Dirty

Almost a one. I've heard this referenced many times as a seminal moment in music, but it's simply not a pleasant listen.

This is a rock group out of New York, and the music here is rock and hard rock. The song titles are better than the music. A few of the tracks might be ok if I heard them a few more times, but no thanks.

Not my vibe, although cool that there are multiple singers and one is a lady. Also cool that they have an album called "Goo". And I presume I align politically. However, I got an MRI today and this felt less melodious.

No me gustó el estilo de rock

Sonic youth are good enough to make music that could be really good to listen to, but instead they do weird shit and she starts singing likes she’s constipated.

Noisy

The mixing and production on this was so awful I’m not sure what the music was actually like

Hard to understand how they got 5 albums on that list. Definitely not their best album. Some good stuffs but way too diluted.

Not really for me. Female vocals grated on me. I'd listen to one or two songs again, but definitely not an album I'd return to.

# Album Name: Dirty # Artist: Sonic Youth # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Honestly, i still dont see the appeal of this lot. # Top Tunes: # Would I listen to it again? No

全然わからん

ok

My second Sonic Youth album in 3 days. What have I done to deserve this. Cannot understand the hype with this band. Unmeasurable and tuneless. Found this one to be quite boring with no standout tracks. Sounds like a band trying to make a more mainstream album and failing

Either pretty solid or just absolute garbage, no in between. The songs Thurston Moore does vocals on are actually pretty solid. 100% is a pretty nice track, reminds me a lot of Nirvana at times. There’s some decent guitar instrumentation in there and some really cool techniques. I absolutely can’t stand Kim Gordon’s vocals, when she wants to sound good she can (On the Strip) but there are some putrid performances in this one. Orange Rolls, Angels Spit is absolutely awful, easily a bottom 3 song we’ve gotten so far. It legitimately sounds like she’s retching and about to puke at times. Nic Fit is also particularly bad, but at the very least it’s only 60 seconds. With a half dozen omissions I legitimately think I’d love this album, but the stinkers on this album are just unbearably bad.

Sonic Youth Dirty, huh? Have you tried... not doing that? Let's just wail over the music, that'll really enhance the ambience. There are inklings of good music in here, solid riffs and the like, but ugh. It's like they dumped too much MSG in their food.

The great part about this experience is that I am listening to artists I have never gotten around to listening to before. In this case, I had always heard about Sonic Youth and their influence in music but this is the first time I have ever listened to an album of theirs. The downside of this is that I may not be starting in with a good album to fully appreciate what a band has to offer. Which brings us to this album. I know this is not “the” Sonic Youth album but I also do not know if it is a good place to start in their discography it being a double album and all. It falls into the problem with most double albums in that few bands can acutally make an enjoyable double album that doesn't have too much filler. There are some songs that I like and others that should not be in this track list (such as the multiple songs where the vocalist sounds like they are literally throwing up in the microphone). I look forward to getting more Sonic Youth to get a complete picture of what a band hah to offer. With this one though I am giving it a 2/5 as the misses greatly outweigh the hits.

That's a nice cover, better than most music.

No. 172 Musically this album is good, but the vocals are horrific.

Almost abhorrent there just was a few good moments to justify this not being one of the worst albums I’ve listened to this list.

How can you be both boring and noisy? I have no idea. Neither vocalist was particularly great. How out of it do you have to be to enjoy this? Well, I have another three of their albums to listen to in the next two years, I guess.

There’s been too much of this band. I’m not listening.

"I'm just from Encino, why are you so mean-o." Are you kidding me? Two stars because a small handful of these songs are half decent and would actually be good if a better band wrote them. I hate this band with a burning passion.

Dirty is just that. Sonic Youth (poor choice of band name) has a grinding, dirty sound. Tough to be a US band in the early nineties and not be grungy, so it seems like they tried to add that into their mix. For the first time, I like the male vocals better than the female singer who seems screechy, off key, and all over the place. Purr is the best song on the over length album. Get rid of Orange Rolls, Angel Spit and Nic Fit. Was hoping Crème Brulee as the dessert song would be sweeter. Not worthy of two albums on The 1001 Must Hear List. This album makes it because of the tribute to their dead friend and the controversial Swimsuit Issue. (2.2*s) Better name would be Sonic Noise. If they go back on tour 30 years after the album, can’t really go as Sonic Youth.

