Sonic Youth was an influential experimental rock band which formed in New Y… Read Full Bio ↴Sonic Youth was an influential experimental rock band which formed in New York City, New York, United States in 1981 and are currently on an indefinite hiatus. The last lineup consisted of Thurston Moore (vocals, guitar), Kim Gordon (vocals, bass, guitar), Lee Ranaldo (vocals and guitar), Steve Shelley (drums) and Mark Ibold (bass).
In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City. Part of the first wave of American noise rock groups, the band carried out their interpretation of the hardcore punk ethos throughout the evolving American underground that focused more on the DIY ethic of the genre rather than its specific sound. As a result, Sonic Youth was pivotal in the rise of the alternative rock movement.
Sonic Youth have expressed a wide variety of influences, ranging from the influential protopunk musician Patti Smith to composer John Cage. The band has been praised for having "redefined what rock guitar could do", using a wide variety of unorthodox guitar tunings, and preparing guitars with objects like drumsticks and screwdrivers to alter the instruments' timbre.
Formation and early history: 1977-1981
Sonic Youth's history began when guitarist Thurston Moore moved to New York City in early 1976. Interested in punk, Moore joined the Coachmen, a guitar-based quartet, after arriving in the city. Lee Ranaldo, an art student at Binghamton University, became a fan of the Coachmen, and he and Moore were soon friends. Ranaldo was a member of Glenn Branca's electric guitar ensemble, touring throughout the United States and Europe. After the breakup of the Coachmen, Moore began jamming with Stanton Miranda, whose band, CKM, featured local artist Kim Gordon.
Moore and Gordon formed a band, appearing under names like Male Bonding and Red Milk before agreeing upon the Arcadians in late 1980. The band played their first show at Noise Fest in June 1981 at New York's White Columns gallery. Branca's ensemble played at the festival. Their performance impressed Moore, who described them as "the most ferocious guitar band that I had ever seen in my life." After Branca's set, Moore asked Ranaldo if he wanted to join the Arcadians. Ranaldo accepted; the band played three songs at the festival later in the week without a drummer. Each band member took turns playing the drums, until they met drummer Richard Edson.
Moore soon renamed the band "Sonic Youth". The name came from combining the nickname of MC5's Fred "Sonic" Smith with the trend of reggae artists, such as Big Youth, featuring the word "Youth" in their names. Gordon later recalled that "as soon as Thurston came up with the name Sonic Youth, a certain sound that was more of what we wanted to do came about."
Early releases: 1982-1985
Branca signed Sonic Youth as the first act on his record label Neutral Records. In December 1981 the group recorded five songs in a studio in New York's Radio City Music Hall. The material was a released as the Sonic Youth mini-LP that, while largely ignored, was sent to a few key members of the US press that gave it uniformly favorable reviews. After their first record, Edson quit the group for a modestly successful acting career and was replaced by Bob Bert.
During their early days as part of the New York music scene, Sonic Youth formed a friendship with noisy New Yorkers Swans. The bands came to share the same rehearsal space, and Sonic Youth embarked on its first tour, a two-week journey through the southern United States starting in November 1982, supporting Swans. During a second tour with Swans of the Midwest the following month, tensions ran high and Moore constantly criticized Bert's drumming, which he felt wasn't "in the pocket". Bert was fired afterwards and replaced by Jim Sclavunos, who played drums on the band's 1983 album Confusion Is Sex. Sonic Youth set up a two-week tour of Europe for the summer of 1983. Sclavunos, however, quit after only a few months. The group asked Bert to rejoin, and he agreed, on the condition that he would not be fired again after the tour's conclusion.
Sonic Youth found themselves well-received in Europe, but the New York press largely ignored the local noise rock scene. Eventually, as the press began to take notice of the genre, Sonic Youth was grouped along with bands like Big Black, the Butthole Surfers and Pussy Galore under the "pigfuck" label by Village Voice music critic Robert Christgau. (Christgau saw these bands as sharing an abrasive, noisy and confrontational aesthetic.) Based on this classification, and on a negative live review by Christgau, a feud developed between Moore and the critic, with Moore renaming the song "Kill Yr Idols" to "I Killed Christgau With My Big Fucking Dick" before the two sorted out their differences amicably.
During another tour of Europe in 1984, Sonic Youth's disastrous London debut (where the band's equipment malfunctioned and Moore consequently destroyed the equipment onstage in frustration) actually resulted in rave reviews in Sounds and the NME. By the time they returned to New York, they were so popular they played shows practically every week. That same year Moore and Gordon were married and Sonic Youth released Bad Moon Rising, a self-described "Americana" album that served as a reaction to the state of the nation at the time. The album, recorded by Martin Bisi, was built around transitional pieces that Moore and Ranaldo had come up with in order to take up time onstage while the other guitarist was busy tuning his instrument; as a result there are almost no breaks between the songs on the record, which feature walls of feedback and pounding rhythms. Bad Moon Rising featured an appearance by Lydia Lunch on the album's single "Death Valley '69", inspired by the Charles Manson Family murders. In contrast to their abrasive, atonal material of the time, the band considered the song relatively conventional. Due to a falling-out with Branca over disputed royalty payments from their Neutral releases, they were signed to Homestead Records by Gerard Cosloy and by Blast First in the UK (which founder Paul Smith created simply so he could distribute the band's records in Europe). While even the New York press ignored Bad Moon Rising upon its release, now viewing the band as too arty and pretentious, Sonic Youth was becoming quite critically acclaimed in the United Kingdom, where the new album had sold 5,000 copies in just six months.
Claiming he was bored with playing Bad Moon Rising live in its entirety for over a year, Bert quit the group and was replaced by Steve Shelley, formerly of the hardcore group Crucifucks. The band was so impressed with Shelley's drumming after seeing him play live they hired him without an audition. Bert has remained on good terms with the group; he and Shelley both appeared in the music video for "Death Valley '69", as Bert performed the drums on the song, but Shelley was the group's drummer when the video was made.
SST and Enigma: 1986-1989
Sonic Youth had a long fascination with influential indie label SST Records. Ranaldo said, "It was the first record company we were on that we really would have given anything to be on." Sonic Youth eventually signed to the label in early 1986 and began recording Evol with Martin Bisi in March of that year.
Evol itself represented an evolution of sorts for the band: in addition to increasingly melodic material and the impact of new drummer Shelley's playing, the record also dealt with themes of celebrity, particularly with songs like "Expressway To Yr Skull" (called "a classic" by Neil Young) and "Marilyn Moore". Signing to SST catapulted the band on to a national stage, something that did not happen to their peers in the New York underground. The mainstream music press subsequently began to take notice of the band. Robert Palmer of the The New York Times declared that Sonic Youth was "making the most startlingly original guitar-based music since Jimi Hendrix" and even People praised Evol as the "aural equivalent of a toxic waste dump." Evol is also notable for a guest appearance by bass guitarist Mike Watt, a friend whom the band coaxed to come to New York after he was deeply depressed by the death of his bandmate, D. Boon.
