sonic youth - rather ripped
i have to admit, it has been years since i had any urge at all to listen to the godfathers of indie rock. for a few years their albums (evol, sister, bad moon rising and of course the essential daydream nation) were an essential part of my daily routine. yet somewhere along the way i just fell away from their path of individuality. too many solo releases, too many offshoot experiments, basically too many too manys for the casual listener.
and yet, here we are in 2006 and i'm absolutely smitten with the new album. gone are all the adventures in sound, back to the core of the group and now getting back to the essence of all things that make up the sonic youth sound. of course, one listen to this and you know its sonic youth. the guitars are as discordant as ever, the meandering riffs and the cooler than thou attitude oozes throughout the songs, but where things are so very different, is in the songs. this album is chocka with bona fide classics - many of them within radio friendly time limits of 3-4 minutes. vocal duties are once again split between kim gordon and thurston moore and each rises to the challenge to make the hairs on the back of your neck shiver. need proof ? then just check how thurston turns the yawn inducing questions that journos trot out ad nauseam for their on the road interviews and makes the whole game sound so much more worthy on personal fave album closer 'or'. love it.
if you have ever listened to sonic youth and thought, 'i just wish they'd make a straight forward rock album as opposed to these patience testing experiments' then 'rather ripped' is your dreams come true, with such laid back and relaxed songs as 'do you believe in rapture', and 'turquoise boy' proving that the band are at last making music that so many of us wanted all those years ago. i don't know, but maybe the addition of old school alt.rock producer john agnello in the production chair has refined the bands sound, but whatever it is, i for one, am rather glad to be reacquainted with a long lost friend.
so, is this a return to form as the well worn cliched phrase would have you believe ? i have no idea as i have not heard the last few albums, but these 12 songs (2 extra on the uk version) are a damn fine example of why sonic youth are part of genetic make up of modern rock music.