Review - weird that I got an album called Dirty the day after an album called Dirt. It was good to re-establish that I just don't like Sonic Youth's music. They seem like interesting people. I bet I'd get along with them. I like almost every band that cites them as a major influence. But whenever I try listening to them I just find the songs boring and the vocals bad. I was thinking just the other week that I should give them another go. And now I have I know that nothing has changed, they're still not for me. Rating - 4.5/10 Need to hear? YES

Guess my dazzled Sonic Youthbrun ends here. I couldn’t get into this album. It just felt assaultingly noisy and I was happy when it was over. The only parts I liked were when Kim Gordon sang lead and some moments of the wall of sound aesthetic. I can also see Kim Gordon’s influence on Courtney Love, and I respond to both women’s brand of damaged, edgy delivery. Kim brings this up from a - gasp! - one for me.

I understand this album is influential, but it just didn’t appeal to me.

I, for whatever reason, never got into this band at all. I don't think I can name one song by them, even though I've been aware of them basically my entire life. Upon listening, I like a lot of things about the music (I hear pleasant hints of Fugazi), but I don't think I like either vocalist.

Meh

I’ve tried to get into Sonic Youth several times, but they just don’t do it for me. They’re very New York coded in a way that doesn’t appeal to me. They seem to be more concerned with breaking convention than making good music. That can be a good thing, as other artists would come along inspired by Sonic Youth to make great music, but I’d rather listen to those artists.

I think if I had listened to the lyrics more closely, this would have resonated more but alas, not to be this time around

Seems like being edgy is more important to them than the music. If I was an edgy teenager in the 90's then I might like it, but this kind of sound is a big part of why I think it was an inferior decade for music There's a cool guitar part on Sugar Kane Chapel Hill rocks - fun drumming

This is one of those bands I know I'm supposed to love based on the critics telling me so. I got Daydream Nation back when it came out to indie fanfare, and I could not get into it at all. At the time I was not into noisier music, so I just didn't bother listening to any of their other music when it came out. I thought maybe I'd feel differently today when Dirty showed up. I wasn't excited to find out it was an hour long, but thankfully I had the time to listen this morning. Lyrically this was funnier than I expected it to be, but I again didn't really vibe with it. The noise aspect wasn't as much the problem this time around, but it was more the sameness of most of the songs. The tracks that stood out were the slower ones, like Theresa's Sound-World, Sugar Kane and Chapel Hill. But that wasn't enough to make me actually enjoy listening to whole album.

It wasn’t horrible, but just okay

jo voll gebed mir 2 90er albe nochenand denn hani sicher freud. gest isch nice gsi aber mer mönds nöd übertriibe. die erste zwei songs sind sehr angsty und chli jooo ich hass alles und musikalisch chani nonig meeega viel mitne afange. sugar kane isch no easy. youth against fascism isch sehr es guet statement i like aber de song selber isch huuuuere langwilig. die songs sind lang. und immer mega moll und gloomy und hookless.

I'm not so sure I'm into it. I don't hate it. I don't love it.

not quite my tempo

The beauty of this experience is that I am listening to artists I have never gotten around to listening to before. In this case, I had always heard about Sonic Youth and their influence in music but this is the first time I have ever listened to an album of theirs. The downside f this is that for fans of the band I may not be starting in with a good album to fully appreciate what a band has to offer. Which brings us to this album. I know this is not *the* Sonic Youth album but I also do not know if it is a good place to start in their discography it being a double album and all. As it stands it falls into the problem with most double albums in that few bands can acutally make an enjoyable double album that doesn't feel too bloated. There are some songs that I dig and others that should not be in this track list (such as the multiple songs where the vocalist sounds like they are literally throwing up in the microphone). I look forward to getting more Sonic Youth to get a complete picture of what a band hah s to offer. With this one though I am giving it a 2/5 as the misses greatly outweigh the hits.

Nee doet me niks. Of juist saai, of juist irritante geluiden. DNF

Bad 90s rock

While there is a symphonic grandeur to their music, it ultimately bored me to death!

I don't like this. Some of the songs on this album are okay, if not really my thing. However, "Swimsuit Issue" was by far the worst song on the album, (lyrically and vocally) and really brought down my opinion of it as a whole. Two stars. (Favorite track: Sugar Kane.)

This just seemed derivative and confected, no thank you. I think this album only exists because of the success and greater creative talents of other bands and this version doesn’t add anything other than noise. A bit of a mess of an album.