On 1987's Sister, Sonic Youth continued refining their blend of pop song structures with uncompromising experimentalism. Another loose concept album, Sister is partly inspired by the life and works of science fiction writer Philip K. Dick (the "sister" of the title was Dick's fraternal twin, who died shortly after her birth, and whose memory haunted Dick his entire life). Sister sold 60,000 copies and received very positive reviews, becoming the first Sonic Youth album to crack the Top 20 of the Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics poll.
Despite the critical success, the band was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with SST due to concerns about payment and other administrative practices. Sonic Youth decided to release their next record on Enigma Records, which was distributed by Capitol Records and partly owned by EMI. The 1988 double LP Daydream Nation was a critical success that earned Sonic Youth substantial acclaim. The album came in second on the Village Voice Pazz & Jop poll and topped the year-end album lists of the NME, CMJ, and Melody Maker. In 2006, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. The lead single from the album, "Teen Age Riot", was the first song from the band to reach significant success, receiving heavy airplay in modern and college rock stations. A number of prominent music periodicals including Rolling Stone hailed Daydream Nation as one of the best albums of the decade and named Sonic Youth as the "Hot Band" in its "Hot" issue. Unfortunately, distribution problems arose and Daydream Nation was often difficult to find in stores. Moore considered Enigma a "cheap-jack Mafioso outfit" and the band began looking for a major label deal.
Major label career and alternative icons: 1990-1999
In 1990, Sonic Youth released Goo (their first album for Geffen), which featured the single "Kool Thing" on which Chuck D from rap group Public Enemy guested. "Kool Thing" became the song that many casual music fans associate with the band; it was later featured in the video game Guitar Hero III and was made available as a paid download for the Rock Band video game. The record is considered much more accessible than their previous work. Their 1991 tour with the then relatively unknown Nirvana was captured in the film 1991: The Year Punk Broke.
In 1992, the band released Dirty on the DGC label. Their influence as tastemakers continued with their discovery of acclaimed skateboard video director Spike Jonze, who they recruited for the video for "100%", which also featured skateboarder turned actor Jason Lee. This song, along with the Gordon tune "JC" contain lyrical references to the murder of Joe Cole, a friend who worked with the band as a roadie. The album features artwork by Los Angeles-based artist Mike Kelley. In addition, Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise opened on numerous occasions for Sonic Youth in the late 90s. "Dirty" features a guest appearance by Ian McKaye (Minor Threat and Fugazi) playing guitar on the track "Youth Against Fascism".
In 1994 the band released Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star, their best charting release in the United States, which peaked at #34 on the Billboard 200. The album was filled with low-key melodies and even produced a hit single, "Bull in the Heather". Moore and Gordon's daughter, Coco Hayley Gordon Moore was born earlier in the year, and many of the songs from the album were never played live because there was never a full tour to support the album due to Gordon's pregnancy.
The band headlined the 1995 Lollapalooza festival. By that time, alternative rock had gained considerable mainstream attention, and the festival was parodied on The Simpsons 1996 episode "Homerpalooza", which featured voiceovers from the band. They also performed the final credits theme for that episode.
Gordon collaborated in Free Kitten, and started a clothing label X-Girl, based in Los Angeles. Ranaldo and Moore have played with many experimental / noise musicians, including William Hooker, Nels Cline, Tom Surgal, Don Dietrich, Christian Marclay and Mission of Burma, among others. Shelley runs the Smells Like Records record label, as well as playing in backing bands for Chan Marshall (Cat Power) and Two Dollar Guitar.
From Sonic Youth's earliest days, Gordon had occasionally played guitar with the group. About the time of A Thousand Leaves and Washing Machine she began playing guitar more frequently, resulting in a three-guitar and drums lineup. These songs were something of a shift for the group's sound, and would lead to the introduction of a fifth member a few years later.
The Washing Machine album started a major shift in the band, away from their punk roots, that working with longer noise-jam sections and included two tracks that showed the new approach in full force - the title track "Washing Machine", which is just under 10 minutes long, and "The Diamond Sea", which is over 19 minutes long.
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the band began releasing a series of highly experimental records on their own Hoboken, New Jersey-based label SYR. The music was mostly instrumental, and the album and track titles and even the liner notes and credits were in different languages: SYR1 was in French, SYR2 in Dutch, SYR3 in Esperanto, SYR5 in Japanese, SYR6 in Lithuanian, SYR7 in Arpitan, and SYR8 in Danish. SYR3 was the first to feature Jim O'Rourke, who went on to become an official band member.
SYR4 was subtitled "Goodbye, 20th Century" and featured works by avant-garde classical composers such as John Cage, Yoko Ono, Steve Reich, and Christian Wolff played by Sonic Youth along with several collaborators from the modern avant-garde music scene, such as Christian Marclay, William Winant, Wharton Tiers, Takehisa Kosugi and others. The album received mixed reviews, but some critics praised the group's efforts at popularizing and reinterpreting the composers' works.
Later DGC period: 2000-2006
On July 4, 1999, Sonic Youth's instruments, amps, and gear were stolen in the middle of the night while on tour in Orange, California (see initial post on Usenet). Forced to start from scratch with new instruments, they recorded NYC Ghosts & Flowers and opened for Pearl Jam during the east coast leg of their 2000 tour.
In 2001 Sonic Youth collaborated with French avant-garde singer and poet Brigitte Fontaine in Fontaine's album "Kékéland".
When the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred, several members of the band were blocks away, Jim at their NYC studio (Echo Canyon on Murray Street), and Ranaldo and his wife Leah nearby at home. After the attacks, they curated the first U.S. outing of the All Tomorrow's Parties music festival in L.A. The festival was originally scheduled for October 2001, but it was delayed until March the following year due to the attacks.
In the summer of 2002, Murray Street was released; many critics heralded a "return to form for SY", seemingly revitalized by the addition of Jim O'Rourke, who became a full member during this period, playing bass guitar, guitar, and occasionally synthesizer. This was followed in 2004 by the release of Sonic Nurse, an album similar in sound and approach to its immediate predecessor that also received positive reviews. "Pattern Recognition", a song named after the 2003 William Gibson novel, finds the band once again using Gibson's work for inspiration. The band also showed their pop culture commentary and sense of humor with the track "Mariah Carey and the Arthur Doyle Hand Cream", a faster-tempo song sung by Gordon, which spoofed Carey's life, including her short-lived relationship with rapper Eminem, which originally appeared on a 2003 split 7" with Erase Errata (on the album cover, the reference to "Mariah Carey" in the title was replaced by "Kim Gordon" due to potential copyright issues. Sonic Nurse had decent sales, in part due to performances on TV talk shows including Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The band was also slated to perform in 2004's Lollapalooza tour along with acts such as The Pixies and The Flaming Lips, but the concert was canceled due to lackluster ticket sales. When the band toured later that year, they played extensively from their 1980s catalog.
On October 6, 2005, Los Angeles CityBeat reported that some of the gear stolen in 1999 was surprisingly recovered and that it might be used for recording of the next album, then tentatively titled Sonic Life. The report also said that Jim O'Rourke might be leaving the band soon; his departure was confirmed by Lee Ranaldo in an interview to Pitchfork Media. In May 2006, the group announced on their website that ex-Pavement member Mark Ibold would play bass for the band on their upcoming tour.
