Rather Ripped

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Rather Ripped
Studio album by Sonic Youth
Released	June 13, 2006
Recorded	December 2005 – February 2006, Sear Sound, NYC
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	51:53 (international edition) 56:24 (iTunes edition) 57:37 (European edition) 56:32 (UK edition) 65:23 (Japanese edition)
Label	Geffen Records Interscope
Professional reviews
Allmusic link Blender link Entertainment Weekly (B+) 6/9/06 The Guardian 6/2/06 Mark Prindle link Metacritic (82/100) link Pitchfork (7.5/10) 6/12/06 PopMatters (7/10) link Prefix (9.0/10) 6/9/06 Robert Christgau (favorable) 6/13/06 Rolling Stone 6/12/06 Slant link Tiny Mix Tapes link
Sonic Youth chronology
SYR6: Koncertas Stan Brakhage Prisiminimui (2005) Rather Ripped (2006) The Destroyed Room: B-sides and Rarities (2006)
Singles from Rather Ripped
"Rather Ripped Album Sampler" Released: 2006 "Helen Lundeberg/Eyeliner" Released: 2006 "Incinerate" Released: 2006

Rather Ripped is the title of an album by Sonic Youth, which was released on June 13, 2006. It is the last album the band had to release to fulfill their contractual obligation to Geffen Records. Jim O'Rourke did not take part in the making of the record. It was reported that some of the gear stolen in 1999 was surprisingly recovered and that it may have been used for recording of the album.[1] The album was described by Thurston Moore as "a super song record" containing "rockers and ballads". The album's working titles were "Sonic Life" and "Do You Believe in Rapture?" The name "Rather Ripped" comes from a now defunct record store in Berkeley, CA. Rather Ripped contained three singles, "Rather Ripped Album Sampler", "Helen Lundeberg/Eyeliner", and "Incinerate".

"Incinerate", a track from this album, has received significant radio airplay.

On the UK release of the album, two bonus tracks were included ("Helen Lundeberg" and "Eyeliner"), which were taken from an untitled single that was released shortly before the record. "Helen Lundeberg" is also available in the USA as a bonus track on the iTunes Music Store digital download edition of the album.

On the Japanese release of the album, three bonus tracks were included. In addition to the two UK bonus tracks ("Helen Lundeberg" and "Eyeliner"), the track "Do You Believe in Rapture?" (psychedelic mix) was also included.

"Rather Ripped" charted at number 64 on the UK Album Chart and at number 71 on the US Billboard Top 200. The album came 43rd in Pitchfork's Top 50 Albums of 2006 [2] and ranked third in Rolling Stone's Top 50 Albums of 2006 [3].

"Rather Ripped" was Sonic Youth's last studio album on Geffen. They dropped the label in 2008,^{[citation needed]} and are now currently recording on Matador Records.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by Sonic Youth.

1. "Reena" (vocals Gordon) – 3:47
2. "Incinerate" (vocals Moore) – 4:55
3. "Do You Believe in Rapture?" (vocals Moore) – 3:11
4. "Sleepin Around" (vocals Moore) – 3:42
5. "What a Waste" (vocals Moore, Gordon) – 3:33
6. "Jams Run Free" (vocals Gordon) – 3:52
7. "Rats" (vocals Ranaldo) – 4:24
8. "Turquoise Boy" (vocals Gordon) – 6:14
9. "Lights Out" (vocals Moore, backing vocals Gordon) – 3:32
10. "The Neutral" (vocals Gordon) – 4:09
11. "Pink Steam" (vocals Moore) – 6:57
12. "Or" (vocals Moore) – 3:31

[edit] Bonus tracks

13. "Helen Lundeberg" (Moore) – 4:39 (iTunes and European bonus track)
14. "Eyeliner" (Moore) – 5:44 (UK bonus track)
15. "Do You Believe in Rapture? (Psychedelic Mix)" – 3:14 (Japan bonus track)

[edit] Album charts

[edit] Personnel

• Sonic Youth, John Agnello – production
• T.J. Doherty – recording
• Chris Allen, Lee Ranaldo – additional recording
• John Agnello – additional recording
• Don Fleming – additional vocal production
• John Agnello – mixing
• Greg Calbi – mastering
• Christopher Wool – art
• Amanda de Cadenet – band photography
• JP Robinson – front cover design
• Thurston Moore, Brandy Flower – design

[edit] External links

• Pitchfork Media report
• Pitchfork Media reports release date
• Los Angeles City Beat report
• CMJ interview, February 2006
• NYTimes Review
• Static And Feedback review