Sonic Youth: Godfathers Of Alternative Rock?

[Mirror Image]

S O N I C Y O U T H



Sonic Youth were one of the most unlikely success stories of underground American rock in the '80s. Where contemporaries R.E.M. and Hüsker Dü were fairly conventional in terms of song structure and melody, Sonic Youth began their career by abandoning any pretense of traditional rock & roll conventions. Borrowing heavily from the free-form noise experimentalism of the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, and melding it with a performance art aesthetic borrowed from the New York post-punk avant-garde, Sonic Youth redefined what noise meant within rock & roll. Sonic Youth rarely rocked, though they were inspired directly by hardcore punk, post-punk, and no wave. Instead, their dissonance, feedback, and alternate tunings created a new sonic landscape, one that redefined what rock guitar could do.

The band's trio of independent late-'80s records -- EVOL, Sister, Daydream Nation -- became touchstones for a generation of indie rockers who either replicated the noise or reinterpreted it in a more palatable setting. As their career progressed, Sonic Youth grew more palatable as well, as their more free-form songs began to feel like compositions and their shorter works began to rock harder. During the '90s, most American indie bands, and many British underground bands, displayed a heavy debt to Sonic Youth, and the group itself had become a popular cult band, with each of its albums charting in the Top 100.

Such success was unthinkable when guitarists Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo formed Sonic Youth with bassist Kim Gordon in 1981. Moore had spent his childhood in Bethel, Connecticut; Ranaldo was from Long Island. Both guitarists arrived in Manhattan during the height of the New York-based post-punk no wave movement, and began performing with the avant-garde composer Glenn Branca, whose dissonant, guitar-based music provided the basis for much of Sonic Youth's early music. Moore's girlfriend Gordon had been active in the avant and no wave scenes for some time, and the pair helped stage the Noise Festival, in which the band made its live debut during the summer of 1981. At the time, Sonic Youth also featured keyboardist Anne DeMarinis and drummer Richard Edson. DeMarinis left the band shortly afterward, and the quartet recorded its eponymous debut EP, which was released on Branca's Neutral Records the following year. During 1983, Edson left the band to pursue an acting career and he was replaced by Bob Bert, who drummed on the group's debut album, Confusion Is Sex (1983). The band supported the album with its first European tour. Later that year, the group released the EP Kill Yr Idols on the German Zensor label.

Early in 1984, Moore attempted to land the band a contract with the British indie label Doublevision, but the label rejected the demos. Paul Smith, one of the owners of Doublevision, decided to form Blast First Records in order to release Sonic Youth records. Soon, he received a distribution deal from the hip U.K. indie label Rough Trade, and the band had its first label with strong distribution. During all these record label negotiations in 1984, the cassette-only live album Sonic Death: Sonic Youth Live was released on Ecstatic Peace. Bad Moon Rising, the group's first album for Blast First, was released in 1985 to strong reviews throughout the underground music press. The album was markedly different from their earlier releases -- it was the first record they made that incorporated their dissonant, feedback-drenched experimentations within relatively straightforward pop song structures. Following the release of the Death Valley '69 EP, Bert was replaced by Steve Shelley, who became the group's permanent drummer.

Bad Moon Rising had attracted significant attention throughout the American underground, including some offers from major labels. Instead, Sonic Youth decided to sign with SST, home of Hüsker Dü and Black Flag, releasing EVOL in 1986. With EVOL, the group a became fixture on college radio, and its status grew significantly with 1987's Sister, which was heavily praised by mainstream publications like Rolling Stone. The group's profile increased further with the 1988 Ciccone Youth side project The Whitey Album, which was a tongue-in-cheek tribute to Madonna and other parts of mainstream pop culture.

The band's true breakthrough came later in 1988 with the double album Daydream Nation. Released on Enigma Records, it was a tour de force that was hailed as a masterpiece upon its fall release, and it generated a college radio hit with "Teenage Riot." Though the album was widely praised, Enigma suffered from poor distribution and eventually bankruptcy, which meant the album occasionally wasn't available in stores. These factors contributed heavily to the band's decision to move to the major label DGC in 1990.