Rather Ripped was released in Europe on June 5, 2006 and in the USA on June 13, 2006. Compared to previous Sonic Youth recordings, the album features many short, conventionally structured, melodic songs and fewer feedback-fuelled left field improvisations (the band's avant-garde tendencies nowadays have been largely exorcised through SYR releases and solo outings rather than band albums). Later that summer, Sonic Youth played the 2006 Bonnaroo Festival, as well as Lollapalooza, promoting the album. In December, Rolling Stone made it their number three Album of the Year 2006.
The band released The Destroyed Room: B-Sides and Rarities in December 2006. It features tracks previously available only on vinyl, limited-release compilations, b-sides to international singles, and some material that had never before been released. This marked the band's final Geffen release.
Independent agents and signing to Matador: 2007–present
In 2008 the band independently re-released Master-Dik for the first time on CD in March exclusively at their online store. They also released two more editions to the SYR, SYR7: J'Accuse Ted Hughes, and SYR8: Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth. SYR7 was released on April 22, and SYR8 was released July 28. On June 10, they also released a compilation album on Starbucks Music, called Hits Are for Squares. The first 15 tracks were selected by other celebrities, and track 16, "Slow Revolution", is a new recording by Sonic Youth.
Also in June, the band was the subject of an intensively researched biography, Goodbye 20th Century: A Biography of Sonic Youth written by music journalist David Browne. The book was cited as "compelling" (Salon), "compulsively readable" (Publishers Weekly), and "an expressway to the soul of the influential band" (Vanity Fair). The book featured new interviews with the band as well as nearly 100 friends, family members, and peers. It was published by Da Capo and included over 60 rare photos.
On August 30 2008, the band premiered two new songs at the final McCarren Park Pool show. Thurston Moore stated that in November 2008 the band will start recording a new studio album. The band did not continue their contract with Geffen, being discontent at the way Geffen handled their last four or five albums. On September 8, 2008, it was confirmed by Matador's Matablog that Sonic Youth will release its sixteenth album (titled The Eternal) in spring, 2009, on Matador Records. In December 2008 it was also announced that the group had recently collaborated with John Paul Jones (of Led Zeppelin fame) on a piece that served as the soundtrack for a new Merce Cunningham Dance Company piece. This work was performed by the company on April 16-19, 2009, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in celebration of Cunningham's 90th birthday. On February 12, the band revealed the cover art for The Eternal via their website and blog. The album, produced by John Agnello, was released on June 9, 2009. With the release Matador Records also offered an exclusive live LP only available to those who preordered the album.
On October 14, 2011, Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore announced that they separated after 27 years of marriage through a statement by Matador. The announcement has raised doubts over the future of Sonic Youth after Matador revealed that plans for the band remained "uncertain," despite the fact the band had previously hinted they would record new material later in the year
In a interview on November 28, 2011, Lee Ranaldo said that Sonic Youth are "ending for a while". "I'm feeling optimistic about the future no matter what happens at this point," Ranaldo said. "It was a pretty good tour overall. I mean, there was a little bit of tiptoeing around and some different situations with the travelling – you know, they're not sharing a room any more or anything like that … It remains to be seen at this point what happens. I think they are certainly the last shows for a while and I guess I'd just leave it at that." Ranaldo also suggest there are no plans for Sonic Youth to record new material. "There's tons and tons of archival projects and things like that still going on," he said. "I'm just happy right now to let the future take its course."
Musical style and influences:
Alternative tunings
Sonic Youth's sound relies heavily on the use of alternative tunings. Scordatura on stringed instruments has been used for centuries and alternative guitar tunings had been used for decades in blues music, and to a limited degree in rock music (such as with Lou Reed's Ostrich guitar on The Velvet Underground & Nico), but Sonic Youth began using a variety of tunings more radical than nearly anything in rock music history. The tunings were painstakingly developed by Moore and Ranaldo during the band's rehearsals; Moore once reported that the odd tunings were an attempt to introduce new sounds: "When you're playing in standard tuning all the time ... things sound pretty standard." Rather than re-tune for every song, Sonic Youth generally use a particular guitar for one or two songs, and can take dozens of instruments on tour. This can be the source of much trouble for the band, as some songs rely on specific guitars that have been uniquely prepared.
Influences
Besides Branca, French avant-gardist Brigitte Fontaine, Patti Smith, Public Image Ltd (PiL) and The Stooges, another influence was 1980s-era hardcore punk; after seeing Minor Threat perform in May 1982, Moore declared them "the greatest live band I have ever seen". While recognizing that their own music was very different from hardcore, Moore and Gordon, especially, were impressed by hardcore's speed and intensity, and by the nationwide network of musicians and fans. "It was great," said Moore, "the whole thing with slam dancing and stage diving, that was far more exciting than pogoing and spitting.... I thought hardcore was very musical and very radical."
Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo have expressed on numerous occasions their admiration for the music of Joni Mitchell, such as this quote by Thurston Moore: "Joni Mitchell! I’ve used elements of her songwriting and guitar playing, and no one would ever know about it." Additionally, Joni Mitchell has always used a number of alternative tunings, as does Sonic Youth. The band named a song after her, "Hey Joni."
Members of the band have also maintained relationships with other avant-garde artists from other genres and even other media, drawing influence from the work of John Cage and Henry Cowell. For a 1988 Peel Session, Sonic Youth covered three songs by The Fall and "Victoria" by The Kinks, also covered by The Fall. Sonic Youth has featured album art by several well-known avant-garde visual artists, such as Mike Kelley and Gerhard Richter, whose paintings from his "Candles" series was used as artwork on Daydream Nation.
Members:
Thurston Moore - guitar, bass guitar, vocal;
Lee Ranaldo - guitar, vocal;
Kim Gordon - bass guitar, guitar, vocal;
Mark Ibold - bass guitar;
Steve Shelley - drums.
Former members:
Anne DeMarinis - keyboards;
Jim O'Rourke - guitar, bass guitar;
Bob Bert - drums;
Richard Edson - drums;
Jim Sclavunos - drums.
In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City. Part of the first wave of American noise rock groups, the band carried out their interpretation of the hardcore punk ethos throughout the evolving American underground that focused more on the DIY ethic of the genre rather than its specific sound. As a result, Sonic Youth was pivotal in the rise of the alternative rock movement.
Sonic Youth have expressed a wide variety of influences, ranging from the influential protopunk musician Patti Smith to composer John Cage. The band has been praised for having "redefined what rock guitar could do", using a wide variety of unorthodox guitar tunings, and preparing guitars with objects like drumsticks and screwdrivers to alter the instruments' timbre.
Formation and early history: 1977-1981
Sonic Youth's history began when guitarist Thurston Moore moved to New York City in early 1976. Interested in punk, Moore joined the Coachmen, a guitar-based quartet, after arriving in the city. Lee Ranaldo, an art student at Binghamton University, became a fan of the Coachmen, and he and Moore were soon friends. Ranaldo was a member of Glenn Branca's electric guitar ensemble, touring throughout the United States and Europe. After the breakup of the Coachmen, Moore began jamming with Stanton Miranda, whose band, CKM, featured local artist Kim Gordon.
