Reviews (page 4 of 11)
The best so dar
Fun and eclectic
Thought I liked this more than I did with this re-listen. Great at times, blah for many. the first half of total trash is so good, shame they torch it with the latter.
I always thought Sonic Youth was a flash in the pan group. I had no idea they were so influential in the music scene and after listening to this album, I'm not sure why other people thought they were. I just decided that there was something that I was missing as once I heard this album, I decided that I can go the whole rest of my life without hearing another from them.
4.5 - I am 17 again.
Innovative, cool sounds and some songs I really like, but at times it feels unfinished and by the end the grinding distortion wears you down.
Likes the sound not the vocals
Just not or me. Punk rock is a sound that’s hard for me to enjoy and resonate with. While I understand its cultural significance the sound just isn’t my cup of tea.
I didn't enjoy this album. Others might.
3.5, added several songs to my own playlist, even tough I don't think I'd listen to all the albums in order again
🩵
il tipo di musica che piu mi prende
So fuzzy it makes me anxious...like ASMR but bad. Definitely a me problem, but a problem nonetheless
Booooooooriiiiiiiing. Même pas écouté en entier. Marre des albums de rock prog.
This really rips. It’s the first sonic youth album I’ve listened to, and I get it. Bands still want to sound like this. That being said, it’s too long, and I don’t love some of the extended dissonant sections. But all in all, very good.
def need to listen again!
I've listened to this album before, and loved it (knew it would be an instant 5* the second it popped up) probably a few times, but I've never really *listened* to it. But damn is this thing perfect. You can probably credit this album/Sonic Youth for a good majority of the 90s alt rock bands on this list, along with a bunch more that aren't on the list, but are shockingly missing. Sleater-Kinney, Nirvana, Modest Mouse, Slint, even Portishead for their album Third, etc. Hell, the opening of Silver Rocket sounds like a riff that would be used in a dissonant black metal track, something Deathspell Omega would come up with (Cross the Breeze verges on dissonant black too, as well as my previous comparison to Portishead's Third). What strikes me the most is the guitar tone and drumming on this album. Especially on songs like Teen Age Riot (probably the best song on the album, but thats not to discount the quality of the rest of the album. That song is just transcendant) and Cross the Breeze. The drummer really loves his 16th notes, and I appreciate that. Love how Cross the Breeze starts off with a more uplifting sound only to devolve immediately into a harsher, dark vibe. And don't discount the bass, that is not always super prominent, but when it is, is always fantastic (see Teen Age Riot). Total Trash where it takes the main riff and devolves it into a dissonant noise bastardization of itself. Honestly that's kinda a story on quite a few songs. Not only do they do some of the loud quiet loud, but they switch vibes up at the same time. Nice here, dissonant and dark there. Candle does the same thing. But probably my favorite thing about this is how much drive it has. Obviously Teen Age Riot, but The Wonder is amazing for that with the anxiety it has while just MOVING. So yeah. An absolute alt rock masterpiece that singlehandedly charted the course for alt rock through the 90s.
Noise
LOVE. Always have a good time with a Sonic Youth album.
Tengo que escucharlo de nuevo.
Garbage band
Возможно, я люблю идею Sonic Youth больше, чем музыку Sonic Youth. Это лучший их альбом несомненно. Лучшая песня - Teen Age Riot.
My only previous exposure to Sonic Youth was the album Goo, also from this list. I thought that album was ok. This one surpassed all of my expectations and I loved it. Such a mature and self-assured sound on this album. None of the songs stuck out as incredibly catchy, but every song was good. This was more of a continuous listen than a collection of singles. I hope I come back to this one at some point.
I seem to only get great albums on here, and this is no different. One of the essential listens for all fans of Alternative Rock. Absolutely perfect!
So confusing
Teenage riot is such a strong opener. The rest is somewhat sludgy noise, not so into it
Meh
Better than Coldplay
Nice - pretty strong. Perhaps some of the discordant meanderings are a little lengthy in places, but good stuff nonetheless. I think Goo tops this slightly for me.
Sonic youth are a band I’ve always felt i should like more than i do. There is nothing here than changes that position. Everything is there to suggest i should love this album, but i dont. I dont hate it, it just doesn’t connect for me
I don’t understand what’s to like about this - it was too long and was just noise. I would’ve probably given it a 1.5*, but it’s definitely not getting 2*.
Sonic Youth: a band where I am familiar with the name yet am not convinced I'd ever previously heard anything by them. I had about 4 false starts trying to listen to this album. Just kept starting it and then getting distracted and doing something else, then picking it up again, then thinking I wanted to listen to something else instead, then picking it up AGAIN. So many 7 minute songs of intermittently screeching, then noodling, guitars. I have fairly consistently not been a big fan of post-punk so I just think this wasn't really for me. I objectively know that Sonic Youth, and this album in particular, had a massive influence on music in this era, and I sort of liked Thurston Moore's talky vocals, but I have no desire to listen to it again. 2/5
I knew their famous songs but I’ve never went more into their discography.
0/18 bekannt 5/10 Beste Songs: electricity, silver rocket, computer age Silver rocket erinnert mich an einen anderen Song (aber ich weiß nicht welcher 😭), electricity wertet das ganze Album auf
Sounds like what I imagine being an angsty teen in the 80s felt like
Opens up with a really really good song. Then the rest of the album feels more raw, more chaotic and less polished. I enjoyed it though.
Their brand of noise rock is at a perfect crossroad with their pop sensibilities on this one
it was really good i love how long the songs were(brong back songs longer than 3 minutes pls) it wasnt the best album ive ever listened to but still it was really good
class
Bit too raaaarrr for me...but I can see why it's good
Don't remember listening
It’s an ok album. Obviously inspired lots of bands that followed. For me it gets too dragged out and repetitive. Perhaps you had to be there?
3/10
Hard to get through, not bad but not my favorite. 5.7/10
Die nächste Platte für den Abfalleimer. Ich werde mich weiter durch die Liste quälen, in der Hoffnung auf eine Perle zu stoßen. Sehr erfolgreich war die Suche bisher nicht!
I’ve never really managed to get into Sonic Youth before. I’ve tried on a few occasions, but Daydream Nation was my first proper listen — and now I finally get it. Daydream Nation is a genuinely great album. It grabs you immediately with the brilliance of “Teenage Riot” and never really lets go, carrying that momentum all the way through to the closing trilogy of tracks, which are absolutely superb and a perfect way to end the record. Musically, the album sounds fantastic. The drumming, bass, and guitars are all outstanding, but it’s the guitar work that really stands out — noisy, inventive, and endlessly engaging. The lyrics are dark yet strangely catchy, giving the album an edge without ever feeling inaccessible. I’m not usually a fan of grunge, but if this sits anywhere near that genre, it’s easily the best version of it I’ve heard. Favourite tracks: The closing trilogy — an incredible and immersive finale. Least favourite track: None. Every track deserves your time. Album artwork: Simple, understated, and very effective.
Early brit punk sound. Classic
Teenage Riot starts this album off and it is a masterpiece. One of the greatest alternative songs ever. This song itself deserves to be heard and celebrated. The rest of it makes you want to listen to the opener again
Super solid album, front to back. You can hear the influence that this had on dozens of other massive bands that came after. The album does have a bit too much going on at times, but it's not too much to be horrible. Definitely knocks it down a bit, but it's still really good. I'd have a hard time giving this album only a 3, so a 4 it is.
Already have this, fucks
Kim Gordon's vocals are not my thing, but the guitar work absolutely is. It's a pretty good album but not something I'd ever rush to listen to again.
