![]() ![]() ![]() Part of the first wave of American noise rock groups, the band carried out their interpretation of the hardcore punk ethos throughout the evolving American underground that focused more on the DIY ethic of the genre rather than its specific sound. In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City. The last lineup consisted of Thurston Moore (vocals, guitar), Kim Gordon (vocals, bass, guitar), Lee Ranaldo (vocals and guitar), Steve Shelley (drums) and Mark Ibold (bass). Or I can just wait until I’m next in an op shop, that’s normally where I hear such songs.Sonic Youth was an influential experimental rock band which formed in New York C… Read Full Bio ↴ Sonic Youth was an influential experimental rock band which formed in New York City, New York, United States in 1981 and are currently on an indefinite hiatus. I’m sure they’re being played on easy listening radio right now, if I go out to the kitchen and search for it on our radio. But from listening to this tape, I suddenly have a great urge to listen to the real Carpenters. The second thing that come to mind is a copy of the zine Murder Can Be Fun about Karen Carpenter. The Carpenters were before my time, and when I think of them, unfortunately the first thing that comes to mind is Rick Moranis singing “Close to You” in Parenthood. This is through no great love of the band, although thinking of their baby doll dresses and bone-grinding, screamy songs I feel tenderness, like I would for an older sister who does things that I am proud of, yet don’t appeal to me aesthetically. My favourite is probably Calling Occupants, by Babes in Toyland. ![]() Although in general I am suspicious of Sonic Youth, it’s hard not to like this song. The best known song on this album is probably Sonic Youth’s version of Superstar, a breathy, sad version of it. I imagine that the Carpenters must have been in the air in the 1970s in the USA, people breathed their songs in and out without realising it. On the other side of this tape is the album If I Were a Carpenter, an album of Carpenters covers released in 1994. Then this wondering was replaced by the realisation that I didn’t want to be the silent muse, mopping a floor when the song about me comes on the radio, I would rather be the one writing the songs. Listening to my tapes, hearing song after song about characters cruel, beautiful, unattainable, fantastic, I wondered about all these silent people, living their lives somewhere out in the world, and perhaps sometimes hearing their song on the radio, and feeling happy, or annoyed, or wistful. They are not my kind.Īnother thing I wondered at that point was whether anyone would ever write a song about me. I didn’t know much about it all at that point but I hoped not to encounter one of these volcanic lovers. All I could picture was a tall man with dreadlocks and a flannel shirt, a biddable but a little stupid character, who was an over-eager lover. The idea of it terrified my teenage self. I have no idea who that explosive person is, or if they are real, but my guess is that it must be at least based on someone. In particular I wondered how it would be to be the person who inspired that song. I do remember pondering the song Supernova, especially the line: “And you fuck like a volcano and you’re everything to me”. It was music for confident people, of which I certainly didn’t feel like one. Although I knew the hits, at the time there was something too bright and shiny about her songs and I didn’t pay them much attention. Listening to this tape now, I have probably thought more about Liz Phair than I ever have before. ![]()
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