Moore and Gordon formed a band, appearing under names like Male Bonding and Red Milk before agreeing upon the Arcadians in late 1980. The band played their first show at Noise Fest in June 1981 at New York's White Columns gallery. Branca's ensemble played at the festival. Their performance impressed Moore, who described them as "the most ferocious guitar band that I had ever seen in my life." After Branca's set, Moore asked Ranaldo if he wanted to join the Arcadians. Ranaldo accepted; the band played three songs at the festival later in the week without a drummer. Each band member took turns playing the drums, until they met drummer Richard Edson.
Moore soon renamed the band "Sonic Youth". The name came from combining the nickname of MC5's Fred "Sonic" Smith with the trend of reggae artists, such as Big Youth, featuring the word "Youth" in their names. Gordon later recalled that "as soon as Thurston came up with the name Sonic Youth, a certain sound that was more of what we wanted to do came about."
Early releases: 1982-1985
Branca signed Sonic Youth as the first act on his record label Neutral Records. In December 1981 the group recorded five songs in a studio in New York's Radio City Music Hall. The material was a released as the Sonic Youth mini-LP that, while largely ignored, was sent to a few key members of the US press that gave it uniformly favorable reviews. After their first record, Edson quit the group for a modestly successful acting career and was replaced by Bob Bert.
During their early days as part of the New York music scene, Sonic Youth formed a friendship with noisy New Yorkers Swans. The bands came to share the same rehearsal space, and Sonic Youth embarked on its first tour, a two-week journey through the southern United States starting in November 1982, supporting Swans. During a second tour with Swans of the Midwest the following month, tensions ran high and Moore constantly criticized Bert's drumming, which he felt wasn't "in the pocket". Bert was fired afterwards and replaced by Jim Sclavunos, who played drums on the band's 1983 album Confusion Is Sex. Sonic Youth set up a two-week tour of Europe for the summer of 1983. Sclavunos, however, quit after only a few months. The group asked Bert to rejoin, and he agreed, on the condition that he would not be fired again after the tour's conclusion.
Sonic Youth found themselves well-received in Europe, but the New York press largely ignored the local noise rock scene. Eventually, as the press began to take notice of the genre, Sonic Youth was grouped along with bands like Big Black, the Butthole Surfers and Pussy Galore under the "pigfuck" label by Village Voice music critic Robert Christgau. (Christgau saw these bands as sharing an abrasive, noisy and confrontational aesthetic.) Based on this classification, and on a negative live review by Christgau, a feud developed between Moore and the critic, with Moore renaming the song "Kill Yr Idols" to "I Killed Christgau With My Big Fucking Dick" before the two sorted out their differences amicably.
During another tour of Europe in 1984, Sonic Youth's disastrous London debut (where the band's equipment malfunctioned and Moore consequently destroyed the equipment onstage in frustration) actually resulted in rave reviews in Sounds and the NME. By the time they returned to New York, they were so popular they played shows practically every week. That same year Moore and Gordon were married and Sonic Youth released Bad Moon Rising, a self-described "Americana" album that served as a reaction to the state of the nation at the time. The album, recorded by Martin Bisi, was built around transitional pieces that Moore and Ranaldo had come up with in order to take up time onstage while the other guitarist was busy tuning his instrument; as a result there are almost no breaks between the songs on the record, which feature walls of feedback and pounding rhythms. Bad Moon Rising featured an appearance by Lydia Lunch on the album's single "Death Valley '69", inspired by the Charles Manson Family murders. In contrast to their abrasive, atonal material of the time, the band considered the song relatively conventional. Due to a falling-out with Branca over disputed royalty payments from their Neutral releases, they were signed to Homestead Records by Gerard Cosloy and by Blast First in the UK (which founder Paul Smith created simply so he could distribute the band's records in Europe). While even the New York press ignored Bad Moon Rising upon its release, now viewing the band as too arty and pretentious, Sonic Youth was becoming quite critically acclaimed in the United Kingdom, where the new album had sold 5,000 copies in just six months.
Claiming he was bored with playing Bad Moon Rising live in its entirety for over a year, Bert quit the group and was replaced by Steve Shelley, formerly of the hardcore group Crucifucks. The band was so impressed with Shelley's drumming after seeing him play live they hired him without an audition. Bert has remained on good terms with the group; he and Shelley both appeared in the music video for "Death Valley '69", as Bert performed the drums on the song, but Shelley was the group's drummer when the video was made.
SST and Enigma: 1986-1989
Sonic Youth had a long fascination with influential indie label SST Records. Ranaldo said, "It was the first record company we were on that we really would have given anything to be on." Sonic Youth eventually signed to the label in early 1986 and began recording Evol with Martin Bisi in March of that year.
Evol itself represented an evolution of sorts for the band: in addition to increasingly melodic material and the impact of new drummer Shelley's playing, the record also dealt with themes of celebrity, particularly with songs like "Expressway To Yr Skull" (called "a classic" by Neil Young) and "Marilyn Moore". Signing to SST catapulted the band on to a national stage, something that did not happen to their peers in the New York underground. The mainstream music press subsequently began to take notice of the band. Robert Palmer of the The New York Times declared that Sonic Youth was "making the most startlingly original guitar-based music since Jimi Hendrix" and even People praised Evol as the "aural equivalent of a toxic waste dump." Evol is also notable for a guest appearance by bass guitarist Mike Watt, a friend whom the band coaxed to come to New York after he was deeply depressed by the death of his bandmate, D. Boon.
On 1987's Sister, Sonic Youth continued refining their blend of pop song structures with uncompromising experimentalism. Another loose concept album, Sister is partly inspired by the life and works of science fiction writer Philip K. Dick (the "sister" of the title was Dick's fraternal twin, who died shortly after her birth, and whose memory haunted Dick his entire life). Sister sold 60,000 copies and received very positive reviews, becoming the first Sonic Youth album to crack the Top 20 of the Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics poll.
Despite the critical success, the band was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with SST due to concerns about payment and other administrative practices. Sonic Youth decided to release their next record on Enigma Records, which was distributed by Capitol Records and partly owned by EMI. The 1988 double LP Daydream Nation was a critical success that earned Sonic Youth substantial acclaim. The album came in second on the Village Voice Pazz & Jop poll and topped the year-end album lists of the NME, CMJ, and Melody Maker. In 2006, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. The lead single from the album, "Teen Age Riot", was the first song from the band to reach significant success, receiving heavy airplay in modern and college rock stations. A number of prominent music periodicals including Rolling Stone hailed Daydream Nation as one of the best albums of the decade and named Sonic Youth as the "Hot Band" in its "Hot" issue. Unfortunately, distribution problems arose and Daydream Nation was often difficult to find in stores. Moore considered Enigma a "cheap-jack Mafioso outfit" and the band began looking for a major label deal.