It’s hard to love this immediately, it feels a bit flat and 'mungy.'  The constant droning is painful on the ear, creating a sound that is strangely compelling yet constantly misses the mark. While the rustic, grunge elements and brief nods to better bands like the Pixies are audible, they are ultimately overshadowed by an 'angry teenager' vibe (one that moans a lot). Much like 'Swimsuit Issue' it’s a terrible slog / song. I can only describe this like a jamming session.  I would go great work guys you're really onto something.  Then because they couldn't be fecked they walked off leaving me with this!  Thanks.

I'm afraid that this album commits the cardinal sin of this project which is to be incredibly boring. This is an issue at the best of times, more so when you have an album that is an hour long. The album sounds like it's derived from every other early grunge album. Few tracks are terrible in isolation, but they manage to sound affected and derivative, a poor facsimile of the styles they mimic. There were moments when both singers slip into a stylistic drawl which had me physically cringing. It sounds like kids pretending to be a rock band. Why would you listen to this when you could listen to Pixies, Pavement or early Radiohead? All of whom serve up something similar whilst sounding genuinely unique and original. This album sounds like an emulation of the early nineties grunge movement, rather than a participant.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGgg

I was really into Sonic Youth until this album and I kinda moved on. Apart from 'Wish Fulfillment' and a couple of other tracks, this just passed me by. Nothing annoying about it, well maybe some of the Kim Gordon led tracks are a bit iffy, but I can't really say anything on it is particularly attention grabbing.

I liked a handful of the songs, but overall this album is not for me. I have some friends who would love this album though. I really don't like when the woman scream sings. She sounds awful. When she sings normally she sounds fine. Several 7 minute instrumental tracks make up the back half of the album and they wore on me SUPER fast.

There are too many albums for many artists on this list. One of the biggest offenders is Sonic Youth. While I admit their albums all hit differently, I would almost consider inconsistent rather than innovative as their general sound doesn't evolve or change (with the exception of this album's predecessor Goo, they figured it out for that one). The first half of this record gets off to a poor start, with the band returning to their garage quality post-punk roots. I like the messaging of Youth Against Fascism of course, with the songs that follow getting much better over the course of the second half. It wasn't enough to salvage the record, though. 2.4/5 -> 2/5

It's only just over, and already I've forgotten it.

I know they're super influential but I didn't get it

This wasn’t for me, I wouldn’t mind if someone put it on but I am not rushing to listen to it again

Mwah. 2 sterren

listened to this a lot growing up, didn't like it then, don't like it now

One big takeaway from this project in my opinion is that there are not 1000 albums that must be listened to before I die. This is one of the ones I could have skipped. 2 stars, didn't make it very far into this one - More annoying rock, yay! Brutal back-to-back - Why must there be so much noise!!!!

Instruments were ok. I get that they influenced the grunge genre but the singing was so bad, I couldn’t get into it.

i expected more based reputation. pretty good music - expected more because Butch Vig involved

not for me this one, i could listen to it once through, but likely not again

parts good parts a bit eh

Ok punk album, just seemed to be lots of noise.

Not too sure about this one. I’m a fan of grunge and garage rock but this sounds like a group of talented musicians intentionally playing out of tune. The vocals in particular from the female vocalist are quite weak. I’ve listened to other albums from this band and know that this lofi discordant sound is not what they can sound like. Not one for me. 2 stars. Best track Sugar Kane.

This got me offside from the start, the first few tracks werr all a bit bit discordant. It got a bit more mellow and the secpnd half of the album was fine

The music is OK, vocals make this a difficult listen, particularly the Kim Gordon tracks.

Duro de roer, tinha uma música boa, Theresa's Sound-World. Dá para entender porque o grunge foi um movimento curto, só existiu 3 boas bandas.

Some ok, some annoying. I think this was their goal?

It sounds like the neighborhood kids are practicing their rock band. Didn't like Goo and didn't like this album either.

Mix van indie en grunge, beetje alternatief. Ik snap niet helemaal waarom dit album een must listen is. Klinkt leuk, maar niet heel bijzonder

Sonic Youth is a weird one for me. When they are in their more melodic riff-based mode (“Sugar Kane” for example) I love it. But mostly here it is too moody and thrashy for me.

Bad singing voice, mediocre music. Was there really nothing more deserving that could be on this list?

pas mon genre :(

Have heard a lot about Sonic Youth and their influence, can defintely see why. Raw and edgy, filled with flair and technically great. Been enjoying this kind of sound but don't have a ton else to say about this album in particular, fun but not my fav. Fav Track: Theresa's Sound-World

Not very memorable

Nog geen zin om dit een eerlijke kans te geven

Random thoughts: * I'm not a Sonic Youth fan. I've tried it many times and I'm just not buying it. * Sonic Youth and Pavement feel similar to me. and I doubt I'll ever come around. * This music isn't bad per se. But it's just not for me. * I'm sure I could give this many listens and possibly get some enjoyment out of it but I'd have to try way harder than I want to.

