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Sonic Youth

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Sonic Youth
Years active1981–present
MembersThurston Moore
Lee Ranaldo
Kim Gordon
Steve Shelley

Sonic Youth is a rock group formed in New York City in 1981. Current personnel are:

In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City, but have outlasted most associated bands. They have found moderate mainstream success, and are generally seen as one of the leading alternative rock groups of their time.

Initially inspired by the noise experimentation of Glenn Branca (with whom most of the band have performed); as well as the heavy garage rock-acid-rock of The Stooges, they were known for using a variety of unorthodox guitar tunings, and for applying screwdrivers or other preparations to guitars to alter the instruments' timbre.

Members of the band have released books of poetry and prose (a beatnik influence is evident in both their writing and lyrics), produced films, staged shows of visual art and more. There is also an abundance of musical material recorded and/or performed with other artists and side-projects. Sonic Youth can in many ways be said to be an artistic collective just as much as a traditional rock/pop band.

History

1980s

Moore and Ranaldo had earlier performed (together and separately) in various short-lived punk rock groups. Ranaldo was a member of Glenn Branca's ensemble; Moore and then Gordon would also perform with Branca. Gordon had a fine-arts background, and in the early 1980s there was considerable crossover between the art and music worlds in New York City. After a one-off performance with members of Glenn Branca's and Rhys Chatham's ensembles, Gordon began performing with various musical groups. She and Moore were dating before Sonic Youth officially formed; they would later marry and have a daughter, Coco Hayley Gordon Moore.

One of Sonic Youth's earliest performances was in June 1981 as part of a 10-day festival organized by Moore. Held at the White Columns gallery in SoHo, the "Noise Fest" festival also included performances by Branca's and Chatham's ensembles. The Sonic Youth line-up at this event was Moore, Gordon, drummer Richard Edson and keyboardist Ann DeMarinis. DeMarinis did not stick around for another gig, but Ranaldo joined the ensemble almost immediately thereafter. Moore came up with the name shortly before this concert, combining the names of Fred 'Sonic' Smith of the bands MC5 and Sonic’s Rendezvous Band with that of reggae artist Big Youth. (Gordon, who primarily played bass guitar, and has cited the propulsive, economic basslines of reggae as an indirect influence on her playing.)

Their first album— indebted to Branca—plays very austere and reserved, consciously arty and layered. Alternate guitar tunings had previously been used for decades in blues music, and to a limited degree in rock music, but Sonic Youth began using a variety of tunings more radical than nearly anything in rock music history. Azerrad writes that early in their career, Sonic Youth "could only afford cheap guitars, and cheap guitars sounded like cheap guitars. But with weird tunings or something jammed under a particular fret, those humble instruments could sound rather amazing—bang a drumstick on a cheap Japanese Stratocaster copy in the right tuning, crank the amplifier to within an inch of its life, and it will sound like church bells" (Azerrad, 243). 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" (Azerrad, 243). Rather than retune for every song, Sonic Youth generally use a particular guitar for one or two songs, and can take dozens of instruments on tour.

After their first album Edson quit the group for a modestly successful acting career; he was replaced by Bob Bert. Sonic Youth's next two important projects, Confusion Is Sex and Kill Yr Idols, are hyper-aggressive aggregates of swirling noise. Some vocal fans contend that the group has yet to improve on Confusion is Sex while other fans see it as a promising (if somewhat amateurish) recording. Regardless of opinions, the group would not make records like Sonic Youth or Confusion ever again.

Sonic Youth formed a friendship with noisy New Yorkers Swans; SY's first two tours were brief Midwest jaunts supporting Swans. These and other early tours established strong word-of-mouth for Sonic Youth: even when they played poorly, their sound was so unique that many fans and critics were startled and impressed.

This early edition of the group found themselves described as "Pigfuck" music, a term coined by Village Voice writer Robert Christgau; other Pigfuck groups were Big Black, the Butthole Surfers and Pussy Galore (In some ways these groups are very different from each other, but they're all to degrees abrasive, noisy and confrontational). A feud developed between Moore and Christgau, and Moore renamed "Kill Yr Idols" as "I Killed Christgau With My Big Fucking Dick" (Azerrad, 246) before the men sorted out their differences amicably.