Major label career and alternative icons: 1990-1999
In 1990, Sonic Youth released Goo (their first album for Geffen), which featured the single "Kool Thing" on which Chuck D from rap group Public Enemy guested. "Kool Thing" became the song that many casual music fans associate with the band; it was later featured in the video game Guitar Hero III and was made available as a paid download for the Rock Band video game. The record is considered much more accessible than their previous work. Their 1991 tour with the then relatively unknown Nirvana was captured in the film 1991: The Year Punk Broke.
In 1992, the band released Dirty on the DGC label. Their influence as tastemakers continued with their discovery of acclaimed skateboard video director Spike Jonze, who they recruited for the video for "100%", which also featured skateboarder turned actor Jason Lee. This song, along with the Gordon tune "JC" contain lyrical references to the murder of Joe Cole, a friend who worked with the band as a roadie. The album features artwork by Los Angeles-based artist Mike Kelley. In addition, Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise opened on numerous occasions for Sonic Youth in the late 90s. "Dirty" features a guest appearance by Ian McKaye (Minor Threat and Fugazi) playing guitar on the track "Youth Against Fascism".
In 1994 the band released Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star, their best charting release in the United States, which peaked at #34 on the Billboard 200. The album was filled with low-key melodies and even produced a hit single, "Bull in the Heather". Moore and Gordon's daughter, Coco Hayley Gordon Moore was born earlier in the year, and many of the songs from the album were never played live because there was never a full tour to support the album due to Gordon's pregnancy.
The band headlined the 1995 Lollapalooza festival. By that time, alternative rock had gained considerable mainstream attention, and the festival was parodied on The Simpsons 1996 episode "Homerpalooza", which featured voiceovers from the band. They also performed the final credits theme for that episode.
Gordon collaborated in Free Kitten, and started a clothing label X-Girl, based in Los Angeles. Ranaldo and Moore have played with many experimental / noise musicians, including William Hooker, Nels Cline, Tom Surgal, Don Dietrich, Christian Marclay and Mission of Burma, among others. Shelley runs the Smells Like Records record label, as well as playing in backing bands for Chan Marshall (Cat Power) and Two Dollar Guitar.
From Sonic Youth's earliest days, Gordon had occasionally played guitar with the group. About the time of A Thousand Leaves and Washing Machine she began playing guitar more frequently, resulting in a three-guitar and drums lineup. These songs were something of a shift for the group's sound, and would lead to the introduction of a fifth member a few years later.
The Washing Machine album started a major shift in the band, away from their punk roots, that working with longer noise-jam sections and included two tracks that showed the new approach in full force - the title track "Washing Machine", which is just under 10 minutes long, and "The Diamond Sea", which is over 19 minutes long.
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the band began releasing a series of highly experimental records on their own Hoboken, New Jersey-based label SYR. The music was mostly instrumental, and the album and track titles and even the liner notes and credits were in different languages: SYR1 was in French, SYR2 in Dutch, SYR3 in Esperanto, SYR5 in Japanese, SYR6 in Lithuanian, SYR7 in Arpitan, and SYR8 in Danish. SYR3 was the first to feature Jim O'Rourke, who went on to become an official band member.
SYR4 was subtitled "Goodbye, 20th Century" and featured works by avant-garde classical composers such as John Cage, Yoko Ono, Steve Reich, and Christian Wolff played by Sonic Youth along with several collaborators from the modern avant-garde music scene, such as Christian Marclay, William Winant, Wharton Tiers, Takehisa Kosugi and others. The album received mixed reviews, but some critics praised the group's efforts at popularizing and reinterpreting the composers' works.
Later DGC period: 2000-2006
On July 4, 1999, Sonic Youth's instruments, amps, and gear were stolen in the middle of the night while on tour in Orange, California (see initial post on Usenet). Forced to start from scratch with new instruments, they recorded NYC Ghosts & Flowers and opened for Pearl Jam during the east coast leg of their 2000 tour.
In 2001 Sonic Youth collaborated with French avant-garde singer and poet Brigitte Fontaine in Fontaine's album "Kékéland".
When the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred, several members of the band were blocks away, Jim at their NYC studio (Echo Canyon on Murray Street), and Ranaldo and his wife Leah nearby at home. After the attacks, they curated the first U.S. outing of the All Tomorrow's Parties music festival in L.A. The festival was originally scheduled for October 2001, but it was delayed until March the following year due to the attacks.
In the summer of 2002, Murray Street was released; many critics heralded a "return to form for SY", seemingly revitalized by the addition of Jim O'Rourke, who became a full member during this period, playing bass guitar, guitar, and occasionally synthesizer. This was followed in 2004 by the release of Sonic Nurse, an album similar in sound and approach to its immediate predecessor that also received positive reviews. "Pattern Recognition", a song named after the 2003 William Gibson novel, finds the band once again using Gibson's work for inspiration. The band also showed their pop culture commentary and sense of humor with the track "Mariah Carey and the Arthur Doyle Hand Cream", a faster-tempo song sung by Gordon, which spoofed Carey's life, including her short-lived relationship with rapper Eminem, which originally appeared on a 2003 split 7" with Erase Errata (on the album cover, the reference to "Mariah Carey" in the title was replaced by "Kim Gordon" due to potential copyright issues. Sonic Nurse had decent sales, in part due to performances on TV talk shows including Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The band was also slated to perform in 2004's Lollapalooza tour along with acts such as The Pixies and The Flaming Lips, but the concert was canceled due to lackluster ticket sales. When the band toured later that year, they played extensively from their 1980s catalog.
On October 6, 2005, Los Angeles CityBeat reported that some of the gear stolen in 1999 was surprisingly recovered and that it might be used for recording of the next album, then tentatively titled Sonic Life. The report also said that Jim O'Rourke might be leaving the band soon; his departure was confirmed by Lee Ranaldo in an interview to Pitchfork Media. In May 2006, the group announced on their website that ex-Pavement member Mark Ibold would play bass for the band on their upcoming tour.
Rather Ripped was released in Europe on June 5, 2006 and in the USA on June 13, 2006. Compared to previous Sonic Youth recordings, the album features many short, conventionally structured, melodic songs and fewer feedback-fuelled left field improvisations (the band's avant-garde tendencies nowadays have been largely exorcised through SYR releases and solo outings rather than band albums). Later that summer, Sonic Youth played the 2006 Bonnaroo Festival, as well as Lollapalooza, promoting the album. In December, Rolling Stone made it their number three Album of the Year 2006.
The band released The Destroyed Room: B-Sides and Rarities in December 2006. It features tracks previously available only on vinyl, limited-release compilations, b-sides to international singles, and some material that had never before been released. This marked the band's final Geffen release.
Independent agents and signing to Matador: 2007–present
In 2008 the band independently re-released Master-Dik for the first time on CD in March exclusively at their online store. They also released two more editions to the SYR, SYR7: J'Accuse Ted Hughes, and SYR8: Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth. SYR7 was released on April 22, and SYR8 was released July 28. On June 10, they also released a compilation album on Starbucks Music, called Hits Are for Squares. The first 15 tracks were selected by other celebrities, and track 16, "Slow Revolution", is a new recording by Sonic Youth.