Signing a contract that gave them complete creative control, as well as letting them function as pseudo-A&R reps for the label, Sonic Youth established a precedent for alternative bands moving to majors during the '90s, proving that it was possible to preserve indie credibility on a major label. Released in the fall of 1990, Goo, the band's first major-label album, boasted a more focused sound, yet it didn't abandon the group's noise aesthetics. The result was a college radio hit, and the group's first album to crack the Top 100. Neil Young invited Sonic Youth to open for him on his arena tour for Ragged Glory, and though they failed to win over much of the rocker's audience, it represented their first major incursion into the mainstream; it also helped make Young a cult figure within the alternative circles during the '90s.

For their second major-label album, Dirty, Sonic Youth attempted to replicate the sloppy, straightforward sound of grunge rockers Mudhoney and Nirvana. The band had been supporting those two Seattle-based groups for several years (and had released a split single with Mudhoney and brought Nirvana to DGC Records), and while the songs on Dirty were hardly grunge, it was more pop-oriented and accessible than earlier Sonic Youth records. Produced by Butch Vig, who also produced Nirvana's Nevermind, Dirty became an alternative hit upon its summer 1992 release, generating the modern rock hits "100%," "Youth Against Fascism," and "Sugar Kane." Sonic Youth quickly became hailed as one of the godfathers of the alternative rock that had become the most popular form of rock music in the U.S., and Dirty became a hit along with the exposure, eventually going gold.

Sonic Youth again worked with Vig for 1994's Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star, which entered the U.S. charts at number 34 and the U.K. charts at number ten, making it their highest-charting album ever. The high chart position was proof of their popularity during the previous two years, as it received decidedly mixed reviews and quickly fell down the charts. Later in 1994, Moore and Gordon -- who had married several years before -- had their first child, a daughter named Coco Haley. Sonic Youth agreed to headline 1995's American Lollapalooza package tour, using the earnings to build a new studio. Following the completion of the tour, Sonic Youth released Washing Machine, which received their strongest reviews since Daydream Nation. After a series of experimental EPs issued on their own SYR label, they resurfaced in 1998 with the full-length A Thousand Leaves. NYC Ghosts & Flowers, which featured Jim O'Rourke as a producer and musician, followed in the spring of 2000. O'Rourke became a full member of the group, touring with the band and appearing on and producing 2002's Murray Street.

The five-piece Sonic Youth returned in 2004 with Sonic Nurse; one year later, however, O'Rourke departed the band to pursue a career as a film director. Late in 2005, the remaining bandmates issued SYR 6, a recording of a benefit concert for the Anthology Film Archives that Sonic Youth had played alongside percussionist Tim Barnes. Rather Ripped, a fusion of the mellow, sprawling feel of the band's previous two albums with a more stripped-down sound, was released in 2006. In 2008, the band resurrected the SYR series: J'Accuse Ted Hughes arrived that spring as a vinyl-only release, while Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth chronicled an improvised performance at 2005's Roskilde Festival. They also assembled a compilation album for Starbucks, Hits Are for Squares, featuring the previously unreleased track "Slow Revolution." Before the busy year concluded, Sonic Youth made additional headlines by leaving the Geffen label and signing with Matador, which prepared to issue the band's 16th album, The Eternal, during the following spring. The year 2010 was relatively quiet for the band, with members concentrating on individual projects like Shelley's Vampire Blues label; they also recorded the soundtrack to French director Fabrice Gobert's film Simon Werner a Disparu, which was released early in 2011. Moore and Gordon announced their impending divorce in the fall of 2011, creating doubt about the band's future past their year-end South American tour.

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Sonic Youth are one of my favorite alt-rock bands. I started collecting their music when I was a teenager and they've been an on/off obsession. So GMG, what do you think about this band? Any favorite songs? How about favorite albums?

[mn dave]

They never clicked with me. Maybe a song here and there.

[Mirror Image]

They never clicked with me. Maybe a song here and there.

My rebuttal -

I have a long history with this band. I started my early teens off by collecting their music and next thing I knew I owned all their music at that time and also bought all subsequent releases. They're really a fantastic band that I can certainly understand not everyone enjoying. Their explorations of noise within a song actually make the most sense if you remember to keep them within that song. What I loved about them in the beginning was their spontaneity, but, as they progressed, their music became more concise and the attention to actual songwriting got stronger and the arrangements became tighter.