01) Teen Age Riot - 6,5 02) Silver Rocket - 5,5 03) The Sprawl - 5,0 04) 'Cross the Breeze - 5,0 05) Eric's Trip - 5,5 06) Total Trash - 5,0 07) Hey Joni - 5,0 08) Providence - 1,0 09) Candle - 6,0 10) Rain King - 5,0 11) Kissability - 5,0 12) Trilogy - 5,0 TOTAL: 4,96 (50/100) Current ranking: 714/761
Trop de morceaux qui m"ont gonflé
Sonic Youth's magnum opus which is filled with anthemic songs, especially with that explosive opener that is "Teenage Riot;" A song which calls out to all the outsiders, far and wide. This would be their final independent release (if you don't count the Ciccone Youth side-project album,) after this album they would depart to a major label. Coming around in the point in time of music when alternative rock became mainstream for a while. They manage to balance the harshness of their early days whilst bring in more melody. I believe the album cover says it all, in my opinion. Bleakness. There's this moodiness/nocturnal sound that's present on the album, which I always happen to love. Highlight Song/s: "Teenage Riot" and "Silver Rocket"
Best Track - "Teen Age Riot"
Groupe connu, par l'album 'Washing Machine' dont j'avais découvert quelques morceaux à la Fnac à l'époque et qui m'avais paru intéressant. Je l'avais acheté, mais finalement j'ai fini par me lasser et l'abandonner, et je n'ai pas eu envie d'en découvrir d'autre. Si j'avais eu à le noter, à l'époque je lui aurais mis 3/5. Donc c'est la première fois que j'écoute 'DayDream Nation'. J'apprécie le son rugueux, les harmonies parfois dissonantes, les structures non standards de la plupart des morceaux, et les plages instrumentales sur les morceaux les plus longs. Chaque nouveau morceau est une découverte qui donne envie de continuer, ce qui, à mon avis, est finalement plutôt rare dans cette liste : j'ai noté 4/5 ou 5/5 à peine 10 % des albums proposés ... Morceaux particulièrement remarqués : 'The Sprawl' 'Cross the Breeze' 'Total Trash' 'Trilogy' Je pense qu'il va rejoindre ma collection ! =>4/5
fuck yea i'm gonna be listen this more often
Very influential, but not the best by them
Otro disco esencial, de un grupo imprescindible para entender la música desde finales de los 80´s. Minutemen como Hüsker Dü habían editado discos dobles, así que los Sonic Youth se lanzaron a por este formato, después de haber publicado esa gema que fue Sister (mi disco favorito de los SY). Portada memorable y apertura gloriosa con el clásico Teenage Riot con J Mascis de Presidente de los USA. Silver Rocket es un delirio punkorro (como ‘Cross The Breeze pero esta te lleva aún más lejos) mientras The Sprawl es una canción sobre drogas, camellos y fulanas, en la onda de la Velvet pero con la distorsión de los SY. Eric’s Trip y Hey Joni tienen como referentes a Andy warhol y Joni Mitchel respectivamente. Total Trash anticipa lo que serán sus pasos en Dirty. Mi favorita: Candle. El resto del disco sigue por los mismo deorroteros, un fascinante viaje de furia, ruido , melodía y distorsión. De Nueva York a la eternidad.
More crud
I typically don’t gravitate to these guys, but I appreciate it the revolutionary noisy sound this time around and I think about it in context.
Did not like. Just noise.
I think the first song really was the best in this one.
It’s good, and lives up to it’s name in that it is very dreamlike. Teen Age Riot is my fav.
Kim Gordon = GOAT
Sonic Youth are such a weird band. Sometimes they are good, other times they are annoying and awful. They just can't figure out what they want to be.
Not my fav
The more I hear these guys the more I get into it a bit - don't love it but willing to check them out some more.
I hate these guys
𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 is one of those albums I know so well that it almost feels like part of my internal wiring. I’m aware I have a positive bias toward Sonic Youth, but even with that in mind, this record stands out as something extraordinary — not just within their own catalogue, but within the entire landscape of 1980s indie music. It’s the rare double album where ambition and execution meet perfectly, and where experimentation doesn’t undermine accessibility but deepens it. From the opening seconds of 𝗧𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗴𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗼𝘁, there’s a sense of momentum — a pull forward, like the band is opening a door into a world that runs parallel to everyday reality. A huge part of that energy comes from the interplay between Thurston Moore, Kim Gordon and Lee Ranaldo. Their guitars don’t simply serve roles like lead or rhythm; they weave in and out of each other, forming shifting planes of sound. Moore’s angular drive, Gordon’s grounding presence, and Ranaldo’s abstract flourishes create a three-way conversation that defines the album’s identity as much as any melody or lyric. The long-form songs are where the album’s character really unfolds. Tracks like 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁, 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘄𝗹, or 𝗘𝗿𝗶𝗰’𝘀 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗽 drift between clarity and distortion, calm and escalation, with transitions that feel both unpredictable and inevitable. Steve Shelley’s drumming holds everything together — it doesn’t fight the guitars, but charts the path through them. There’s something exhilarating about how the band stretches time: letting riffs expand, letting feedback breathe, trusting repetition as a narrative tool. Instead of losing focus, these moments become hypnotic. Lyrically, the album works almost like a collage. The words aren’t meant to deliver a message; they create textures and impressions. Street fragments, surreal images, cultural references, half-formed emotions — Sonic Youth treat language the same way they treat guitars: cut it up, rearrange it, let it resonate. Even after dozens of listens, the album still reveals new angles, precisely because it doesn’t lock itself into a single interpretation. The production is another part of why this record stays so alive. It captures the rawness of the band without sacrificing clarity. You can hear the air in the room, the scrape of strings, the subtle shifts in tone as effects flicker in and out. For all its heaviness, 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 remains spacious, even airy. It never collapses under its own size; instead, it feels like a document of a band expanding beyond the limits of what indie rock had been. I also can’t ignore how historically rooted the record is. This wasn’t just a step in Sonic Youth’s evolution; it was a statement that reshaped what American underground music could sound like. Bands in the 90s and beyond drew from this album’s willingness to combine noise, melody, structure and abstraction into something coherent and compelling. Calling it 𝘁𝗵𝗲 indie album of the 80s doesn’t feel like hyperbole — it feels like simple accuracy. But beyond all that, there’s a personal element. I know I’m biased because this album has been with me for so long. It’s one of those records I can slip into effortlessly, where every transition feels familiar yet still electric. Even knowing every corner of it doesn’t dull its power; if anything, it strengthens it. 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 hasn’t just survived my repeated listens — it has deepened with them. For me, it remains a masterpiece: expansive, restless, visionary, and endlessly rewarding.
Solid, little overrated
didn't do much for me but there were a couple of interesting points
Really grows on me with more listens. Perhaps lacking in breadth some but all of the tunes are enjoyable.
Again, not my taste, too grungy, but it was still an enjoyable listen
Maybe I’m in a good mood but I actually didn’t mind this. Usually this shit kinda sucks to me but it scratched an itch for me. Interesting late 80s punk. Total Trash starts playing completely foul notes like 3 mins in but I fucking love it? Wtf I think I need to be in the right mood to listen to this. Or it put me in that mood. …Which is anxious. But I actually fuck with this a bit.
Not my thing. Too much dissonant, annoying guitar too often. Some times tapping along and then yuck.
Not bad, lo-fi stuff.
This came out a year before I was born, and while I've heard of them I've never pulled the trigger. Growing up I was a big fan of Dashboard Confessional, AAR, The Verve, Death Cab, etc. I can hear so much of them on this album. Coincidentally, I read the first two books of Gibson's The Sprawl trilogy a month or so ago and that track has to be a reference, yes? Their whole sound just...oozes, like the grungy underbelly Gibson builds in his books. Fave Tracks: Teenage Riot > The Sprawl > Total Trash (last half was legit) Current Fav Album: Daydream Nation - Sonic Youth (#3/1089)
Mmm Was okay
A lot of good music came out of this period in music. It all propelled forward but this was not musical enough for me to like. I don't actualy remember this band.
Probably my favorite album so far from this genre.
Went on forever with no real highlight on the album
I have dallied with Sonic Youth in the past, and actually happen to own one of their records in "Goo" as another bargain purchase made off the back of the endless praise I'd heard for it/the band. I've never found a huge amount to grasp onto with Sonic Youth on previous attempts, and somehow glossed over this album which appears to be held in some of the highest esteem within their catalogue. Whilst I did enjoy large spells of Daydream Nation on my first listen, appreciating the manner in which they married angularity with relative accessibility compared to some of their other entries, it is a touch too long and my engagement did ebb and flow at varying points. Again, there's never really a focal point within the music that screams out at you and demands your attention; rather, this felt like a "sum of its parts" type of record meant to be taken in as a sprawling, curious experience. There's definitely enough going on here to warrant a revisit, but I'm not sure it's a record that I'd ever come to love or be itching to purchase in future.
