In 1995 Sonic Youth released The Washing Machine, their probably last great studio album. It shows all I like about them. Not just because they’ve once again conjured up wondrous melodies out of thin air, only to destroy them towards the end in a sea of noise and feedback. What’s more, Thurston Moore is once again redefining the art of playing the electric guitar. For me, the best example of this is the final track on this album: an almost twenty-minute journey through harmony, tranquillity and expressive guitar noise. If you take the time to embark on this journey, you’ll realise what a monster of a track they’ve created.
If you know Jim O'Rourke, you'll probably associate him with his work as a producer and occasional member of Sonic Youth. Born and raised in Chicago’s experimental improvisation scene, the producer, composer and singer-songwriter has rarely allowed himself to be pigeonholed into a single genre. He moves effortlessly between ambient, noise and minimalism, as well as rock styles such as indie rock and post-rock.
Shortly before the turn of the century, he released what is probably his best-known album, Eureka. At first glance, Eureka sounds like warm, harmonious 70's folk and soft rock. But beneath the smooth surface lie complex, avant-garde structures. The best example is the opening track, Woman Of The World. The song begins with a gently plucked acoustic guitar, and gradually more instruments are layered on top. Piano, brass and string arrangements drive the track forward, culminating in a compelling pop orchestral arrangement. It is certainly no masterpiece, but it is an album that was ahead of its time and, over 30 years on, has lost none of its beauty.
In the early 1980's, SST Records was the American label that had the best bands of the time under contract. I could name a lot (or will do it in another series) but I'll settle for just one today, namely Sonic Youth.
SY were formed in 1981 by founding members Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon and I got aware of them by their third album EVOL. For their groundbreaking album Daydream Nation they were signed by SST and it is still a masterpiece of guitar and noise rock featuring great melodies. On this record they moved away from their punk/garage roots and defined guitar playing new. Over all, Kim Gordon's crystal clear voice is the perfect contrast to Moore's guitar excursions.
Manchester's music scene is always good for a surprise. The last band to surprise me with their sound was Shaking Hand, a trio that has developed a fascinating conglomerate from their minimalist guitar sound. I hear echoes of Yo La Tengo, Sonic Youth and Pavement at their best.
They unite unique reduced guitars with a post-punk anthem and some great hooks that I didn't listen to for a long time. I know that they are new with their first self titled album but they close the gap between new wave and 90's American independent. It is retro, fresh and full of energy and a pleasure to listen to. One of the best albums this year so far.
Since the beginning at the month SWC is running over at No Badger Required a superb series about protest, rebellion and rabble rousing. As a member of the jury I named him my personal protest song. I struggled but after all I didn't named Sonic Youth's Teen Age Riot.
In the summer of 1988, the outcome of the US presidential election the following November was still completely open. US President Ronald Reagan was not allowed to run again after two terms in office; George Bush (Senior) was to run for the Republicans. His opponent on the Democratic side was Michael Dukakis, a former university lecturer of Greek descent, who tried to present himself as a hardliner and was to fail colossally.
It was against this backdrop that Sonic Youth released perhaps their most important album, Daydream Nation, which they originally wanted to call Reagan Nation as an allusion to the US president's “Reaganomics”, which drove more and more people into poverty by cutting social benefits. Teen Age Riot was a call to revolt, with many songs revolving around the intolerable conditions that could be seen on the doorstep in Manhattan.
Kim Gordon repeats Spirit Desire forever before Sonic Youth's ultimate riff kicks in and finishes with distorted guitars and feedback.
Part two of this little retrospective bring us a band that now after The Fall has gone are the last survivors of 80's indie-rock. Nigel Blackwell and HMHB are too long in business to make any worse album an so is The Voltarol Years another example how indie-rock should sound today. Powerful guitars and intelligent lyrics.
Mark Peters returned after his fantastic Innerlands from 2018 with another excursion into a wide country of guitar based sounds with Red Sunset Dreams. An album you can drift away and as the sound is not much enough Dot Allison lends her velvet voice to a few songs.
Antoine Harispuru aka Golden Bug is a French DJ and producer and I follow his works since a couple of years. Now he released Piscolabis his first full length record. A trip through electronic and guitars that I can't compare with any other artists - maybe The Limiñanas with electronics.
Another indie-rock and legends of experimental rock returned with rehearsals of their last period in the beginning of the new century. It is not necessary to explain Sonic Youth and In/Out/In didn't got much critical acclaim but for are these songs better than many others released this year. Maybe only because I always loved their music.
One of the most mysterious albums this year came from France. Société Etrange released with Chance a milestone of electronic music. Six songs without words, equivocal rhythms, accented bass and drenched in melancholy took me several times in 2022 into a trip to another dimension of sound.
