July 25, 2020

20,000 Vinyl LPs 233: Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth EP & Thurston Moore

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vinyl LP front cover
cover photographer unknown
photo of album cover by Styrous®



Thurston Moore, of Sonic Youth, was born on the 25th of July, 1958, in Coral Gables, Florida. He was raised in Bethel, Connecticut, but lived in New York for the largest part of his music career. He is now living in Stoke Newington (UK).      


Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth (EP)
vinyl LP front cover detail
cover photographer unknown
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®

Sonic Youth was founded by Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon  (bass, vocals, guitar) and Richard Edson (drums; percussion) in 1981. The group disbanded on October 14, 2011, following the separation of Moore and Gordon after 27 years of marriage.

In a 2006 interview Gordon said, "We wanted it to sound like PIL who we were into. It didn't but we were lucky it came out sounding like a record. We did it in 2 8 hr. sessions at a studio at Radio City Music Hall called Plaza Sound. The janitor let us in the back door."        


Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth (EP)
vinyl LP back cover
photo by Styrous®


Sonic Youth emerged from the experimental no wave art and music scene in Sonic Youth before evolving into a more conventional rock band and becoming a prominent member of the American noise rock scene. The group 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 drum sticks and screwdrivers to alter the instruments' timbre. The band is considered to be a pivotal influence on the alternative and indie rock movements.            

This is beautifully demonstrated on their debut EP in the first song on the album, The Burning Spear. It opens with slow, hesitant drum and hi-hat then after a few seconds joined by quiet, clangy sounds then it goes into a fast march beat and a dissonant, boingy electronic sound comes in. The sound was created by Ranaldo by running a mechanic drill through a wah-wah pedal. Finally the bass guitar played by Gordon joins in. The song was inspired by the German experimental rock band, Can. This is my favorite cut on the album!    


Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth (EP)
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®


I Dream I Dreamed opens with a bass guitar, then tinny electronics are joined by a snare drum for a moderately slow beat with dreamy vocals; Kim Gordon speaks more than sings the lyrics.        


Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth (EP)
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®


I Don't Want To Push It starts with a furiously fast-strummed guitar, the rest of the group joins in at the same breakneck speed. Once again the vocal is distant and echoey. The song stops abruptly.     

The Good And The Bad is the last cut on the album and it is the longest at almost 8 minutes. It starts suddenly with an erotic bump and grind beat. It is a driving with no holds barred song with a quiet section about two and a half minutes into it. It has no vocal of any kind; it is totally instrumental.           


Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth (EP)
vinyl LP label, side 1
photo by Styrous®




Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth (EP)
vinyl LP label, side 2
photo by Styrous®

Tracklist:

Side 1:

1 - The Burning Spear - 3:25
2 - I Dream I Dreamed - 5:17
3 - She Is Not Alone - 4:06

Side 2:

1 - I Don't Want To Push It - 3:35
2 - The Good And The Bad - 7:55

Companies, etc.

    Recorded At – Radio City Music Hall
    Mixed At – Radio City Music Hall
    Copyright (c) – Savage Conquest Music
    Phonographic Copyright (p) – Savage Conquest Music

Credits:

    Engineer – Don Hünerberg
    Performer [Sonic Youth] – Kim Gordon, Lee Ranaldo, Richard Edson, Thurston Moore
    Producer, Written-By, Arranged By – Sonic Youth

Notes:

Recorded and mixed at Radio City Music Hall (New York, NY, USA) between December 1981 and January 1982.
Savage Conquest Music ©℗ ASCAP 1982
Made in New York City.
Barcode and Other Identifiers

    Matrix / Runout (Etched A): SY-010382-A
    Matrix / Runout (Etched B): SY-010382-B
    Rights Society: ASCAP


Sonic Youth ‎– Sonic Youth
Label: Neutral Records (3) ‎– N-ONE
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: Mar 1982
Genre: Rock
Style:Art Rock, Post-Punk, Avantgarde
       
          
          
Viewfinder link:          
        
Public Image Ltd (PiL)               
          
Net links:          
          
Brooklyn Vegan ~ Sonic Youth album guide – the studio albums
Head Heritage ~ Sonic Youth EP (review)        
RollngStone ~ 20 Terrible Debut Albums by Great Artists     
Sonic Youth ~ website                   
Sonic Youth ~ Sonic Youth EP        
Sputnik Music ~ Sonic Youth EP (review)         
Stereogum ~ Sonic Youth Albums From Worst To Best          
          
YouTube links:          
          
The Burning Spear          
I Dream I Dreamed          
She Is Not Alone          ()
I Don't Want To Push It          
The Good And The Bad          
          
        
          
"Pixies and Sonic Youth were so important to the eighties"
                                     ~ David Bowie
          
          
Styrous® ~ Saturday, July 25, 2020





  
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