It's okay - nothing stood out. Listened on my commute. 3l
Pretty good.
Loud, experimental, angular, beautiful
A FOURTH Sonic Youth album are you kidding me??? It's like the list curators only know five bands
This seems like the kind of music that is very oriented to its scene and aesthetic. I don't mean that in a derogatory way. It's just like... Welcome to the Lower East Side, we've pulled the tubes out of our amps and replaced them with tiny cheese graters and loose pinball machine parts. Have fun kids.
even they got so bored of their songs that they'd change into making random noise halfway through the recording, if you'd like more of my thoughts on the matter check out Track 6
Noise, lots of noise, much too long. We are rebels, woo!
5/5. Great tracks, I really enjoyed this album. I was vaguely aware of Sonic Youth but now this album got me to really appreciate the contributions they made to music.
Mood bedingt biz zu hektisch aber ich denke ah andere Täg / Wuchenenänd / whatever chöni scho spass ha ah dem Album und dem Punkige. Aber it's what it's und da mer de aktuelli mood had au als Faktor mit ihbezieht chani grad ned über zwei Fieber Daydream drüber gah.
Coolio aber zwenig zum uf es 4i z lupfe Aber keep up sonic youth
Punk rock early days.
Nothing much to talk about. Wasn't impressed.
Already one of my top 10 ain't listened in a hot minute
Yaaaaaawn… Diablo Cody was right when she had Elliot Page describe this as just being noise
Really amazed I don’t listen to them more
Unremarkable
Jaime bien l’énergie
It might just because I've been listening to such garbage on this list but this feels like a breath of fresh air. It almost feels like a response and condemnation of the post punk that existed before it. Everything feels calculated. Everything from the rhythm to the vocals are dense and layered with nuance that is completely at odds with the mind numbingly simplicity of the alternative that exists before it. I was never a fan of this band but I think I understand the context of what they came from, how they influenced some of my favorite bands and just the nuance of the music to create music with noise. I think I found my new favorite album.
I continue to love Sonic Youth. Thanks 1001 Albums for teaching me this. This one gets a little self indulgent in the middle, but overall a strong album
Love it
Great running album
"Oh, this is just great. First Homer Simpson wrecks my pig, then Cypress Hill steals my orchestra, and now Sonic Youth's in my cooler. Get out of there!" Well at least now I get the third part of the quote. Pretty sure Noise Rock is not my thing though...
It was pretty good. The vibe is both mellow yet aggressive. Will listen to more.
Highlights: Teen Age Riot, Silver Rocket, The Sprawl, 'Cross The Breeze, Eric's Trip, Hey Joni, Candle
I definitely get why this is so important…just not my thing sadly. I am hopelessly uncool. A low three because i do get it.
Cool songs. Definitely worth it to listen to atleast once. I don't think I will ever listen to this casually again because noise rock is not something I really enjoy but the album is well put together. I like the song 'candle' the most because of the nice intro
I really wanted to like the album, I liked the beginning for its punky vibe which I can appreciate and reminds me of SSX. But then as i kept on listening I realized it’s not for me, too noisy, too many guitars. Sad but true
fine
I really want to like this album more, as I know a lot of people who really enjoy it, who think I would enjoy it as well but I just don't get it. Every time I start to like something, like an interesting guitar part, some slightly off-key, monotone vocal will come in, or some wall of feedback will crash in unexpectedly and ruin it for me. It also feels unnecessarily long. I do respect their uncompromising vision but it's just not for me. I do enjoy a lot of bands that were obviously inspired by them though, so who knows 🤷♂️
Noisy goodness! Took me so many years to got into this, no regrets. Easy 5 stars.
Not terrible, not great.
I can see the appeal, but I’m just not into it right now.
It’s better than the previous Sonic Youth album but isn’t really worth shouting about. It’s very ordinary.
Two things strike me about this record (and Sonic Youth in general): #1 It sounds like the band puts their tracks together by first jamming, then gluing pieces from the jams together and calling it a "song". Those jams might have been fun to do, but the results never sound like thought-out pieces - they just sound like people randomly scrubbing away on guitars, with vocal melodies tacked on as an afterthought. #2 For all of SY's so-called experimention with alternate tunings, etc., the guitars on these records sound practically unadorned (aside from some fuzz), as though adding any processing would ruin the SY "aesthetic". The bare-bones sound of cheap 'n' tinny pawn shop guitars gets old very quickly though. (Same goes for things like vocals, it's as though the band thinks a decent well-miked and properly treated vocal would sound inauthentic somehow. *Trouble is* that the raw quality of the vocals on this record sounds like the product of incompetent engineering and production rather than something "genuine".)
It was good
Okay WOW I used to think that I wasn't crazy about these sonics (no pun intended). However, listening to this record directly after Heaven 17 is like "okay, at the very least it's in my neighborhood of interest...it's got something I can bite into". For whatever combination of reasons, now that I'm older this record has been much more accessible to me, even evoking some strong emotions at times.
This album surprised me. I've never cared for Sonic Youth, mostly regarding them as tuneless noise. While too long by half, the great driving groove keeps things interesting. This one might be grower.
3.0 - Ok
Takes some getting into but the noise does turn to music eventually.
Not an album done to create radio hits, this one pulls you in in a different way. Lots going on in here, and really compelling. Broad sound, definitely dense.
hell yeah
Listen to some of their 90s stuff so wasn't to familiar with this. Like the 90s stuff a little better,. 2.5/5
No real notes, this is the first album I'd already heard before this project recommended it and I do like it and Sonic Youth in general.
I have listened to this album only once before and I thought it was just ok. But listening to it this time round I’m in love with this album. What an intro Teen Age Riot has, just sets up the whole album nicely. Now this is a 5 star album and it couldn’t have come at a better time as I’ve had shit album after shit album I thought about quitting! Not now, thank you Sonic Youth
This is an album I’ve enjoyed for many years. I spent most of the time listening to it contemplating if it is a 5 or not, and which SY album is my favourite. I concluded that this is a 5. It’s consistent, it’s raucous, it’s enjoyable. There’s no real reason for me not to give this the full rating.
Appreciated the listen and reading a bit about the album.
Interesting and sometimes overwhelming guitar sound, but I'm sure that's the aim. Reminded me of Iggy Pop in parts. I'm sure there is a cult following.
It’s a powerful experience. They have many albums that could be considered their peak and for me this is the one. They realise everything they are capable of, the recording and production is refined, but just enough to maintain direct links to their roots. They have smothered the artwork with mystery and lore, mostly tongue in cheek and poking fun at themselves. The double album format, though unusual for the genre, allows them to stretch out, letting songs breathe and groove. The energy simply drips from the album. So much has been said about Daydream Nation before, so I’ll just give a mention to something I’ve noticed more and more with recent listens. As I kid I would enjoy the many intros as tension builders, helping elevate the moment when the song explodes, but lately, those intros have taken on new life for me. They are moments of genuine and sometimes surprisingly delicate beauty. Having said that I can find a lot of beauty in even the most intense adrenaline filled moments too. A strong 4
Bit grungey for me
I found it very repetitive! I wish I enjoyed it more.
Well, I guess the good news is that I made twice through this album- which hasn’t always been the case with some of the suggestions on this list. I was never into Sonic Youth and after listening to this album I don’t think my opinion has changed. They are ok, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to them. Struggling between a 2 or a 3 for this one.
A bit all over the place, love some stuff, like some stuff, not bothered by some stuff.
This album was a trip. I somehow missed Sonic Youth the first time around. It is an excellent album, even as they get a bit more experimental as the album progresses. I'm not as effusive as some but still really enjoyed the album
Indie rock noise masterpiece
not my thing sorry
I was prepared for overly self aware weirdness but there are legitimately great tunes in here. I really like it. For a 70 minute double album it really doesn't feel like it overstays its welcome.
I want to go back and listen, but I think these guys are good. My first Sonic Youth so I will explore further
One of the great guitar albums.
无感
Pretty cool punk/noise rock album.
This album is 70% distortion.
I like this more than I remember, but not every song needs to end in a cacophony of noise.
Great album!
The part in Eric’s Trip that sounds like an elephant is really neat to me. The guitars throughout this entire thing just rip. The hooks are really catchy within the distortion. A double album that feels worthy of its length.