Also in June, the band was the subject of an intensively researched biography, Goodbye 20th Century: A Biography of Sonic Youth written by music journalist David Browne. The book was cited as "compelling" (Salon), "compulsively readable" (Publishers Weekly), and "an expressway to the soul of the influential band" (Vanity Fair). The book featured new interviews with the band as well as nearly 100 friends, family members, and peers. It was published by Da Capo and included over 60 rare photos.
On August 30 2008, the band premiered two new songs at the final McCarren Park Pool show. Thurston Moore stated that in November 2008 the band will start recording a new studio album. The band did not continue their contract with Geffen, being discontent at the way Geffen handled their last four or five albums. On September 8, 2008, it was confirmed by Matador's Matablog that Sonic Youth will release its sixteenth album (titled The Eternal) in spring, 2009, on Matador Records. In December 2008 it was also announced that the group had recently collaborated with John Paul Jones (of Led Zeppelin fame) on a piece that served as the soundtrack for a new Merce Cunningham Dance Company piece. This work was performed by the company on April 16-19, 2009, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in celebration of Cunningham's 90th birthday. On February 12, the band revealed the cover art for The Eternal via their website and blog. The album, produced by John Agnello, was released on June 9, 2009. With the release Matador Records also offered an exclusive live LP only available to those who preordered the album.
On October 14, 2011, Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore announced that they separated after 27 years of marriage through a statement by Matador. The announcement has raised doubts over the future of Sonic Youth after Matador revealed that plans for the band remained "uncertain," despite the fact the band had previously hinted they would record new material later in the year
In a interview on November 28, 2011, Lee Ranaldo said that Sonic Youth are "ending for a while". "I'm feeling optimistic about the future no matter what happens at this point," Ranaldo said. "It was a pretty good tour overall. I mean, there was a little bit of tiptoeing around and some different situations with the travelling – you know, they're not sharing a room any more or anything like that … It remains to be seen at this point what happens. I think they are certainly the last shows for a while and I guess I'd just leave it at that." Ranaldo also suggest there are no plans for Sonic Youth to record new material. "There's tons and tons of archival projects and things like that still going on," he said. "I'm just happy right now to let the future take its course."
Musical style and influences:
Alternative tunings
Sonic Youth's sound relies heavily on the use of alternative tunings. Scordatura on stringed instruments has been used for centuries and alternative guitar tunings had been used for decades in blues music, and to a limited degree in rock music (such as with Lou Reed's Ostrich guitar on The Velvet Underground & Nico), but Sonic Youth began using a variety of tunings more radical than nearly anything in rock music history. The tunings were painstakingly developed by Moore and Ranaldo during the band's rehearsals; Moore once reported that the odd tunings were an attempt to introduce new sounds: "When you're playing in standard tuning all the time ... things sound pretty standard." Rather than re-tune for every song, Sonic Youth generally use a particular guitar for one or two songs, and can take dozens of instruments on tour. This can be the source of much trouble for the band, as some songs rely on specific guitars that have been uniquely prepared.
Influences
Besides Branca, French avant-gardist Brigitte Fontaine, Patti Smith, Public Image Ltd (PiL) and The Stooges, another influence was 1980s-era hardcore punk; after seeing Minor Threat perform in May 1982, Moore declared them "the greatest live band I have ever seen". While recognizing that their own music was very different from hardcore, Moore and Gordon, especially, were impressed by hardcore's speed and intensity, and by the nationwide network of musicians and fans. "It was great," said Moore, "the whole thing with slam dancing and stage diving, that was far more exciting than pogoing and spitting.... I thought hardcore was very musical and very radical."
Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo have expressed on numerous occasions their admiration for the music of Joni Mitchell, such as this quote by Thurston Moore: "Joni Mitchell! I’ve used elements of her songwriting and guitar playing, and no one would ever know about it." Additionally, Joni Mitchell has always used a number of alternative tunings, as does Sonic Youth. The band named a song after her, "Hey Joni."
Members of the band have also maintained relationships with other avant-garde artists from other genres and even other media, drawing influence from the work of John Cage and Henry Cowell. For a 1988 Peel Session, Sonic Youth covered three songs by The Fall and "Victoria" by The Kinks, also covered by The Fall. Sonic Youth has featured album art by several well-known avant-garde visual artists, such as Mike Kelley and Gerhard Richter, whose paintings from his "Candles" series was used as artwork on Daydream Nation.
Members:
Thurston Moore - guitar, bass guitar, vocal;
Lee Ranaldo - guitar, vocal;
Kim Gordon - bass guitar, guitar, vocal;
Mark Ibold - bass guitar;
Steve Shelley - drums.
Former members:
Anne DeMarinis - keyboards;
Jim O'Rourke - guitar, bass guitar;
Bob Bert - drums;
Richard Edson - drums;
Jim Sclavunos - drums.
Interview
Sonic Youth Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Interview' by these artists:
A.P.G. Crew I'm your girl Ano Damo And we right her on the…
Adam Pascal & Josh Groban Tonight's final item is a Global scoop. The former champion,…
Aposento Alto No era como niño normales No tenia amigos ni vecinos locales…
Artifacts [El Da Sensei] My characteristics be mistic, you ask who is…
B-Mad About Eazy Tell me how y'all felt, when you heard first That…
Big Sean I guess I'm on my... on my Don shit Somebody gotta…
Body Count [knock knock] Yeah 1,2,1,2 let me get this tape recorder…
Bushido Bushido, stimmt das Dass du keine Journalisten magst? Nein, …
C-Luv Yeah I don't know I don't know Yeah I don't know What you th…
Carpenters Yo, Ty cooked this shit up Yo, Listen up to when…
Charles Manson check this man, you're born with a survival instinct, to…
Chase Murphy Yeah (Alright) Times change, seasons change Anywhere I go co…
D-Block All my life I been underrated man This shit ain't nothing…
D-Boy Ladies and gentleman I would like to welcome stony boy Yeah…
D-Shaw All my life I been underrated man This shit ain't nothing…
Das EFX We haven't lyrics of this song. Please, add these lyrics…
Dickie Goodman & Friends All your marsupial annotations That you carry around may rin…
