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"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the american public." ....... *President Theodore Roosevelt
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Here's some of the rock that's been knocking me around lately. If you would like to hear any of the recordings I feature here, shoot me an email at exfedex2000@yahoo.com. I can burn you a copy onto a CD-R! I don't mind mailing them out. All featured album covers are links, so click them!
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Sonic Youth - Sonic Nurse (Geffen)
Every few years Sonic Youth unleash another slab of sonic satisfaction and the results are always at least intriguing. Sonic Nurse is more than that! If you've been following their catalog through the years you should have a grasp on the noise, rock, wittiness and aural illusionism they're capable of. THIS album brings all of these things together in one place!
You gotta have respect for Sonic Youth as they have definitely weathered the storm. Hell, their entire rental truck loaded with one of a kind gear was purged by thieves some years ago, and they STILL create some of the most alarming and beautiful tones in rock! For 22 years now Sonic Youth have always managed to maintain their identity and avoid the mainstream rock radio payola clones. Sure they're on a major label (Geffen/Interscope) but there has never been a compromise to their vision.
Sonic Nurse opens with an unexpected smack in the face! Pattern Recognition starts with 8 seconds of drums and a simple guitar flutter to lay the foundation. Then an immediate lurch into a full-on jam with Kim Gordon asserting, "You're the one!" Where else is this album going to go? This is only track one! Pattern Recognition is described by Geffen themselves as hearing "Kim Gordon take Justin Timberlake's hand and stick it in a tendon-shredding meat grinder!" Believe it!
From there the ride never stays the same. The compass goes in all directions with this release but at the same time maintains that distinctive Sonic Youth character. There's an homage to 70's rock running through the veins of Sonic Nurse at times. As pointed out by two of my closest pals, Blue Oyster Cult's Subhuman is glaringly obvious on Dude Ranch Nurse. The clamorously forlorn Unmade Bed will have you lying on the floor motionless and in awe. You'll sponge-up Kim Gordon's free and gentle voice on I Love You Golden Blue. Even the Bush administration's psychotic, oligarchical delusion is brought into the game on the album's closer, Peace Attack.
The addition of Jim O'Rourke to the band a few albums back radiates on Sonic Nurse. It's easy to hear all three guitars independently and as a whole depending on which gear your head is riding in while the music wafts. The aural cloud of dust that Sonic Youth are known for on some of their earlier releases doesn't show up much here but it still rocks like shit! Sonic Nurse breathes a lot more than previous albums with cracks and crevices evident throughout. Kudos go to producer Richard Hell who chose to remain incognito on the album's credits. Thurston Moore told Rolling Stone magazine that Sonic Nurse sounds like "Bare Trees-era Fleetwood Mac jamming with Jealous Again-era Black Flag. Just when you're relaxed, your speakers kind of fry." He's not off the mark on this!
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Blues Explosion - Damage (Sanctuary Records)
Why why WHY did the Blues Explosion steer this album toward a mainstream audience from a production angle? They've jumped labels from Matador to a major for the second time and the results are disappointing, but not entirely.
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