There's no denying this album's legacy or influence, and Teen Age Riot is an incredible track... I just think some of it devolves into noise rock and it's not as cohesive as some of the other classics on this list. Still, there's a lot I loved here.
Teenage Riot one of my favorite first tracks ever.
There's something moving over there to the right Like nothing I've ever seen
I love the way they go high energy punky thrash into discordant noise that resolves into these chiming songs. Hey Joni is epic and Teenage Riot is one of the best songs ever--that riff is apex predator epic.
Meh, I don’t know. I tried and failed to get into them decades ago. Just lost in the wall of noise for much of this album, though some moments did break through.
I really enjoy this, there is a sense of envelopment and taking up of space.
I always want to like Sonic Youth more because it would be cool to like a band from the 80s and they are so close to being really enjoyable. It's great noise rock, but there are too many spoken word songs, especially by Kim - but I guess the fact that I don't like it makes it even more punk. I will give EVOL a 4 or 5, but Daydream Nation gets a 3.
There were a couple fun songs ("Providence" anyone?), but not enough to justify rounding up from 3.5 stars, if only because this album seems like it could have benefitted from some trimming of fat.
Too much noise for my taste, although I'll stick with "Sprawl"
Just not very good,
Pretty good
2.8
A very frustrating album that comes down to my own personal preferences. There are some pretty decent tracks on this album that lean more into an interesting melodic melancholy that made for some quality songs. But so much of the ambient noise comes off as completely unnecessary runtime padding - this absolutely did not need to be a double album. Honestly would have preferred more distortion with the ambience to lean into a proto-shoegaze sound. Sonic Youth's best, and it still leaves some to be desired. Top tracks: Teen Age Riot, Total Trash, Candle
Enjoyed at first but tired of it by end
It turns out that while I like the concept of Sonic Youth, I don't like their music. Just kidding . . . kind of. As long as Kim Gordon isn't "singing," their music is pretty dang good. There are just too many times over the course of any Sonic Youth album where I'm thinking, "Alright, already with the noise jam. Get to the song." My favorite Sonic Youth albums are the ones with less noise jamming (and less Kim) and more song. Daydream Nation is pretty coherent and has some really great moments, but there's just too much stuff that I feel compelled to skip to go higher than a four. And even then, I feel I'm being a tad generous.
I didn't listen to this yesterday, but then I didn't need to. This album was my first intro to SY, and I've listened to it maybe more than any other album ever - except possibly Reign in Blood by Slayer. (If I had to pick my number one favorite album of all time, it would probably be a tie between those two.) There's not a single track on here that I don't like. Hell, I remember driving across western Kansas in the middle of the night in 1993 or something listening to Providence and that, maybe the oddest track on the album, was perfect: the lone piano, the record scratches and pops, the spoken word, and the transition to the single guitar riff that opens Candle. Fuckin a, I love this album. I think, too, this album really marks SY's transition from no wave avant noise band to a fully formed guitar rock band. They remained loud, of course, and churned out plenty of long, flailing walls of noise, but albums became tighter and more attuned to pop culture (especially when Kim G was writing them). So, yeah, fuckin a, I love this album.
If most of pop and rock are portraits or still lives with clear subjects, Sonic Youth is doing William Turner landscapes - moody and indistinct. They don’t sound like much else before them, and definitely bridged the early indie bands of the 80s to the 90s indie scene. That’s probably a good thing given their incredibly pretentious name. This is one of my favorite records of theirs, including the Gerhardt Richter cover. Teen Age Riot, Total Trash and the Trilogy are great. I even like a throwaway like Providence which manages to be funny and sad at the same time.
Some good songs, some cool sounds, but mostly not melodic enough for me, and I don’t like one of the (two?) main vocalists.
5/5 - Noisy in all the right ways. One of the best leadoff tracks ever. I love Sprawl and Hey Joni. Wandering guitars, far off vocals, punk art. Just a great package that challenges and pleases my eardrums.
Ok
Not sure about this, found myself nodding along a few times but found some of it a bit too avant garde, would probably grow on me with a few more listens though
Listens: 2 (barely) Standout Tracks: None I did not care for this album at all. I am not impressed by Sonic Youth (second album on the List so far) and I really hope there isn't a third. There's a lot of noise going on; it felt disorganized, disjointed, dissonant and dizzying listening to this. At 1h 10m I wanted very much for the album to be half as long.
Remarkable and great all the way through. Starting with Teenage Riot, this album goes uninterrupted until a few songs in, blistering guitars, powerful drums and lyrics that cut deep. Always recommended.
Post-Punk is a bit weird. This is the second Sonic Youth album, and I don't get the appeal. They also described it as "Noise-Rock" and that makes sense. The most traditional punk song I think it Silver Rocket. That one will be going on the playlist. Outside that, it's more miss than hit for me. 2stars
I imagined a Kids In The Hall Sketch, where they're a terrible band but they think they're really good, and they introduce the song: "This one is called, 'I Rode The Bus Today'" and it opens just like "Hey Joni" and after the intro they sing, "I rode the bus today because my car is in the shop! " and then the song ends with a noisy clamor to no applause from the people in the coffee shop. It's a running gag through the episode, where each time they introduce a different song, "This one is called, 'I Rode My Bike Today'" and they play a different intro because it's a 'different song', but then it's just "Hey Joni" again and he sings, "I rode my bike today because I missed the bus!" and the song ends in the same clamor to bewildered looks from a couple of other people in the produce section of the grocery store. Each time it's in a different unusual location - a backyard barbecue, an office building amongst the cubes, the tarmac at an an airport - and each time it's a 'different' song, but they're really all the same and equally as unpleasant to listen to, and no one understands why they're there and think they're so great. That's what this album felt like to me.
Not bad for punk
Really like it. Punky
Classic
Overly monotonistic sound.
Raw and pure alternative rock music.
Thought I liked this after the first couple of songs, but I could only take so much mediocre indie-punk-rock featuring discordant noisy guitars for so long.
One of the best indie rock albums ever recorded. Captures a moment in musical time, a perfectly paced album that hasn't grown stale in the years since release.
I just had Goo pop up on here yesterday. Well, Goo is really great - and to me, Daydream Nation is just as good
Dark psychedelia for the 80s, pushed through thrashy punk.
I've heard of these guys. Definitely one of those bands i have seen from afar, know a couple tracks by them but never got into them. Curious to see what the album sounds like. Interesting. No for me. I get it. These guys have a big following. A feel like they are almost Radiohead level.
When I first moved down to Bournemouth in the mid 1980’s, whenever I went into town there was a vagrant/tramp/down-and-out who used to stand on a corner strumming a beaten up old ukulele at super high speed. Just the open strings mind. CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING! He thought he was a legit busker and that passers by would give him cash. He was totally deluded. CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING! Some people would occasionally give him loose change. Not because they thought he was talented, but because they wanted other people to see them do it. But, of course, it just made him carry on. Every time I went into Bournemouth he’d be there CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING!-CHING! Sonic Youth remind me of that old tramp guy.
Oh here we go... More Sonic Youth. The band I've desperately been trying to like for the majority of my life. I bet if I wore that Sonic Youth t-shirt that everyone had in the 90s that had a washing machine on it to a party when I was in high school I would have been chatted up a by a girl that was much cooler than me (named Raven or Skye or Tempest or something). I've always felt like they're one of those bands that everyone likes the idea of, but nobody can really get into because their guitars are so unpleasing. I wanted to dismiss this album based on my preconceived notions... but WTF- this album actually rocks. Maybe if I checked this out back in the day I could have worn that shirt unironically and without fear of being a poser and Raven and I would have been high-school sweethearts. Fuck... I guess timing is everything.
First time I heard Sonic Youth was this album in the late 80’s. Still sounds great.
Favourite track: Teenage Riot
Very cool. I love some of the guitar on this record. The playing is energetic and swings between melodic and dissonant with great sensitivity. The tones are really beautiful too. I feel like it melts into my ear in a buttery way. I think I was slightly more into the atmospheric ambitious tracks on this record more than the ones that felt like simple punk pieces. With it being a double record, I find it a little hard to appreciate as a whole piece of music in such a short time.
Can hear their influence on a generation of bands but doesn’t connect with me.
An all-time favourite for me. The album where Sonic Yoith managed to perfectly fuse noise and pop songwriting.
