•
Rating: “Evol” was released in 1986, between “Bad Moon Rising” and “Sister”, and, unlike its predecessor, features less hostile and more catchy melodic lines (within the limits that this word can assume with Sonic Youth). Clearly, the nihilistic noise outbursts are still present in the song structures (“In The Kingdom #19”, “Death To Our Friends”, where the two guitarists indulge in hallucinatory dissonances), but now the quartet's music is heavily influenced by that psychedelic vein that had already entered “Bad Moon”.
This results in songs that from my point of view seem like psychotic ballads born from a sick mind, in which noise still plays an essential role but is placed in a more defined structure compared to the past (without exaggeration, of course): the splendid “Shadow Of A Doubt”, where Kim Gordon's voice, more enchanting than ever, stands out over a delicate harmonic carpet before it erupts into a desperate scream ("I swear I didn’t mean iiiiiiiiit"); “Star Power”, which immediately sticks in the head with its strange childish melody; “Tom Violence” and the skewed “Green Light”, sung this time by Thurston, dreams of a lunatic. Not to mention the anguish of “Marilyn Moore”. The album closes with “Madonna, Sean And Me”, better known as “Expressway To Yr Skull”, which well summarizes everything we've heard in the previous forty-five minutes: melody mixed with hypnotic guitars (by the way, Lee and Thurston come up with new unexpected tunings for each song), moments of absolute calm and sonic hysterical crises, with a long finale of just reverb and various echoes. There's also a bonus track, “Bubblegum”, a dirty and wild rock ‘n’ roll.
In conclusion, the CD, although it suffers from some production issues given the mediocrity of the instrumentation, is a long psychedelic journey into territories unknown at the time, and despite the years it now carries, it is still very relevant. Here are some of the best songs ever from Sonic, and to understand the evolutionary path that led them to “Daydream Nation” it is a mandatory step.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Tom Violence (03:05)
[Thurston]
My violence is a dream
a 'real dream'
a skinny arm
a crush on living sin
my violence
is a sleeping head
nodding out to rising bliss
I left home for experience
carved 'suk for honesty' on my chest
my violence is the number
coming out of prayer
find it in the father
find it in a girl
there's a thing in my memory
hoilding on for dear life
with a feeling of secrets
beating up under my flesh
my tongue is tied
I'm sleeping nights awake
Tom violence is a dream
coming out of a girl
02 Shadow of a Doubt (03:34)
Met a stranger on a train
he bumped right into me
I swear I didn't mean it
I swear it wasn't meant to be
must a been a dream
from a thousand years ago
I swear I didn't mean it
I swear it wasn't meant to be
from the bottom of my heart
he was looking all over me
together everafter
he said
"You take me & I'll be you"
"You kill him & I'll kill her"
kiss me
I swear it wasn't meant to be
I swear I didn't mean it
kiss me
kiss me in the shadow of
kiss me in the shadow of a doubt
kiss me
kiss me in the shadow
kiss me in the shadow of a doubt
it's just a dream
it's just a dream i had
nononoooooh
swear it's just a dream
just a dream
dream i've had
no
no
no
no
take me to it
take me to her
maybe
maybe it's just a dream
it's a dream
it's just a
just a
no
met a stranger on a train
bumped right into me
swear i didn't mean it
swear it wasn't meant to be
must've been a dream
from a thousand years ago
kiss me
kiss me in the shadow of a doubt
kiss me
03 Star Power (04:49)
[Kim]
Spinning dreams with angel wings
torn blue jeans + a foolish grin
burning down in the night
so cool + so right
starpower starpower starpower
over me
she knows how to make love to me
she knows how to make love
close my eyes and think of you
everything turns black to blue
starpower starpower starpower
over me
burning down in the night
supercool it's alright
she knows how to make love to me
she knows how to make love
close my mind when i think of you
everything turns black to blue
starpower starpower starpower
over me
04 In the Kingdom #19 (03:25)
They were
Aaaah
he did what he had to do
he asked no questions
he had few conversations
the tar glistens in the noon heat
he tread across the grass, up onto, and down off of, the concrete abutments
mirage on the highway
ghosts in the tunnel
the dark cave
out into the blinding light of day at breakneck speed
every bolt rumbling
glistening highway mirage groans
the slick surface
careening into first the small mammal, and then screeching along the guard
rail, scraping paint and throwing sparks like sheets of pure terror for
400 yards
over and over
with one final back and forth rocking motion coming to rest
wheeehah
the beautiful paintjob hopelessly marred
smoke and flames
allright
so nice
he moved to the small creature
screeching whistles of steam blowing off
on it's back, wheels spinning like a cinema classic
the door sags open and a man covered in blood drops the three feet or so to
the pavement
the car still rattling and shaking as if with a mind of it's own, unwilling
to die
the man, 40ish, also after a time, an agonisingly painful period of time
is also unwilling to die
suddenly all is quite quiet there in the sunlight on the highway
but what? what can i do?
i cannot move, everything is about broken
blood everywhere, mixing with oil and gas
what's moving, must turn my head
pain, white light, blinded
some guy there kneeling in the blinded mirage of white light
all my strength to 'heeeeeelp'
screaming now help me please
he tried to tamp out the bit of burning ember which had lept from the wreck
onto his grimy coatsleeve
coughing blood
what's happen?
he's he's inching towards truth
he strode of into the woods with the animal
it still lived
he didn't glance back at all
still out ghosting the road
death on the highway
words crumble around me and fall with the weight of heaven
i cannot move
i'm beneath the great weight
i cannot see
my eyes are blinded
i am in the darkness
that's it
{very low in the mix}
in panic i forget it
in despair i need it
in my mind i save it
in death i have it
{then a bit louder}
in panic i forget it
in despair i need it
i shouldn't laugh
hah hah hah
yeah really
oh
in panic i forget it
in despair i need it
in my mind i save it
in death i have it
[Thurston?]
never gave a damn about the meterman
i was the man who had to read the meters, man
05 Green Light (03:46)
I kneel before the green light
of her singing crayon eyes
and then I kiss her stomach
and it's then I realize:
her light is the night
I'm not blind, I believe in you
I see a green light
I see a green light
I see a green light
08 Marilyn Moore (04:04)
Sound asleep till right until day
frustrated desire turns you away
and turns you insane
over and over
you get to a point
to make it disappear
and you're always believing
and believing in fear
over and over
and over and over
and over and over
Marilyn Moore
it's always a headache the size of a tour truck
she's full of disorders, depends what you're used to
she's talking of tranches of truncheons in battle
of bruises from bottles that never get better
bad baby bitching she screams at the door
hammer in hand & her head to the floor
Marilyn Moore
09 Expressway to Yr. Skull (07:19)
We're gonna kill the California girls we're gonna fire the exploding load in the milkmaid maiden head we're gonna find the meaning of feeling good and we're gonna stay there as long as we think we should mystery train three way plane expressway to your skull mystery train three way plane expressway to your skull mystery train three way plane expressway to your skull
Loading comments slowly
Other reviews
By awhitenoise
The processional litany of "Tom Violence" marches on, a nihilistic anthem.. sweet surprise of body, nudity, corruption, sensitivity.
Everything dissolves into nothingness, the alchemy of sound melds with the walls of life.
By Takanibu
A distorted guitar and deafening percussion constitute the beginning of the ritual. I already know it’s going to be something extremely violent, yet a sensual female voice wraps me in a dark vortex.
In a matter of moments, I start to like this situation, in fact, I love it. It makes me feel perverse, dirty. But it’s one of those feelings you guard jealously, that you’re ashamed of, those feelings you want to hide from even yourself, uselessly.
