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What's your favorite 80's Sonic Youth recording?

Typical, clichéd.... but it has to be Daydream Nation.

The very first minute of Teenage Riot shows a band that has reached its zenith, such is the genius and confidence on display.

Between EVOL and Sister. Wouldn't want to choose.

Vibracobra wrote: Sun Dec 19, 2021 2:58 pm Typical, clichéd.... but it has to be Daydream Nation.

The very first minute of Teenage Riot shows a band that has reached its zenith, such is the genius and confidence on display.

Schizophrenia > Teen Age Riot

Sister, though I've been on a big EVOL kick recently.

Sister is awesome, and Schizophrenia is easily a top 10 from the band, but the recording/production is just too muffled.

Daydream on the other hand sounds great.

I must also say that my fave Sonic Youth era begins with Daydream. You know, when they slowly become poppier and the recordings get better. Or cleaner. Although Sister is already kinda poppie. But it sounds crappy as I said before.

But I consider Dirty a misstep, or kinda.

Yeah, it took SY a while to get the right production.

My theory about the band is their arc goes from art music ensemble to unconventional rock band. If you listen to Rather Ripped you can hear a band that evolved to find how to make fairly conventional rock music using their unconventional methods. Maybe not down to the album, but I think most people's favorite era of SY comes down to what they prefer in that continuum.

It takes until Sister, and Evol for them to become engaging for me. The 3 album run of Daydream Nation, Goo and Dirty is perfection to me. Totally innovative, abstract, and expressive, but still immediate and focused.

Between "Bad Moon Rising" and "Daydream Nation" they were at their best. "Daydream Nation" was my favourite when I got into them, but "Sister" was what got me into the odd, less shiny, alien-sounding stuff.

Edit: though "EVOL" does have "Expressway", which is the best of their best.

sparky wrote: Sun Dec 19, 2021 4:16 pm Between "Bad Moon Rising" and "Daydream Nation" they were at their best. "Daydream Nation" was my favourite when I got into them, but "Sister" was what got me into the odd, less shiny, alien-sounding stuff.

Edit: though "EVOL" does have "Expressway", which is the best of their best.

Kinda the same. Love Daydream nation when I first heard it but for me I later really gravitated to Bad Moon Rising. Maybe because I had the Cassette in my car on repeat when I delivered Pizza as a young buck.

Daydream is pretty much perfect, aside from the odd drum sound.