Enjoyed it
Pretty good!
It was nice to hear music looking for a new sound.
Quem disse que é barulhento tem ouvido sensível 😂 isso é rock, bebê.
Dog shit
not my jam
Didn’t do anything for me.
Very good album I slept on way too long. 4 *
Got served with back-to-back Sonic Youth albums. This one was at least twice as good as Goo, so it gets double the stars. Tracks to Track: Total Trash
idk idk. i really thought this would be my thing and it's just not. ok im halfway through and im just not interested :( what im learning about myself through this project is that i love pop music and vocals and melodies. i never imagined i'd be someone to give Simple Minds a 4 and this a 2 but i am! that's just who i am!
It was okay. 80s alt rock, mostly long songs that all sounded kind of the same.
i can understand why this was so foundational for indie rock and i agree with its placement on this list but if i'm being honest it was a complete and total slog. i thought i liked one song off of it but apparently that was just my spotify on shuffle playing something else.
this album is simultaneously very cool, weird, important, noisy, experimental, annoying, and influential. it's so clearly an inspiration for many bands that came afterwards, and if you close your eyes you can hear shades of nirvana, other grunge, post-hardcore, and much more. that said, it is 70 minutes long and kinda loses its grip after the first few tracks. there are five seven-minute songs, each somehow more identical than the last. i'm not gonna put this album very often (beyond teen age riot, thank you for introducing me to it, rock band 2) but i sure am glad it's here. favorites: teen age riot, silver rocket, the sprawl, 'cross the breeze, eric's trip
Struggled to get into this one
So angsty!
I think this was my introduction to Sonic Youth back when I was at university and it started an adoration for the band and its members that continues to this day. I know a lot of people write this off as just noise, but I genuinely think that Sonic Youth manage to draw such stunning melodiousness from that noise.
Daydream Nation is the embodiment of the sprawl. It's a long album that verges on improvisation, with unapologetic vocals and fast searing overdriven guitars and long winding instrumentals and repeated musical motifs sprinkled throughout. Its lyrics capture youthful 80s disillusionment with its mix of science fiction allusions and surrealist themes. In this way it feels almost apocalyptic, a death by a thousand cuts. So much has already been praised about this album it's hard to add much of anything unique to the discourse. I will say, Sonic Youth is a band I never got into very much when younger. I didn't see the appeal, didn't have the patience I guess for the longer songs. After listening closely due to this generator, I got it. I went back and listened again. Yeah, it's great.
Great noise rock, can see how influential this is. Not something I would come back to full album that often. 8/10
En 1988 explicando todo el rock alternativo que se vino después. Unos genios. Unos pioneros. Y un gran disco. Un poco largo, eso sí. 8/10
black friday is just weeks away as i spend imaginary times in guitar center looking at that one instrument the perfect alternative instrument with the music blasting slowly creeping flooding out of the speaker and into the room, a thousand issues of madness floating together toward me, submerged emerged isn't that good? lifelike actual size pain continues until everybody's favourite 7/4 song sounds again from the far side of the moon, singing bout new guitars lasagnas five star daydream, think i'll buy season ticket for my supported football team, gooddamn crazy floating reverb drained feedback wails, hypeing me up like continuously drinking coffee but in the end sleeping in front of tv, dreaming of elevating myself up into outer space and you asked, can you stop writing such a personal "review" that is even not a review? i said no, and you asked again, do i wanna know what happened regarding your shame of not being a good enough guitarist? no, i said, but i am the one that build its life upon alternative rock and noise rock and shoegaze and couldn't even get hold of the holy sword of the genres... is this really happening, or is this not happening? i don't know what will happen when i look up to my shiny stars and thought that the instrument has become such a crucial part of them that i just don't fucking know what will i think when i finally get hold of it... will i think of them in tears? will they hate me? will they just say nothing? so load up on guns and kill all my dreams my hopes my imaginary friends, and watch every song becoming a weeping song and before the radio dropped dead, heaven knows if i'll still be weeping long. 5/5
Enjoyed a number of the songs, but a few too many long sections that just kinda sounded like noise.
Good album - ambitious, sprawling, and clearly influential
I should give this another go, as I really liked the other album I’ve gotten from them, “Sister.” The noise wasn’t working for me as well on this day, though I still liked a lot of elements. on this day.
As a teen in 90s, I had a certain subset of friends listening to Sonic Youth's albums released in the mid 90s. For some reason, those never hit my ear right, and I just thought "I don't like Sonic Youth." Simple as that. Here we are, a whole lot of years later, rocking the fuck out to this album, missing all the years I could have been listening to this. I absolutely cannot believe this came out in 1988. It sounds fresh today, and is undeniably a major influence on the staples of my music diet. For context of how different this was in 88, MJ's Bad, The Joshua Tree, and Luka by Suzanne Vega won Grammys that year. Incredible. I can't imagine what it was like to hear this when it came out. After 400some albums I have listened to from this list, this is the first that has changed my preconceived ideas about a band. I think what I'm so interested here is that the album has basically all the things I complain about on other albums, especially discordance and limited vocal talent. However, they take all the things I don't like and make them very palatable for me.
Nicht aus Spotify
BLACK MIDI OWE A GREAT DEAL TO SONIC YOUTH
Rating: 6/10 Some great moments, overall too noisy and long.
No engagement. Wasn't awful.
En tykkää
This opens with a song I remember from Rock Band 2. It’s loud, trippy, weird, and aggressive but balanced with a lot of melodic passages throughout. Fun in small doses, and perhaps something that could be appreciated over multiple spins, but it’s a LOT to take in over its massive length. Cool, but not really my kind of cool.
This was a Teen Age Riot.
Yeah good
I forgot how great this album is.
I kinda like some of it, a lot of the guitar is very cool, but the same pattern often repeats for the entire song and it becomes very long and kind of repetitive. It's probably technically impressive and very innovative for its time, but I don't find it to be something I'd want to listen to for enjoyment Standouts Kissability 3/5
Good album. Took a few listens to get into it.
I don't get Sonic Youth. Some stuff I don’t mind, but others stuff just destroys my will to live. This album is mostly the latter. Although, Teenage Riot is an all out classic. While I love the distant vocals and some of the distortion, I like it better when it’s less Pink Floyd Art School Noise, and more distorted heavy pop. This album is just noise for too much time. As influential as it is, you can hear every garage rock band since in every note, it is pretty pompous and overblown. It could have been slimmed down by a good half hour. I will never think this album is good, but it does signpost the route that SY will take for their 90s sound, and it is undeniably influential, particularly for the then up and coming riot and grunge sound.
Absolutely phenomenal album. One of the best of its era. And I know everyone that loves it likes to call out Teen Age Riot for how great it is, and rightly so, but 'Cross the Breeze is the absolute knockout punch of this record. A true behemoth of a song if I've ever heard one.
My Apple Music algorithm keeps trying to get me to listen to Sonic Youth. And the songs that I haven't skipped, I haven't loved. However, their music works so much better in a full album context. It's still not my favorite, but I can see why the streaming algorithm overlords thinks I'll like them.
Meh.
I enjoyed this album. I would like to take a deeper dive into it. Every song is different yet somehow has a similar theme.
Rock with some alternative and punk vibes. Interesting but drawn out.