Besides Branca, Patti Smith, and the Stooges, another early influence was the hardcore punk of the early 1980s; after a seeing a Minor Threat performance in May 1982, Moore declared them "The greatest live band I have ever seen" (Azerrad, 273). While recognizing that their own musical aspirations were 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" (Julia and Gonzalo 51).

Bert was fired following a European tour, replaced by Jim Sclavunos, who 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.

Sonic Youth gradually incorporated more conventional elements of pop music into their work, while still maintaining an experimental quality. Bad Moon Rising (1984), was a loose concept album. Most of the material told stories of violence and insanity, and sounded accordingly claustrophobic: There are almost no breaks between the songs on the record, which feature walls of feedback and pounding rhythms. Still, songs such as "I Love Her All the Time" and "Brave Men Run" boasted a relatively more mainstream structure and harmonies. Bad Moon also features an appearance by Lydia Lunch on the harrowing "Death Valley '69," inspired by the murders committed by Charles Manson's "family".

Dissatisfied with their lack of financial success, Bert quit the group and was replaced by Steve Shelley (formerly of hardcore group Crucifucks). Shelley's membership marked a sharp shift in the group's sound: he was a link to the group's interest in hardcore, and he was by far the most technically proficient drummer the group had performed with.

EVOL (1986)—their first record released on SST Records—was the first album to feature a song written and sung by Ranaldo. On the record the listener can hear the band beginning to craft songs that could be almost considered pop (such as "Star Power" and "Expressway to Yr. Skull") from the raw stuff of psychedelic feedback and distortion.

File:Daydream nation.jpg
Daydream Nation (1988)

On Sister (1987), Sonic Youth continued refining their blend of pop-music 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). It received very positive reviews, and remains one of the best-loved records among Sonic Youth's fans. The group regularly played songs such as "Schizophrenia" and "Kotton Krown" long after the album's release.

But it was the double LP Daydream Nation (1988), which exceeded all expectation and earned SY unanimous crossover critical acclaim and a new record deal with a major label, Geffen Records. On Daydream Nation they had perfected their style, becoming virtuosic sculptors of guitar noise which could unfold with nearly symphonic grandeur. The album became an instant indie classic; it included some of the band's best-known songs, such as "Teenage Riot" and "Candle," and "The Sprawl," inspired by the works of writer William Gibson. A number of prominent music periodicals, including Rolling Stone and Spin Magazine, hailed Daydream Nation as one of the best albums of the decade.

1990s

Managing to stay financially viable in the cut-throat music industry while maintaining some sense of self and dignity, Sonic Youth have proved highly influential on underground rock music. They played a particularly pivotal role in the proliferation of grunge: their 1991 tour with the then-unknown Nirvana was captured in the film 1991: The Year Punk Broke.

1990 saw the release of Goo (their first for DGC), which featured the single "Kool Thing" on which Chuck D from rap group Public Enemy guested. "Kool Thing" became the song that most casual music fans associate with the band. The record, while perhaps not on the same level as the previous three, is still very solid and is much more accessible than their previous work.

In 1992, the band released Dirty (DGC). Their influence as tastemakers continued with their discovery of avant skateboard video director Spike Jonze who they recruited for the video for "100%" (the song was dedicated to the recently murdered Joe Cole), and with the revival of Macaulay Culkin via a 1998 video for "Sunday" directed by the very young Harmony Korine. The album features artwork by Los Angeles-based artist Mike Kelley.

Two years later, the band put out Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star. Possibly their most adventurous album, it was filled with low key melodies and even had a semi-hit single, "Bull in the Heather", which gained even more attention when it was played at the Free Tibet Concert in 1996].

In the meantime, members of the band diversified their talents. Kim Gordon collaborated in Free Kitten, and started an MTV-adored clothing label X-Girl, based in Los Angeles. Lee Ranaldo and Thurston Moore have played with many experimental/noise musicians, including William Hooker, Nels Cline, Tom Surgal, Alan Licht, Don Dietrich, Christian Marclay, and Mission of Burma, among others. Steve Shelley runs the Smells Like Records record labels, 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.

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 and SYR5 in Japanese. SYR3 was the first to feature Jim O'Rourke, who went on to become an official band member.

SYR4 was different—it 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 most critics praised the group's efforts at popularizing the composers' works.

2000s

Gordon and Moore, Stockholm 2005

On July 4, 1999, Sonic Youth's instruments were stolen in the middle of the night while on tour in California. 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.