They're a love/hate band and those who love them really love them while those who hate them, hate them passionately. If I could turn any newbie onto their music I would point them to Daydream Nation or Goo. EVOL would be a good one to start with as well I think, but Daydream Nation gets my nod for perhaps their best record and one that is an out and out masterpiece.

[Night Vision]

Thanks for starting this thread - I was a fan of SY when I was young and need to re-visit their music at some stage. My favourite albums are Daydream Nation, Goo and Dirty. Im not as familiar with this bands output as Id like. Ive been stock-piling some of their albums with a view to going on a bit of a SY binge at some stage

[Mookalafalas]

I used to listen to Goo quite a lot.  I liked the album, but I played it frequently for an odd reason. Sometimes I had trouble sleeping, and I've never been able to take naps. However, for some reason, if I played this loudly in the afternoon I could fall asleep...
   But aren't they way to recent to be "Godfathers" of anything?  There were already lots of experimental rock groups in the late 60s...Iggy and the Stooges, for example.

[Night Vision]

I used to listen to Goo quite a lot.  I liked the album, but I played it frequently for an odd reason. Sometimes I had trouble sleeping, and I've never been able to take naps. However, for some reason, if I played this loudly in the afternoon I could fall asleep...
   But aren't they way to recent to be "Godfathers" of anything?  There were already lots of experimental rock groups in the late 60s...Iggy and the Stooges, for example.

One thing that sets SY apart from earlier groups like the Stooges is widespread use of alternative tunings and dissonance in their music. Im not saying groups in the 60's didn't experiment with these sometimes but I cant think of anyone who used it as much prior to SY. SY formed in 1981 I think so they have been around a long time! 

[ibanezmonster]

SY is one of those bands that I like that I rarely listen to because they aren't in a genre I listen to.

[escher]

One thing that sets SY apart from earlier groups like the Stooges is widespread use of alternative tunings and dissonance in their music. Im not saying groups in the 60's didn't experiment with these sometimes but I cant think of anyone who used it as much prior to SY. SY formed in 1981 I think so they have been around a long time! 

Yes, alternate tunings are a very important part of their music. I don't know if they were the first band to use different tunings in a systematic way (I can think of artists like Nick Drake or Joni Mitchell, or considering someone who probably influenced them also Michael Yonkers or The velvet underground and Lou Reed's "ostrich tuning", and in jazz alternate tunings were used much more that many would think) but certainly it's the key aspect of their sound and their sake for dissonances.

[DavidRoss]

Velvet Underground, 1965

[snyprrr]

one good great song- "Shadow of a Doubt"

[Night Vision]

Yes, alternate tunings are a very important part of their music. I don't know if they were the first band to use different tunings in a systematic way (I can think of artists like Nick Drake or Joni Mitchell, or considering someone who probably influenced them also Michael Yonkers or The velvet underground and Lou Reed's "ostrich tuning", and in jazz alternate tunings were used much more that many would think) but certainly it's the key aspect of their sound and their sake for dissonances.

Yes I forgot about these guys! - Joni Mitchell and Nick Drake have used alternative tunings a lot although I don't think of their music as being overly dissonant like SY's.
The use of dissonance is something I associate with indie Rock in general - I don't hear a lot of dissonance in commercial music

[milk]

I had Evol in my teens and loved it. I followed them into some more pop-ish domains as well. I think they were the most innovative post-punk indie rock band but I've lost touch with them. Thanks for the thread. This will inspire me to go back and listen more.

[mn dave]

I like Killing Joke. Does that count for anything? 

[milk]

I listened to Sister yesterday and quite enjoyed it.

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

I haven't much interest in rock but I do make an effort from time to time to see what's going on just for "cultural kicks." I'm rarely impressed, but it does happen.  One of the bands that truly excites me - and has for many seasons - is SY - lyrically, sonically, irreverently, they have what I want from rock.  I was just enjoying "the eternal" this past weekend and wondered if anyone had posted anything about the band on GMG.  Shoulda' known I could depend on you, John!  I do love this band and with a passion that defies my six decades.  If I didn't have a certain dignity to keep up I'd probably tape posters of them up in my room.   

[Mirror Image]

Shoulda' known I could depend on you, John!

[snyprrr]

... and I wasn't to hip on their 'Superstar', either,...

[milk]

Velvet Underground, 1965

Nothing in the post-punk world compares to VU.