Sonic Youth
Goo

THE REVIEW

After the release of the magnificent "Daydream Nation", Sonic Youth left SST and joined David Geffen's record label. This led to thoughts of a commercialization of their sound, leaving fans disgusted. But they are wrong, and by a large margin. The sound of the sonic youth remains intact; in fact, it gains more cohesion, and "Goo" proves this immensely. I am convinced that "Goo" represents the pinnacle of the New York group's discography not only due to the undisputed beauty of the songs but especially because here the ultimate balance is achieved between the explosive anger of the early years (which characterized "Confusion Is Sex") and the noisy guitar outbursts we all know from "Sister" onwards.

We start with "Dirty Boots", a magnificent noise-rock piece characterized by a gritty beginning, a fiery chorus, and a finale submerged in subdued guitars. The following track, "Tunic", is worthy of being the sequel to "Trilogy": the sounds are identical, and Kim Gordon's sensual and seductive voice is a chill that jolts the mind. The beginning of "Mary-Christ" recalls the "bells" of "Protect Me You"; shortly after, the exhausting guitars and Thurston's uncomfortable voice come on stage. Throughout the album, you encounter noises, jeers, dissonant guitars, and aggressive bass. There’s even an added extravagance of distorted guitar lasting just a minute, yet it remains engraved in the mind ("Scooter + Jinx"). Sonic Youth does all they can with their means to cross the wall of their sound, making it almost unrecognizable. It concludes with the great "Titanium Expose", which ends amidst the noise of amplifiers and hallucinatory guitars, and most importantly, closes the album of achieved perfection: from then on, Sonic Youth will keep their typical sound intact, producing excellent albums like "Washing Machine" and "A Thousand Leaves", but most notably, they know they have been an important part of this century's music. It's also worth mentioning the splendid cover that captures a man and a woman reciting a phrase ("I Stole My Sister's Boyfriend. It Was All Whirlwind, Heat, and Flash. Within a Week We Killed My Parents and Hit the Road"). Good sonic youth does not lie!