favorite.
― Marty Innerlogic, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 18:18 (fifteen years ago) link
Actually, this thread made me take it off my shelf. Now listening. This a great record. That guitarlead in the beginning of Saucer-like is a total hommage to the guitar lead of The Byrds' 8 Miles High.
― Marty Innerlogic, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 18:22 (fifteen years ago) link
KILL YOURSELF NYC DOUCHEBAG
haha Ø_Ø man "the diamond sea" is probably my favorite sy track
― Lamp, Friday, 19 June 2009 02:37 (fourteen years ago) link
but not Lee's, I don't think
― howls of non-specificity (sleeve), Saturday, 12 December 2020 01:04 (three years ago) link
Title track of "NYC Ghosts and Flowers" is probably the closest.
― The New York Times' effect on man (Sund4r), Saturday, 12 December 2020 01:06 (three years ago) link
There is, but I don’t think a lot of that stuff is as interesting in terms of integrating the talking with a pop-rock structure. Skip Tracer is SY doing something interesting within that 3-4 minute side of the band, whereas a lot of the things they were doing at that point were more a case of “somewhat conventional rock-pop with noise bit in middle”, or “relatively ambient track with spoken word interlude”
I think a lot of those Geffen albums are really good but I don’t think the marriage of those elements above were that common; if they were, it was more incidental, or a part of something much longer (ie not in a 4 min tune)
― Master of Treacle, Saturday, 12 December 2020 01:15 (three years ago) link
Ah, yeah, I see what you mean.
― The New York Times' effect on man (Sund4r), Saturday, 12 December 2020 01:22 (three years ago) link