A Mountain Of One is a London based band and if you want you can file them under progressive and psyche rock. But this is not all because you can find on Stars Planet Dust Me much more influences from music of the last decades. An album that grows the often you listen to it.
Our cosmic shaman also released another album. Nothing new or different to his former albums just a few good-time songs for feel-bad days.
Another band that can't make any bad album Reading's Sea Power. Everything Was Forever is just what I expected - a bunch of melodic guitar-pop with elements of electronica and post-punk.
Recently I came back to another German band that I almost forgot. The Notwist were formed in 1989 in Weilheim, upper Bavaria as another Hüsker Dü and Sonic Youth inspired young band playing strong and fast songs like their idols. After their fabulous debut they changed their sound into more melodic and you could hear influences by New Order in many songs. Their second album Neon Golden from 1990 is sadly a forgotten highlight and only known by some hardcore fans from this band. For me it is a timeless album showing the abilities of German new music in these days and this is not the worst reason to feature a few songs from their first albums. Enjoy.
Sonic Youth announced the release of In/Out/In in March this year. It a collection of five songs recorded in the first ten years of this century. As an appetizer they released In & Out a song they recorded during a soundcheck in 2010 and in their home in Hoboken. The song subtly resembles Can playing in a cave, with dripping stalactites from Kim's wordless buzzing tone. This song shows the potential they had before they have dissolved one year later. A little masterpiece and already at the beginning of the year a highlight.
33 years ago Sonic Youth released their masterpiece Daydream Nation in alternative music from the 80's. They started as another band from the no-wave and noise corner in New York and soon showed that Thurston Moore, Lee Ronaldo and Kim Gordon are much more than average. Daydream Nation was their finalization of alternative rock before they moved to a major label. This album is still played at my home when I am in mood for great guitar music from the post new wave era and Teenage Riot is the best example how great music was made at these times-
In the mid 90's everybody talked about Grunge as the biggest thing around for ages. Bands like Pearl Jam and Soundgarden were praised to give us back rock music. For me these bands made some good albums and songs but originally they brought us back a combination of hard rock in new style. Most of them are like old wine in new bottles. But there were bands that was put in the same category and don't really belong to it. There were bands that took the spirit of punk and garage rock to play a new heavy guitar style and that came much closer to the music I preferred decades ago. I really enjoyed the noise bands like Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. made and it is still a pleasure to listen to them again.
1988 was a year that was dominated by bands playing a guitar dominated sound. The Pixies released Surfer Rosa, fIREHOSE If'n, Sonic Youth Daydream Nation and Dinosaur Jr Bug. All records that was played at my home for many times at these days and I came back to them the recent days. A band that is seldom named with those bands is Thin White Rope, formed in California in the early 80's by Guy Kyser and Jozef Becker. Their music is stamped what many people called later Americana but I will name it classic blues influenced desert rock. Listening to this music again it is like driving on a highway through extinct countryside. This kind of music was seldom made by bands right now and therefore I have to get back to originals.
After yesterday's post I come direct to another album that impressed me very much. In 1994 former Minutemen and fIREHOSE bassist, songwriter and vocalist Ben Watt released his first solo album and it was an outstanding record for me. For this album he recruited a lot of followers that followed his musical career for a long time. It is a who is who by American independent music. Henry Rollins, Eddie Vedder and members of Meat Puppets, RHCP, Nirvana and Sonic Youth and others made this record so very unique because on this record were so many influences of every kind of American alternative music in like never before and never after. Still a classic that and seldom listened to it from the start to the end. A very fine torture if you will allow.
I featured Die Nerven (The Nerves) on this place a few years ago as one of the best local bands at my place. Now they released a new album Fake. They call them most rottenly tempered band in Germany because they put depressive lyrics in their music. But for me it is a band, grown up in the tradition of Hüsker Dü, Fugazi and Sonic Youth with their noisy and speedy sound but also a bit of a little bit of Krautrock. All genres mixed to their very unique sound that makes them only in today's German new sound (and not only that they come from my greater district).
... is another band from Brooklyn showing us the real values of guitar based power rock. Raised in the tradition of Television,The Feelies and Sonic Youth they deserve a great homage to these bands mixed with the best of power pop. Heavy dual guitars, insistend hooks and their energy makes them more than the average right now. I didn't listen to an any equal album celebrating great guitar based songs this year so far. Give them a chance and listen without prejudice.
During the last days I didn't found the time to work on my blog because my former wife and her husband visited me and I had to take times for them when I came home from work. Yesterday we went to our local pub to play some pool. For the fact that I didn't play so often I was still good in playing. Seems like you don't unlearn something you trained in your younger days. Today's track is from the latest record by Ulrika Spacek a new London based quintet. A song with fuzzy sound and its loud-quiet dynamics referees to Sonic Youth and Preoccupation makes it worth to listen to.