Grew on me alot
How important to me are the lyrics in a Sonic Youth song? Honestly now. I mean, of course they're important in general; they wouldn't be here if they weren't. People just like having words in their music, y'know? But to me, specifically: how much do they matter? I've often said I'm melody first over lyrics. Mostly it's just a result of my being AuDHD and having a hard time deciphering some of the more complex lyrics out there, but at the same time ... isn't melody what most people come to music for? And I stress "most people"; I know hip hop has never been a terribly melodic genre, and there's always been a place in the world for the more atonal experimental material. For the average person, though, among which I count myself, melody should be important. Otherwise, it's just poetry with some pretty sounds underneath. Some folks would dig that — I wouldn't. And in Sonic Youth's case, there's an additional factor to consider: **their** genre, shoegaze. It's one I remember struggling with early on with My Bloody Valentine's 'm b v', but this deep in the list, I think I get it. It's ambient music. Heavy, guitar driven, noise drenched ambient music. It's vibes shit. It ain't purely instrumental, like most ambient music is, but the vibes are strong nonetheless. And as ambient music goes, I'd prefer the electronic stuff, but this "rock version" ain't all too bad. With this framework in mind I absolutely loved 'loveless' back when my group got it. That album is **the** name in shoegaze, and if I like that, hey, I could probably maybe like any of it. Honestly, it occurs to me I might not've liked the last two Sonic Youth albums my group has gotten **because** I wasn't using this framework. So that's what I tried to do here with 'Daydream Nation', rival to 'Goo' for **the** Sonic Youth album. And a long one, too — 76 minutes! I've heard longer, but goodness, a double dose of shoegaze? A slightly younger me would've revlused at the idea. But maybe this current me, wiser in their ways nearly 700 albums deep into this list, would like it more? Maybe? Does it work if you take it on vibes and energy? I'd say it works more than it doesn't, and in the spots where it doesn't it's more down to my tastes than anything. I'll tell you, for me the vibes peaked within the first three songs. "Teen Age Riot" is often considered one of the greatest album openers of all time (so I've heard), and I think it lived up. The intro section especially was incredible. I maybe could actually listen to it for an hour. Then you have the closing section of "The Sprawl", which is pretty much exactly what I wanted from this album. It's this mesmerizing guitar line that repeats into disintegration. In an attempt to fit with the album cover I tried to stare at a video of a candle the entire time — unfortunately, I kept getting distracted. But listening to the outro of "The Sprawl" and staring at this candle, that was probably my favorite experience of the entire album. Afterwards, the albums get significantly less ambient. Sort of disappointed, but whatever. Do the vibes still hold up? Well, it's here where it starts wavering and where my tastes start coming more into play. See, a lot of this album strikes me as ... stressed. And more than a little peeved. So there's quite a few songs and sections that come off to me as a little tense and unnerving. And if I were taking the lyrics in mind like most people would've, I imagined it'd fit quite well. But as a vibe — strictly as a **vibe** — it's not much my flow. Unless I'm imagining some scene with my OCs where it calls for tense music, I don't often tend to seek it out. Frankly, I'm much more of a fan of the disaffected ambience. **That's** the good shit. At the very least the soundscape carried me well enough that I never really cared that this thing stretches over two discs. That ain't nothing. Even if it ain't one of the more "justified" double albums I've ever heard; I know one of 'em was on a writing spree when this album was getting made, but you really couldn't have cut **that much**? Not that I could think of anything to cut, anyway; as a "vibes album" it all sort of mushed together to me after side 1. Which, y'know, that's not a bad thing as far as "vibes" are concerned, but I'm just saying: if I didn't mind it being long, I don't think I would've minded it being a little shorter either. But in the end, my question: how important are lyrics to me when it comes to Sonic Youth? I think they are a little. The mood of some of these things just ain't my thing, and they'd probably need the lyrics to justify them. All the same, it was probably for the best anyway. I remember my sore spot with 'Goo' was the lyrics: not even that I disliked them, but because I could just imagine the audience who'd love them, and they weren't people I'd wanna be friends with. So maybe I'd like 'Goo' better as a vibe? I'unno. But I did like 'Daydream Nation' more this way than I didn't. And if nothing else, "Teen Age Riot" and "The Sprawl" are worth the price of admission. And that's a ... pretty kool thing, y'know. (Wrong album, I know.)
The tracks feel a bit samey, but that doesn't make this a bad album. 4.5 bumped down to 4.
I’m at a 5. I think this album is an acquired taste of sorts; for its time, it’s a slightly unnatural blend of the shoegaze that was, the heavy metal there is, and the grunge that soon would be. It leans into a lot of heavier guitar tones, focusing on the “sonic” side of Sonic Youth, much like “Goo” did, and while it’s not complimented as nicely by some more sophisticated buildups & chords, this album overwhelms that issue by just creating a more concrete atmosphere that carries over from track to track. It feels like a heavy album, even with a lot of these tracks just being generalized teenage-y first-world shit (frustration with politics, love life issues, lost marijuana, LSD trips, ego trips, etc), and I just think the soundscape itself is super cool to sit in. Much like “Goo”, you have to be a little more present in the moment with these tracks, since the instrumental shifts really sell the ebb & flow of the album – vocals & lyrics have a presence here, but half of the time, I found the lyrics nonsensical & the vocals (mostly from Thurston Moore as opposed to Kim Gordon, who honestly has some weaker stuff here) sound like Bob Dylan got kinda trapped in there with them & went along with it. “Rain King” in particular feels like a direct rip on his flowery, verbose lyrical style, and it has far more of a vocal twang that just screams parody to me. They don’t matter as much here, though they do occasionally have their moments. Unlike “Goo”, I can’t say there’s a dropoff here – a slight homogenization boils up by the second half, due to the first half having really long tracks & since this is a 70 minute album as opposed to a 49 minute one (though the pacing feels better, somehow). I only found one track to really hit a stale point by itself, and that was “Kissability”. Past that, I just found myself pretty damn satisfied for the whole thing, especially through the first 10 tracks. As I said though, it’s an acquired taste; if you’re not into the shoegaze of the era, or the heavy metal, or if the grunge aspects are underbaked here, combined with a long runtime that can occasionally feel like it’s going nowhere or getting too same-y, then the floor here is a very understandable 3, and I wouldn’t blame that. Hell, I could even forgive a 2 under the right explanations. For me, this just worked; I think the intensity & the energy for most of the album glides really nicely, and the vocals, for as Dylan-y and non-melodic as they occasionally feel, tend to work for the more frustrated & grumpy tone this album usually takes. I do think I would’ve given this a 3 or a 4 if it had popped up earlier in the list (or hell, if it had been our first Sonic Youth album), but hearing some of their other stuff, as well as a lot of surrounding albums within this space certainly helped a bit. I don’t think it meets the critical acclaim as a top 10 album of the 1980s like that (though it’s pretty damn good for a rock album), but I generally see where the critics are coming from. I enjoyed it, and while there are probably flaws I could’ve touched on (especially in shaving down the runtime here and there), I think those are for other people who disliked this more to amplify. I’m personally at a 5; I just liked it a lot. P.S.: I now do feel fatigued from hearing a shit ton of overdriven guitar at high tempos for the last few weeks. Enough with the damn “Atomizer”s & the “Double Nickels on the Dime”s & now this – I just want some nice, happy, fun pop music tomorrow, or anything chill.
Yah this list is making me into a pretty big sonic youth fan. Before I started the list I genuinely only knew the song kool thang. But now I can say all theee albums from this list have been excellent! This album started slow, for some reason I don’t care for that starting track, but for the most part this is a no skip album. Great instrumentation as always from them. The only critique that I always have for this band is I just find Kim Gordon to have the more interesting voice and vocal performances. The other singer isn’t bad just pales in comparison. It’s like the Ozzy vs Dio debate. Yah Dio is immensely talented and awesome and a super nice guy, but Ozzy’s energy and vocals somehow just work better with the sound of the band than Dio does. That being said yah I can’t actually hate on the album for having 2 singers, it adds variety which I can appreciate. Honestly the only thing holding this album back from a perfect 5 is I just don’t have that personal connection to it. I loved all the songs but I didn’t have that moment with a song where I thought it was perfect. This is another example of getting as close to a 5 as possible without achieving one.
- Kan het zelf niet beter - 0 nummers toegevoegd aan MMMM
I wish I was a teenager in early 1990 to discover this and realize that you don't need to be a stupid rockstar and live the indie dream. But I was a stupid toddler.
Half brilliant, half bollocks.
Could never get into Sonic Youth, even though they have that strong association with neil Young. This was no different Some songs were good and loud, and some were just loud.
Chaotic, noisy and fantastic. Kim Gordon’s tracks on this all stand out as top tier. Only thing preventing this from 5 is a few songs on the second half are just not quite perfect. 9/10 Favorite tracks- “Silver Rocket” “Total Trash” “Cross the Breeze” “Kissability”
There were some tree surgeons outside and they were cutting the trees. I paused the album and thought my pause button was broken because I could still hear the incessant drone. It occurred to me at that point that it must not be that enjoyable if it doesn't sound much different to a chainsaw.
Didn’t listen to all of it, but not exactly blown away by the first few tracks.