Eminem and D-12 All my life I been underrated man This shit ain't nothing…
Eric Nam Hey girl, hello 오늘 기분 어때요 이렇게 만나게 돼서 난 좀 설레요 우선 먼저…
Flint Town's F.O.D. All my life I been underrated man This shit ain't nothing…
G-Rizm I'm your girl Ano Damo And we right her on the…
Gentle Giant Yes it's been hard, going a long time And we're together…
Gleb Blow a hole in ya trunk - afraid of us You…
I-Culcha About Eazy Tell me how y'all felt, when you heard first That…
I.C.P. Yeah I don't know I don't know Yeah I don't know What you th…
IAM Si c'est une interview que vous voulez, je vais vous…
Insane Clown Posse "Hello! How ya doing? I'm here with the Insane Clown…
Iron & Wine Keith Wilfort: How did you feel when you finally learned tha…
J. Paul Jr And The Zydeco Nubreeds Say, We ain't gotta go no cinema. Shawty outta motion pictur…
Jadakiss Anthony Donahue here with the legendary (Ahaa!) Not Steven A…
James Brown What′s special about this album? What's special about it, i…
Kang Daniel Hello hello 널 알고 싶어졌어 Show me somethin′ 하나부터 열까지 물어볼게 넌 하고 싶…
KANGDANIEL Hello (hello) 널 알고 싶어졌어 So show me somethin', oh 하나부터 열까지 물어…
Karl Bartos Instant coffee Commercial break Marmalade Roller blades …
Kevin Ayers I have been called a down Yes you may write that…
L.O.X. The Yeah I don't know I don't know Yeah I don't know What you th…
Lefa Sora YoungK ta prod parle mal, j'vais la kicker Je vais fai…
Les Blérots de R.A.V.E.L что твой внутренний голос говорит тебе каждый день? честно …
Lino Sous les éclats de rire de la foudre et le…
M. Ward что твой внутренний голос говорит тебе каждый день? честно …
Mew You tell me in so many hushed words In your chrysalis…
Michelle Rocqet Did you know that magic needs a habit And this habit…
Notorious B.I.G. About Eazy Tell me how y'all felt, when you heard first That…
One on One All your marsupial annotations That you carry around may rin…
Peter and the Wolf Tonight's final item is a Global scoop. The former champion,…
Quality Control They say that nigga that don't talk much is that…
R. Nicol Entrea Ay, tantas cosas que quiero Decirte yo quiero Hacer p…
R.C. Sproul and John Duncan Yeah I don't know I don't know Yeah I don't know What you th…
Robert Calvert Officer: So you want to be a fighter pilot. Recruit: A…
roxette www.djdan18.com.ar Entrea Ay, tantas cosas que quiero Decirte yo quiero Hacer p…
S. N. Goenka Dominion Frozen Image had connections with a group from our …
Saga Good afternoon! May I introduce myself? With a story to be…
Shaimus In our lives, how do we perceive? Do we know what's…
Sido Hallo, Ich bin's wieder Frank Furz vom Schulradio Schlaue We…
Simon Bookish I find myself in an imposing boardroom lined in oak for a…
Slim Thug What's good everybody? It's your girl Alana D. Chillin' with…
So Yeon 소연씨, 그분에 대해 이야기 좀 들을 수 있을까요? 처음 느낀 감정…
Styles P & Jadakiss Anthony Donahue here with the legendary (Ahaa!) Not Steven A…
Sway & King Tech The most important artist of this Generation over 21 Grammy'…
TakeOff & Offset They say that nigga that don't talk much is that…
The Holloways Every little bit hurts Every little bit hurts Every night …
The Iron Maidens Keith Wilfort: How did you feel when you finally learned tha…
The Notorious B.I.G. About Eazy Tell me how y'all felt, when you heard first That…
Travi$ Scott Straight from Mexico called a Quintana I got diamonds on my…
U-Roy Ayo shoutout Mayor Penguin Music Who has 24 beats available …
v/a - FUCKED UP Mix Tape vol. 1 Say, We ain't gotta go no cinema. Shawty outta motion pictur…
Weezer Hey Hey, yeah, um, I would like to know Yes Yes Come on g…
WURZEL 5 FEAT. PHANTWO Müpf Phantwo hamer überleit dr name z wechsle wäge dir u…
Young Jeezy Im inside a boudoir Getting head I′m so raw You know why…
Yukarie 目覚えのない私 きっと どこかにひそんでいる ある朝 TVをつけたら いきなりインタビュー 私映ってる (インタビュー)…
Z Ro & Slim Thug What's good everybody? It's your girl Alana D. Chillin' with…
Zooey Deschanel feat. M. Ward что твой внутренний голос говорит тебе каждый день? честно …
강다니엘 Hello (hello) 널 알고 싶어졌어 So show me somethin', oh 하나부터 열까지 물어…
에릭남 Hey girl, hello 오늘 기분 어때요 이렇게 만나게 돼서 난 좀 설레요 우선 먼저…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Sonic Youth:
"Mad" Groove And you can dance for inspiration Come on, I'm waiting Get …
"Sacred Trickster" I want you to levitate me Don't you love me yet? Press…
''Cross The Breeze Let's go walking on the water Come all the way please I…
(I Got a) Catholic Block [Thurston] I got a catholic block inside my head I let it go…
(She's in a) Bad Mood [Thurston] She's in a bad mood But I won't fall for it I…
+Kool Thing Kool Thing sittin' with a kitty Now you know you're sure…
- Diamond Sea Time takes its crazy toll And how does your mirror grow You…
- Disconnection Notice Did you get your disconnection notice? Mine came in the…
- Theresa's Sound-World Like girl come walkin' through the cornfield Like blue vibra…
01-Sacred Trickster I want you to levitate me Don't you love me yet? Press…
01. Winner's Blues [Thurston] ...ifor by the away, go out not today (?) move ba…
02 swimsuit issue I'm just here for dictation, I don't want to be…
02. Anti-Orgasm Mission control to brain police Free lucky energy Penetrat…
03-Leaky Lifeboat Leaky lifeboat, slips ashore They were sailing backwards to…
03. Eric's Trip (Hatred) (I hate the past) I can't see anything at all, all…
05 Pipeline/Kill Time Stretch me to the point where I stop Run ten thousand…
06 Dude Ranch Nurse Keep on running in the dark Dude ranch dream has fallen…
07.Sympathy for the Strawberry Let me introduce you Since you saw my shadow self…
08 hot wire my heart Insulation In my circulation I'm a mating rhythm Sick …
08. Orange Rolls Angel's Spit She got you, got you good didn't have a chance Pretty…
09.Quest For The Cup Your the thrill of a million Walking down the sidewalk Fee…
100 I can never forget you the way you rock the…
11. Death Valley '69 Groooooahhh! Coming down Sadie, I love it Now now now Death…
2 anti-orgasm Mission control to brain police Free lucky energy Penetrat…
2 Brother James Take my hand he said to me Follow now or you'll…
A-Master Dik One two, one two, one two titty I know every nook…
Against Facism Another can of worms Another stomach turns And yeah, your …
Androgynous Mind [Thurston] Hey sad angel walks, and he talks like a girl Out…
Animals Talkin' to a punker priest Just doggin' the breeze Bout be…
Antenna My darling cruises the streets for pleasure Skyscrapers in t…
Anti-Orgasm Mission control to brain police Free lucky energy Penetratio…
B) Hyperstation Falling out of sleep, I hit the floor Put on some…
Bad Mood She's in a bad mood But I won't fall for it I…
Beat on the Brat 1,2,3,4 Beat on the brat Beat on the brat Beat on the brat…
Beautiful Plateau Going back to these origins City is a natural scape Order …
Beauty Lies in the Eye There's something in the air there Makes you go insane Bring…
Becuz Wish I could change the way that you feel Standing with…
bee-bee's song In my head, head, I'm really tall My eyes are big,…
