Sonic Youth "Evol" (Cassette, Goofin, 2022)
Released in May 1986 on SST Records and Blast First! In the UK, EVOL was
the third studio album by Sonic Youth and showed the first signs of the
band transforming their No Wave past into a greater alt-rock
sensibility. "EVOL... mark[s] the true departure point of Sonic Youth's
musical evolution," noted Pitchfork, "In measured increments, Thurston
Moore and Lee Ranaldo... bring form to the formless, tune to the
tuneless, and with the help of Steve Shelley's drums... , [impose]
melody and composition on their trademark dissonance." "If Daydream
Nation is Sonic Youth's opus, EVOL was crucial research. There's a
directness that makes everything feel close. It is pure tension with
little release. The entire record is a shadow." Stereogum likewise
praised the album as one, "full of suspense... , the cornerstone [of]
the Sonic Youth sound... , ground zero for the combination of chiming
guitars and atonal skronk... muggy delirium... The virile 'Tom Violence'
sounds less written than coaxed from a cauldron, the sort of song that
fogs windows. The off-kilter 'Starpower'... is sung in a frosty
[Nico-evoking] monotone [by Kim Gordon]. 'In The Kingdom #19,' featuring
Mike Watt on bass and... vocals [by Ranaldo]... , is a harrowing story
of a highway wreck over a suitably edgy instrumental backing punctuated
by... live firecrackers in the vocal booth." For Popstache, "EVOL
slithers into the unconscious. Once the... detuned melodies and haunting
riffs and final whispers of feedback depart from the speakers... The
music [leaves] a faded footprint, forever reeling the listener back for
another strange trip." "The seeds of greatness... " - Pitchfork (who
placed the album #31 of the Top 100 Albums of The 1980s) "A
near-masterpiece." - Trouser Press "A stunningly fluent mixture of
avant-garde instrumentation and subversions of rock'n'roll." - All Music
Guide
Tracklist:
1 Tom Violence
2 Shadow of a Doubt
3 Starpower
4 In the Kingdom #19
5 Green Light
6 Death to Our Friends
7 Secret Girl
8 Marilyn Moore
9 Expressway to Yr. Skull
10 Bubblegum
Condition is Brand New.
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