Kljub poslušanju ceuga fuka adjacent zadev v najstniških letih, iz nekega razloga nikol nism Sonic Youth raziskala. Dva dni nazaj je blo 37 let odkar je tale album izšel. Prv komad, "Teen Age Riot", mi je všeč. Naslednji, "Silver Rocket", se začne bolj punky, dokler na rata sam noise za neki cajta, po se pa počasi prelevi nazaj v prvotno obliko. Zanimiv je, k majo nek specifičn svoj zvok. "The Sprawl" mi je amazing. " Cross the Breeze" sam šopa, dokler še bl ne šopa, dokler se kr naenkrat ne umiri in počas zaključ v čist drugem vajbu. In mislim, da bi loh že par komadov nazaj rekla, da škoda, da nism v najstniških letih zatavala tud sm, cause I would love it. Oziroma, hm, I wasn't ready for this. Takrat sm mogla derivative preposlušat, da zj loh tole cenim. To bo en teh albumov, k bom še pršla nazaj. Hm, začetek "Total Trash" mi ringa a bell, pomoje ta komad poznam. Jap. "Providence" je k iz neke horror igre & telefonska tajnica? Edini ne-komad. In, sm že pri zadnjih treh komadih, k nj bi skupaj tvoril okol 14 minutno celoto. A fak, "Hyperstation" (srednji komad od "Trilogy") tud poznam od prej. Fin je. Je kr a trip cel album in ne nujno za vsacga. Noisy, eklektičen, komadi so dolgi po 7 minut. Ampak zraven pa mi ta noise popraska nek itch in melodije so mi všeč.
This one was so great to delve into but one day is definitely not enough with this album. It is just starting to reveal itself and the journey it took me on needs to be enjoyed again. It's awesome to hear when future artists and albums are shaped by the sound of another. That is definitely the case with this album and this band in general.
4.5 stars. Indie rock that borders on noise rock but in a good way. Heavy punk influences (as well as some shoe-gaze, but heavier) and a clear precursor to grunge alt rock. So many catchy hooks throughout that. Long stretches of instrumental-only that highlights the talented guitar work and drumming. Only skip is the interlude-y "Providence" with its dubbed phone messages. "Hey Joni" is their art rock at it's best. Standout is the iconic leadoff "Teenage Riot".
Some of the vocals are not my favorite but overall not a bad album. I think I'd like it more if it was only instrumental. May just not be for me.
Overall I thought the album was fine. There’s a discrepancy between how I felt about the album and the popularity of the band that I think you have to chalk up to “you just had to be there…”
This album, like the youth themselves, is passionate and adrenaline fueled but is also all over the place and sometimes misdirected. When it was good, it was great, but it had some real stinker moments too
Daydream Nation is hard to classify on first listen. The only things that jump out at you are masterful guitar sounds, from over an hour of runtime. What can be said is that these guitar sounds are enough to give this a place on the list, they’re pioneering as well as being really rather great too. Can you tell I haven’t much to say? What’s best here are the longer (over seven minute) tracks, that are given free rein to sprawl. See, well, The Sprawl for probably my favourite example of this. I’m a fan of these sorts of loud bands that started at CBGB in the 80s, Swans being another. This is by all accounts one of, if not the most influential record of that ilk, so I’ll be listening to it a lot more, I can guarantee that.
When I think of Sonic Youth, I often remember the scene in Juno where the main character angrily shouts something along the lines of "I listened to more Sonic Youth and it all sounds the same!" It's not an unfair criticism of the band who were so determined to try to stay underground that they rarely branched out from their characteristic sound (with occasional exceptions before running back to their comfort zone). I say all of this as a fan. I love Sonic Youth but I admit that you can't really sit and listen to more than two albums in a row without it sounding the same. So if you had absolutely had to pick only one of their albums that you could ever listen to again, it's a safe bet that the majority would pick "Daydream Nation", the band's magnum opus. It would absolutely be my choice. It's the point where their sound matured, where they learned to channel their live performances into recordings, where their indie label street cred reached its greatest peak. Each of the three main vocalists has some of their best work here (Kim Gordon on "Cross the Breeze", Lee Ronaldo on "Hey Joni", and Thurston Moore on "Candle" are a few highlights worth mentioning). For me, this is one of the albums that truly ushered in the 90s. It didn't create the blueprint for noise rock or grunge but it sure offered a lot of inspiration. Sonic Youth could have stopped here and basked in their cult status. But I'm not mad that they kept going. "Daydream Nation" is arguably their best but they did continue to make some great music after, even if it's very similar. One of my favorite concert memories will always be seeing this album played live in its entirety.
Loved it. Its going into standard rotation.
No wave classic
great album. classic distortion
This one didn’t grab me. Lacking self me melodies that I gotta have.
Bad
Sonic Youth's magnum opus captures the band at arguably the perfect time in their transition from pure (and sometimes nearly unlistenable) noise rock ("Bad Moon Rising") to alternative rock megastars ("Dirty"). This record gets a bit sprawling and might have been served by a bit of tightening - I'm not sure the 14 minutes "Trilogy" was a necessary end to the record - but the highlights here are among Sonic Youth's best work - led by the terrific "Teen Age Riot". A great album worth the effort to appreciate.
Not great everything samey, liked A the wonder the most
This was better than the first Sonic Youth album I got (Dirty), but still didn’t love it. The opening song has like 30m streams but I didn’t like it because it sounded like they were doing a Beach Boys impression. The next 6 songs were pretty good hard punk, and I enjoyed these and I’m basing my score mainly off these tracks. The second half of the album devolved into noise rock, which I hate. All this adds up to a respectable 3/5. Still don’t get the hype around this band.
Between yesterday and today I've listened to this about 3 times. In each listen I was able to hang on with attention for about 5 or so songs before I got distracted by other things. So rather than try to give something of a comprehensive review, I'm running this one off of vibes. I'll start by saying this is a rather long album weighing in at ~70 minutes. Be that as it may, I don't think the album suffers in any way for running as long as it does. On each listen I was happy to be locked into Sonic Youth's world for the entire time. Their sound varies stylistically from track to track, but there is a cohesive / consistent quality to their sound that I really enjoy. While I can see how the deluges into noise rock might not be everyone's cup of tea and could see someone making an argument that this is pure musical masturbation, I personally enjoyed the loose ends and messiness throughout. Tight drums, fuzzy guitar lines, and some solid bass. Favorites that I remember from my listens are Silver Rocket, 'Cross the Breeze, Rain King, and Teen Age Riot. Solid 4 for me, could see this one growing on me.
My favorite of the Sonic Youth albums we have had so far. Low 3.
Oh no 70 minutes of Sonic Youth definitely not looking forward to this at all. Let's see if this album can break the streak of the other four albums getting a 2. Can't believe we have 5 Sonic Youth albums on here. To be fair Teen Age Riot is actually a pretty good song. But in classic Sonic Youth fashion they put their best song as the first on the album. Did not like too much after that, just a bunch of noisey dribble. Probably their best album so far, maybe it is because I listened on a speaker rather than headphones, but still not enough to get it out of a 2. We will go 2.8
Had its moments but way too long. I hope we're done with Sonic Youth.
cool. almost 90s. rock.
I'll admit that this is one of those albums that I completely forgot the sound of. Not sure when and where I listened to it or what mood I was in or if I was distracted, but it just happens sometimes - and without listening notes like these, I have little to no clue what I initially even thought! Teen Age Riot and Silver Rocket are great openers to this release. I find that the issues I have with Kim's vocals (which I also stated in my review for Goo) are also here on The Sprawl and 'Cross the Breeze. Perhaps a few too many (5!) 7 minute songs on this release as well. Long songs can be great if the arrangement is also great. However, I find these tracks just sound very same-y for the whole duration, and the album ends up clocking in over 70 minutes total. Hey Joni and Candle are both great second half tracks, and I think the Trilogy is a pretty stellar album finisher - particularly The Wonder. I think I'm actually going to bump this up to a 3.5, there's a few songs I've come around to on the second listen.
Arguably their greatest album. I saw them at Glastonbury many years ago. Nice and noisy before Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros took the stage.