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 Lee and his wife Leah, nearby at home. After the attacks, they curated the first US 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. Many critics declared the album to be their finest work in over a decade.

Sonic Youth's most recent album is 2004's Sonic Nurse, which garnered high critical acclaim. "Pattern Recognition," a song named after the 2003 William Gibson novel, finds SY once again using Gibson's work for inspiration. As the opening track on the record, SY clearly signals a return to the postmodern well. 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 Kim Gordon which spoofed Carey's life, including her short-lived relationship with rapper Eminem. (On the album cover, the reference to "Mariah Carey" in the title was replaced by "Kim Gordon" due to copyright issues, which presented the issue in an even more postmodern and ironic light). Sonic Nurse had decent sales 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 Pixies and Flaming Lips, but the concert was cancelled due to lackluster ticket sales. When the band toured later that year, they played extensively from their 1980s catalog.

On 2005-10-06 Los Angeles CityBeat reported [1] that some of the gear stolen in 1999 was surprisingly recovered and that it might be used for recording of the next album, tentatively titled Sonic Life. The report also said that Jim O'Rourke might be leaving the band soon; it was confirmed by Lee Ranaldo in an interview to Pitchfork Media [2]. When Jim O'Rourke did play for the group he would sometimes play bass guitar, guitar, and occasionally synthesizer.

Samples

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Bibliography

In 1994, journalist Alec Foege published a full-length biography of the band called Confusion is Next: The Sonic Youth Story. Sonic Youth's early career (through Daydream Nation) is also chronicled in Our Band Could Be Your Life, a study of several important American underground rock groups by Michael Azerrad.

Discography

Official full-length releases

Albums

  1. Sonic Youth1 (Neutral, 1982)
  2. Confusion Is Sex1 3 (Neutral, 1983)
  3. Sonic Death2 cassette (Ecstatic Peace, 1984)
  4. Bad Moon Rising3 (Homestead, 1985)
  5. EVOL3 (SST, 1986)
  6. Sister3 (SST, 1987)
  7. The Whitey Album3 (Enigma/Blast First, 1988, as Ciccone Youth,
    with Mike Watt, J Mascis and Suzanne Sasic)
  8. Daydream Nation3 (Enigma/Blast First, 1988)
  9. Goo (DGC, 1990; Deluxe Edition, 2005)
  10. Dirty (DGC, 1992; Deluxe Edition 2003)
  11. Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star (DGC, 1994)
  12. Screaming Fields of Sonic Love3 (DGC, 1995)
  13. Washing Machine (DGC, 1995)
  14. Made in USA4 (Rhino, 1995)
  15. A Thousand Leaves (DGC, 1998)
  16. SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century (SYR, 1999)
  17. SYR5 (SYR, 2000)
  18. NYC Ghosts & Flowers (DGC, 2000)
  19. Murray Street (DGC, 2002)
  20. Sonic Nurse (DGC, 2004)
  21. Sonic Life (DGC, 2006) (in production)

1 Reissued in 1987 by SST
2 Reissued in 1988 by SST as Sonic Death—Early Sonic 1981–1983
3 DGC pre-major label best of, to co-incide with back catalogue reissue/summer 1995 tour with R.E.M. and headlining Lollapalooza
4 Movie Soundtrack

EPs

† Repackaged for CD by DGC with Confusion Is Sex in 1995

Other Appearances

Singles

  • 1985 - "Flower/Halloween"
  • 1986 - "Flower/Satan is Boring"
  • 1986 - "Halloween II"
  • 1986 - "Into the Groove(y)" (as Ciccone Youth)
  • 1986 - "Starpower"
  • 1989 - "Candle"
  • 1990 - "Disappearer"
  • 1992 - "100%"
  • 1992 - "Youth Against Fascism"
  • 1993 - "Sugar Kane"
  • 1993 - "Whores Moaning - Oz '93 Tour Edition"
  • 1996 - "Little Trouble Girl"
  • 1998 - "Sunday"
Year Title Chart positions Album
US Hot 100 US Modern Rock US Mainstream Rock UK
1988 "Teen Age Riot" - #20 - - Daydream Nation
1990 "Kool Thing" - #7 - - Goo

Sample

References

Wikiquote has quotations related to Sonic Youth.

Listening

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