Blink I can see My body move It goes without me What I used…
Blonde Redhead [various kim noises] ????? Blonde redhead, say goodbye to y…
Blow Job MMIIILLLDDREEEEDDDD PIEEEEEEERRRCEEEEEEEEEEE...... [Mildred…
Bone Dry as a bone, take it to heart Don't look back,…
Bookstore I'm down in the daytime out of sight Comin' on in…
Brave Man Run Seven days and seven nights I dreamt a sailor's dream at…
Brave Men Run (in My Family) [Kim] Seven days and seven nights i dreamt a sailor's dream …
Brave Men Run (In My Family) (live in Chicago '85) Seven days and seven nights i dreamt a sailor's dream at…
Brother Jam-z "Take my hand" he said to me Follow now or you'll…
Brother James Take my hand he said to me Follow now or you'll…
Bubble Gum Here comes baby, are you ready for her? My name is…
Bubblegum Here comes baby, are you ready for her? Her name is…
Bull In The Heather Ten, twenty, thirty, forty Tell me that you want to hold…
Burning Farm Burning farm, burning farm Burning farm, burning farm... …
Burning Spear I'm not afraid to say I'm scared In my bed…
C.B. Claude Bessy: I'm the emcee, um... so I'm supposed to be…
Ça plane pour moi Wam! Bam! Mon chat, splatch Gît sur mon lit A bouffé sa lang…
Calming the Snake Come on down, down to the river Come on down I…
Candle I see a dog start divin' at his magic, snatchin' Keeps…
Catholic Block I got a Catholic block Inside my head I let it go…
Chapel Hill A-back in the days when the battles raged And we thought…
Cinderella's Big Score If I could give you anything I would give you a…
Come and Smash Me Said the Boy With the Magic Penis The open end is here The key is on the carpet You…
Compilation Blues 2 3 4 This is for Kato For his compilation It's really rare…
Computer Age 1989, the bridge: neil young tribute, caroline records (1374…
Confusion I maintain that Chaos is the future And beyond it is freedom…
Contre Le Sexism Describe the touch, no it's the thought It's warm and…
Conversation Lee: ...god, that really sounds incredible. well actually, t…
Cool Thing Kool Thing sittin' with a kitty Now you know you're sure…
Cork Mountain Incident [Instrumental]…
Corky If I could give you anything I would give you a…
Cotton Crown Love has come to stay in all the way It's gonna…
Coughing Up Tweed [instrumental]…
Crčme Brűlče Aaaah-oooo! Whooo! Ha! Ha! Riding down the road it nea…
Creme Brulee Aaaah-oooo! Whooo! Ha! Ha! Riding down the road it nearly s…
Cross The Breeze Let's go walking on the water Come all the way please I…
Death to Our Friends [Instrumental]…
Death Valley ''69" Groooooahhh! Coming down Sadie, I love it Now now now Death…
Death Valley '69 (feat. Lydia Lunch) (feat. Lydia Lunch) Coming down Sadie I love it Now now now…
Death Valley ’69 Groooooahhh! Coming down Sadie, I love it Now now now Death…
Diamond Sea Time takes its crazy toll And how does your mirror grow You…
Dirty Boots Here we go to another candle I know All the girls…
Dirty Boots II Here we go to another candle I know All the girls…
Disappearer Here it comes again, out of the rain Seems to have…
Disconnection Notice Did you get your disconnection notice? Mine came in the…
Do You Believe In Rapture Stand behind his drunken imp Stand behind his light of love…
Do You Believe in Rapture? Stand behind his drunken imp Stand behind his light of love …
Do You Believe In Rapture_ Stand behind his drunken imp Stand behind his light of love…
Doctor's Orders [Kim] take one, to come doctor's orders, no more borders tak…
Dripping Dream Single fold sick insert design in junk Grocery bag sleeve a…
Drunken Butterfly Smile like a sun, back over time Crazy for you, pleasure…
Du 2 Kool thing, you're sittin' with a kitty Now you know you…
Dude Ranch Nurse Keep on running in the dark Dude ranch dream has fallen…
Early American Nothing but a savage bird In your face In your land The w…
edges You go to my head....... Mention of you....... The ver…
Electricity 1988, Fast `N' Bulbous - A Tribute To Captain Beefheart,…
Eliminator Jr Kids cruise away, pack of chickenshits This guy is ours, dar…
End [sugar cane cd5] [kim] You're not telling what you feel You…
Eric (Hatred) (I hate the past) I can't see anything at all, all…
Expressway We're gonna kill The California girls We're gonna fire the e…
Eyeliner Eyeliner was so cheap It was free it was easy to…
Female Mechanic Now on Duty I want to shut you down Love your sight and…
Flower Support the power of women Use the power of man Support the…
Four Let's go Let's go Let's go Let's go…
Four6 Let's go Let's go Let's go Let's go…
Fourth Day of July And it came to pass on the first day of…
Four⁶ Let's go Let's go Let's go Let's go…
Free City In a free lane Ghosts passing time Heat rises Lights thru th…
free city alt In a free lane Ghosts passing time Heat rises Lights thro…
Free City Rhymes In a free lane Ghosts passing time Heat rises Lights through…
Freezer Burn / I Wanna Be Your Dog So messed up, I want you here In my room, I…
French Tickler Free time, free time I have got it gonna get…
Full Chrome Logic [Instrumental]…
G-Force [Kim] Shit don't be a fool girl he's takin' me…
Genetic Let me tell you every thought that I've come to When…
Ghost Bitch Slowly pour the liquid down For miles and miles it flows…
Giggles [Kim] close your eyes, make a wish cross yourself, see yours…
Green Light I kneel before the green light Of her singing crayon eyes An…
Green Love I kneel before the green lights Of her singing crayon eyes A…
Hallowe'en Support the power of women Use the power of man Support th…
Hallowed Be Thy Name 1986, 5/18, john peel session, bbc radio one [thurston] (Go…
Halloween Support the power of women Use the power of man Support th…
Having Never Written a Note for Percussion [ INSTRUMENTAL ]…
Heather Angel Never gonna ya do it A world below Heather angel…
helen lundeberg Helen Lundeberg... Illusory landscape, five decades of pain…
Hendrix Necro [100% cd5] [kim] You think 'cause I'm a girl You think you …
Herinneringen Blow up, blow up Blow up, blow up Searchin searchin search t…
Hey Joni Hey Joni, put it all behind you Hey Joni, now I've…
Hits Of Sunshine Today I Said goodbye To my conflicted goddess Her lush…
Hits of Sunshine (For Allen Ginsberg) today i said goodbye to my conflicted goddess her lush eyes …
Hoarfrost I put my feet deep in the tracks that you…
Hot Wire My Heart Insulation In my circulation I'm a mating rhythm Sick wit…
Hyperstation Falling out of sleep, I hit the floor Put on some…
I [kim] Look before you leap, okay? Do you read me? May all yo…
I Am Right You were always cunning like the game you played Cuz yr…
I Don't Wanna Walk Around With You 1 2 3 4! I don't wanna walk around with you I…
I Don't Want to Push It You gave your line You fell in love You feel…
I Don'\''t Wanna Walk Around With You 1 2 3 4! I don't wanna walk around with you I…
I Dreamed I Dream [kim] Look before you leap, okay? Do you read me? May all yo…
I Know There I know so many people who think they can do…
and many more tracks by Sonic Youth.
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