The Eternal

Sonnets, haikus, whatever. (2010-01-24) : 4/5
My friend is angry at this album. br /br /A long-time, enthusiastic fan of Sonic Youth, he's in several diverse bands -- runs a modestly successful record label even. He's expressed that the mellower, less experimental tendencies of Sonic Youth since "Sonic Nurse" haven't engaged him. But for some reason "The Eternal" just sets him off. br /br /I listened to his screed, then listened to the album again. I'd been enjoying it for a few months at this point -- not a "great" Sonic Youth album, but a damn solid one with a few fantastic tracks like "Antenna." And unlike my friend, I really like "Sonic Nurse" and "Rather Ripped." I listen to "Rather Ripped" all the time. The guitar language they've developed over the years has been cut-and-pasted onto poppier templates, sure, the arrangements have tightened up. And I like it. None of it means I can't still enjoy the angularity, sprawl, and white noise of the older releases. There's a time for "Kill Yr Idols" and a time for "My Friend Goo."br /br /So after my conversation with him, I heard a little bit of the conservatism in "The Eternal" that he was railing against. To be sure, it does have some moments that seem assembled from past experiments. It didn't disturb me nearly to the level that it did him. The best way I can express it is that they've developed a musical language, and where it may have been freeform before now those guitar tones and sonic tricks are being applied to more established forms. Sonnets, haikus, whatever. The band has changed. They are established, have families, bit parts in films, books of poetry, etc. and are exploring a less slash-and-burn side of their art. Of their lives, really.br /br /I think it still works. I wrestled with it, but at the end of the day, I like "The Eternal" and my friend doesn't. I feel like he'll come around in a few years, and I'll still like it. And there we'll be. Listening to "Sacred Trickster" for the great song that it is.
Well, they're Sonic Youth, so.... (2010-01-17) : 3/5
Sorry to let everyone know, but this band hasn't and probably never will equal their 1986-1989 accomplishments. That was just a perfect time for them of super creativity and great music-making, during which they became the icons that we know them as today. Not every band can change rock, especially not in the post-modern world, but the real issue is how do you follow that up? Should you even try? When you hear all the bootlegs, it's just obvious to me that they really reached for greatness on the albums from that period, which was all them as far as what they achieved, plus the help of the studio, but they've just been coasting and noodling and resting since then. Which is fine, really; they've done plenty, my favorite thing being having introduced the Boredoms to America. But admit it - nothing they've done since Daydream Nation has been as good. I remember thinking in 1988 that they had delivered rock to the next level, melding noise and composition and rock into something unprecedented, and then when I heard Goo, I was like, "Huh?" what happened? They dropped the ball, couldn't maintain that level of achievement, that constant reinvention of rock. But hey, for a group of NYC art-school kids who couldn't even play their instruments when they started, they really have had an amazing impact. They are true American rock icons, and I wish them all the success they have and more. I just got so heartbroken over the years, waiting for them to come back with something as amazing as Sister or Daydream Nation or my personal favorite (most of it) for reflecting nearly all of their remaining facets at a high quality level: Ciccone Youth Whitey Album. Very, very creative (the Can cover is the only thing that's come even close since) They forced me to look elsewhere for my dual-guitar psychedelic rock fix, which is probably the way they would want it, as one of their tenants has always been to embrace culture and expose all of us to what they've found along the way, polarized through their various personalities and spit out as their special blend of rock. But Jeez, I really would like to see lightning strike more than once. I guess Thomas Wolfe was right....
Propulsive (2009-12-24) : 4/5
I usually like half the songs on each SY CD, but I like just about everything here. Avoids both the annoying sonic dissonance and off-key vocals that seem to infect each album, and instead focuses on what they do best -- driving tempos and strong guitar work.
Excellent platter (2009-11-10) : 4/5
I liked Sonic Youth's last few records, from Murray Street to Rather Ripped, but the Eternal is a really good album. They seem very comfortable with their current songwriting and keep an even mood thru the whole record. I'm not going to compare this to their early stuff because it's apples oranges. Sister is one of my favorite records of all time. ALL TIME - how can you expect anyone to live up to that?
the best in years (2009-10-12) : 5/5
from the coolest american rock band, the eternal is the best sy cd in years