This album was OK. It definitely had a lot of noise. I had a hard time focusing in on this album but didn't actively dislike it. I just didn't find it very interesting. 4/10
Later punk vibes. Long songs that descend into chaos at times, very little melodic singing, mostly monotone but with feeling. Driving songs. Heavy beats. Kind of good to zone out too. I haven't listened to the lyrics much, but I like the sound. Reminds me of Dinosaur Jr (love) but more droning and heavy.
My favorite from Sonic Youth and has been an inspiration for me many times. While I do enjoy Sonic Youth’s more experimental and noisy side I really love the more focused and structured side presented on this album. Easy 5 for me.
Wow, these folks have been at it a long time. I've heard a couple of songs from them, but haven't heard anything else. I immediately hear their influence in several bands I like. I hear At the Drive-In, Nirvana, and Frodus, among others. Is this considered post-punk? Good stuff, whatever it's called. This album was a banger. 5
Another iconic band that I have mixed feelings on. Some cool ideas on here, but I just can't get into the whole Noise rock thing. I needed a bit more structure.
Almost gave it six stars by accident. An all-time favourite and I only regret that my desktop doesn't have near enough volume to play this at blindness-inducing volumes.
Rock Band 2 was cool, right? Besides completing it with my beloved draughter, it was the first time I heard "PDA" by Interpol. But that is beside the point. Because I also believe it was the first time I heard "Teen Age Riot" by Sonic Youth. Of course, I knew Sonic Youth. I bought Goo in high school. It had some stuff I liked, but I was not inspired to collect Sonic Youth's discography. I think they set to punk out on their major label debut so they leaned into the noise. I now think it is a shame that I did not also pick up Daydream Nation. Dare I say that Daydream Nation is more accessible than Goo? Of course I dare say it. Talk is cheap. I mean, Daydream Nation still has its share of noise. But as I was listening to Daydream Nation, I wondered if I coined the term "prog punk." I never bothered to check. I would probably be inclined to give the album 4.5 stars, but since I cannot and I am feeling nostalgic, 5 stars it is.
i don't know much about sonic youth aside from, like, knowing who kim gordon is and having heard teen age riot before. and wouldn't you know it? today is the day i learn that kim gordon was in the band that made teen age riot and - why are you booing me?? like, c'mon - i knew she existed but i didn't know which band!! she was just, like, this amorphous figure in the echelons of riot grrrls and at some point in the indeterminate past did cool shit that meant a lot to a bunch of different people - why would i think she was in THIS band in particular?? that's a guy singing teen age riot. they could've gotten any gal off the street to do that voice over. please stop throwing tomatoes at me they're REALLY smelly!! AND THEY STAIN... all elaborate bits to distract from my admitted ignorance aside, i was honestly surprised to learn this album was '88 - if i had to guess (with my approximate and incorrect knowledge of things) i would've placed teen age riot somewhere in the mid-90s. it struck me that, if i really don't know anything about an album aside from one song and i'm placing it ~7+ years ahead of when it was actually released, this album must've really have some innovative and forward-thinking sounds. unfortunately... of this album's sound... if it was any more distorted, any more fuzzy, i'm certain it would've given me a headache. i can see how teen age riot is the breakout hit of this album (and, perhaps, for sonic youth's entire discography), and i'm a little sad that it was kinda all downhill after the first track. granted, i really liked some songs off of this album, and i'm not basing my whole judgement off of the fact that i can't listen to teen age riot over and over again... but getting towards the end of the album i was counting down the minutes until i could call it quits and move on with my day. i get the feeling that there's a lot more going on with this album than i'm able to glean from this initial listen through - and hey, i'm down to put this album on a few more times - but for the time being this is is sitting at a meh three stars. highlights - teen age riot, the sprawl, 'cross the breeze, eric's trip
I didn't anticipate how bad this album would be. 1 star or F.
A very interesting album, musically quite complex, I can see why it’s rated so highly, for me however I found it quite a challenging listen, I wouldn’t put this on to relax to, I’d need to be in a certain mood to listen. Also, this album is quite long, that wouldn’t be a challenge for some albums but for this one I did find myself having to take breaks listening to it to come back to it, there were quite a few songs that could’ve either been cut or shortened
It's the sound for me. I understand if people complain about the repetitiveness, but I for one enjoy it quite a lot. I feel like a 3.5 is more accurate, but sliding it up to a 4 based on the unceasing toe-taping. TEENAGE RIOT, THE SPRAWL, RAIN KING are class!!
It’s a classic. I thought I overdid it but happy I took a break from it and came back after a while
I don't know if I get the love for Sonic Youth but it was good enough
а че это за жанр
I always feel like I'm going to like Sonic Youth more than I actually do. Still good stuff but not, you know, transcendental.
I want to like Sonic Youth. The truth is that they don't really do much for me. This album has some good stuff on it, but I wouldn't revisit it. I can hear why it's important, and I'm glad I made it through, but it's a meh for me dog. Kinda noisy and meandering post-punk stuff. Maybe if I was in the mood for it it would rank higher?
Classic alternative/punk album. That boss chorus pedal never gets turned off all album long and it’s great. Best SY album imo
I like this better than the last Sonic Youth album I had. It is a double album though so we'll see if that feeling holds up across over an hour of "noise rock". If you asked me what "post-punk" meant, I would say this album. Sonic Youth is the 90s Velvet Underground. There are a lot of long songs on this album. Noise rock is right. I just got a flash of their collaboration with Cypress Hill on the Judgement Night soundtrack, I Love You Mary Jane. I guess I like this better than most Pixies albums? There's a lot of this era of music on this list for the amount of popular appeal it had. I can't tell if I like the more punk songs more or less.
7/10
Classic, but repetitive
Sonic Youth is a band that I know I should be more into, that I want to be more into, and I absolutely appreciate their contribution to music, but I am really just a casual enjoyer of their legacy. This album is a huge part of that legacy, and songs like "Teen Age Riot" prove why.
Not my kind of music
Não me cativou. Estava à espera de sentir uma ligação boa a este álbum, tinha as expectativas super altas, mas não aconteceu e tenho pena. Vou tentar dar uma outra oportunidade no futuro…
Super flat, boring sound
I enjoyed it, this is probably the best Sonic Youth album on here. I still think they're a bit pretentious though.
My fifth(!!) album on this list from Sonic Youth. I'm still tired. Interesting to see the numbers drop from track to track as you venture further into the album. I suspect my experience matched up with many others: the first song is pretty good, the second song is pretty good, the third song is pretty good... and then you realise it doesn't achieve the "incredible" status that all the critics are spouting off about. (Plus, some of the later ones are "okay" or worse. I'm looking at you, Rain King and Kissability.) Sounds a bit like if Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, and Tom Petty wrote a shoegaze record together. The vocal delivery in Eric's Trip is very Dylanesque, the vocal itself sounds Reed-ish, and I just get this Heartbreaky feeling when focusing on the instrumental. Providence is stupid. 160 seconds of people talking on the radio with Fitter Happier piano backing. Soon after, the album takes a nosedive in quality with Rain King, which is severely held back by its completely monotonous melody. You see this a lot in Bob Dylan tracks too (and it's one of the few things holding him back). The A/B/Z trilogy at the end is pretty sick though (or at least A/B are). Some good blurry post-psychedelic guitar solos in there. Generally, the vocal is pretty weak, and I have to imagine it's not Sonic Youth's focus. More emphasis is put on the guitars and adherence to proto-shoegaze (this came out the same year as Isn't Anything!). The two albums are very comparable. 3/5 Key tracks: Teen Age Riot, Silver Rocket, The Sprawl
A true achievement. The album where all members are firing at their max potential. A masterpiece
solider indierock, aber wieder tracks am limit der zuhörbarkeit.
Guter Alternativ Rock, nicht geeignet für Autofahrt mit Familie.
Pre-listen whining: Oh good, a 70 minute Sonic Youth album. I’m sure all of that time is well-used. Post-listen whining: Once again I have heard a pretty good art rock album burdened by pretension and runtime bloat. If this was 25 minutes shorter and less indulgent this would probably be my favorite Youth album of the bunch. It feels like every song ends with the same meandering minute of guitar plus feedback. Alas.
The only Sonic Youth record I sort of "get"
The suck. I wish I could give -5.
I know Sonic Youth is a legendary band but this isn't the genre for me. Didn't enjoy it and found it to be pretty grating. 3.5/10 (1.75/5)
it's ok, not catchy
7/10