Sonic Youth
Murray Street

THE REVIEW

First of all, let's start by saying one thing: "Murray Street" is certainly not the most significant episode in Sonic Youth's discography. Milestones like the much-praised "Daydream Nation" and the never-mentioned-enough (and for this reason highly recommended) "Evol" remain, in my opinion, on another planet. In any case, what Moore and company have produced is a good album, one that fans of the New York band will easily appreciate.

Although very enjoyable, tracks like the opening "The Empty Page" and the following "Disconnection Notice" do not add anything new to the band's stylistic repertoire. In fact, they lend themselves to a -decidedly- more ordinary interpretation of the rock song. However, in the first part of the album, that unmistakable pathos often accompanies the noisy melodies of Sonic Youth. An example is the (in my humble opinion) beautiful "Rain on Tin": those who are accustomed to listening with their hearts—and not just their ears—to this band's music will quickly understand what I am talking about. "Karen Revisited" is the track with the longest running time of the entire album, an 11-minute anxiety attack in perfect Sonic Youth style. Meanwhile, the sonic deformities of "Radical Adults Lick Godhead Style" and "Plastic Sun" precede the Velvet-like "Sympathy for the Strawberry," the album's closing episode with Kim Gordon on vocals. Noteworthy.

In summary, it is an album decidedly less experimental and for this reason more accessible than others. Knowing how to renew oneself is important, but an album in the name of the "already heard" cannot in the least affect the credibility of one of the most innovative bands in the history of rock. As far as I'm concerned, the alternative band par excellence.

Rating: 6.5/10.