I've already overshared my Sonic Youth story. It was years ago and I was infatuated with Kim at first sight. I was at the age where I had no concept that young people would actually be married and made a capital arse of myself. Great show though, they let me play the geetar with hammer thingees. It was awesome (I was completely out of my gourd) they gave me swag to get out of their van I was ready to go to Arizona with them. I felt like the fifth Beatle.

- Call me

30 years. Still pretty impressive.

here's hoping they go out with something better than The Eternal.

davidphogan: I've seen them play live a few times. That's too bad.

Never have...I would love to though.

My favorite Sonic Youth tune.

They should do a full album cover of Tragic Kingdom.

Third_Uncle_Eno: I listened to clips of 'loveless' on amazon,

I'm not sure what was supposed to be so special about it.

is that their best album?


/also, what the heck is "navel gazing", or "shoe-gazing" ?
I've seen that in reviews of these kinds of artists/albums.



a thousand indie kids heads explode in outrage.

Daydream Nation is what you're looking for.

Loveless is by My Bloody valentine and you're doing yourself a disservice by streaming it off Amazon. It's best listened loud-as-hell through headphones.

Third_Uncle_Eno: I listened to clips of 'loveless' on amazon,

I'm not sure what was supposed to be so special about it.

is that their best album?


/also, what the heck is "navel gazing", or "shoe-gazing" ?
I've seen that in reviews of these kinds of artists/albums.


"Shoe-gazing" as in downcast or mopey. "Navel-gazing" as in overly self-obsessed. Now do the two terms make sense as applied to music?

puckrock2000: /SY is the most overrated "alternative" band since Velvet Underground

So you're saying they're not overrated at all then, right? Roundabout way of doing so, must say.

By the way, what happened in 2000 that had much, if anything, to do with punk rock? Was that the year of the first Sex Pistols reunion gigs?

WorLord: "The British music press-particularly NME and Melody Maker-named this style shoegazing because the musicians in these bands stood relatively still during live performances in a detached, introspective, non-confrontational state, hence the idea that they were gazing at their shoes." (new window)

Yep.

peewinkle: Sad, Sonic Youth has never put a bad album.

I wouldn't go that far. While I haven't heard every disc they put out in their discography, they have their fair share of awful material (Washing Machine, Thousand Leaves, NYC Ghosts and Flowers were all extremely hit-and-miss). Thankfully, they have plenty of solid albums to make up for it.


WorLord: Third_Uncle_Eno: I listened to clips of 'loveless' on amazon,

I'm not sure what was supposed to be so special about it.

I asked the same question, and was told it was a cross between doing the right drugs and "having to be there". That's fair, but so's saying it isn't at all special without both of those things being true.



IMO, Loveless is the ultimate "play it repeatedly until you 'get' it" album. I was fascinated by it when I first heard it around 1999 or so, but did really understand the album. I think the track "Glider" is where it all of a sudden made sense. It also makes more sense when you read more about it or also understand its influences (Psychocandy, You're Living All over Me, Sister, etc.)

I'm sure drugs help too.


as an aside, Kevin Shields has also apparently set up his own record label.

puckrock2000: The way critics fall all over themselves to praise this droning, flaccid, pretentious drivel (#13 on RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, higher than Abbey Road, Born to Run, Nevermind, and Who's Next)


I fail to see a problem with this. I agree with VU&Nico outplacing the rest of the albums listed, but who has Nirvana influenced post-1996? VU&Nico (and the 2 albums after that) break ground for dozens of different genres.

shoegaze99: FeedTheCollapse: Thousand Leaves

Madness! You and I are on the same page with a lot of music, but I'm ready to have a knife fight to the death over this one. I think A Thousand Leaves ranks with their best. It's a soft, mature, yet still very broad-reaching record. Give it a few more listens.



It has some great tracks, but I think the Kim Gordon tracks are pretty weak.

WorLord: FeedTheCollapse: I'm sure drugs help too.

I think drugs are pretty much mandatory to "get" that record. Which, you know, hey, there's a place for that, but its also a negative in my book.

I wasn't being serious. Loveless is great sober as well, I just think it works best on repeated listens as it's a grower album.


as an aside, am I the only one who considers My Bloody Valentine to be separate from the shoegaze movement? I understand their influence on the genre, but where Lush, Catherine Wheel, Ride, Chapterhouse, etc. all had their common music threads, MBV seemed to be something else entirely. If anything, it seems like they had more in common with the early years of post-rock. (i.e. Main, Seefeel, Disco Inferno, Flying Saucer Attack, etc.), albeit pre-dating it by a couple years.