This is everything I dislike about 90s music but not as bad as them at the height of their powers

I'm glad so many of the bands I love were able to hear this and have it influence them cause personally I don't get it. Kim Gordon is cool, though.

It’s okay. A little too long

Not great

This album is a bit weird. Although it has some alright moments here and there, there are quite a lot of noises going on and there are parts that get quite annoying to listen to.

This was not a very enjoyable experience. I liked Sugar Kane and that’s about it.

Possibly the worst female vocalist ever ! I understand one album but not five on the list

Couldn’t get past the distortion and terrible singing.

I have a hard time getting into Sonic Youth. Seems like a lot of droning noise and screeching guitars.

A lot of feedback and just… noise before, during, and/or after some songs but I guess with a name like “Sonic” Youth, that is to be expected. Otherwise, was a decent punk rock listen. I’d prefer a 2.5.

A couple of gems, but the album was mostly uninteresting; still a good listen.

2, because i liked it but found the length grating

I feel like I like Sonic Youth conceptually and I'm very into Kim Gordon but I did not enjoy sitting down and listening to this album as a whole.

I've made the same Sonic Youth jokes on this list already so i'll keep it short. Bad. Annoying.

Not for me Clive

I really did not enjoy this.

%60 of the songs were trash. It sounds like they tried to do something but couldn't.

Bits of it are okay, but not good enough to make me want to hear more. 3 stars or D+.

Is it an important album? Probably. Is it good? No. Is it better than the pixies. Oh yeah. Made me realize how similar this is to smashing pumpkins first album. What a weird intersection.

A strong 2, if that means anything.

270/1089 - Given the sad news I thought I was gonna get Brown Sugar which is definitely a 5 star album but it's nice to get more Sonic youth so I can get these albums out of the way and never listen to them again. At least the drummer is competent.

Bits of this are OK, others are irritating. It's not something I'd choose to listen to. 2/5.

Maybe a little better than Sister but still not very enjoyable, except for Sugar Kane. I can hear the grunge influences but the droning guitars is just too much for me. I guess I just don't like noise rock.

It almost feels like something I’d like and then just isn’t and I’m not sure why. Liked it more on a second listen but I’m not sure that was enough to bump it to a 3. Idk I had a bad day at work so maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for it but I was trying to think of a favourite song and really struggled to pick one I liked. Fav song: Chapel Hill Least fav: Nic Fit

Really not a fan of these jokers. They go between half decent songs and just utter shit. Specific rating - 2.3 Fav song-Theresa’s sound world Least fav- nic fit

Not sure why we're being given so many Sonic Youth albums, is this noise that different from the noise in their other albums? Favourite song: Chapel Hill Least: Swimsuit Issue

This is the third and I’m hoping the last Sonic Youth album I’ve had to listen to! To be fair it’s the most listenable of the three but still not doing it for me I’m afraid.

Some super dope thrashing instrumentals on this, but too many dull moments balance out the good of those.

Favorite Track: Youth Against Facism

Typically not a big fan of 90s grunge rock but there were a few songs that were pretty solid. Favorite songs were Sugar Kane, Chapel Hill, and Purr but overall it didn’t make up for the rest of the album being noisy and abrasive.

Some elements of music but mostly noise. Not for me.

Yet another ground breaking album that I've always meant to listen to, and now trust my instincts on avoiding it. It was interesting to hear how Siouxie and the Banshees evolves into this 15 years later, still don't mean I like to listen to it. Would give 2.5 if poss.

Somehow both bland and anxiety inducing

Ist OK, aber nichts was hängen bleibt im Kopf

depressive and repetitive. Band definitely overrated.

I thought this was ok. I only listened to half of it. A variety of tracks that did have one thing in common. No tune!

Its not a great album, very of its time. Bands with a similar sound that have come since do it much better. Will not be going back. 2/5

There are a couple great songs on this record, but they’re mixed in with some serious nonsense. It’s pretty crazy, because I can see a clear pipeline from Sonic Youth to some bands I truly love, but this just didn’t do it for me. Best Track: Wish Fulfillment

Dans un vacuum, un album punk rock moyen. Souvent discordant pour être discordant, et parfois peu inspiré pour les standards d'aujourd'hui. Certain moments cool lors de build-ups, et lorsque ça sonne comme Tool. Les sons sont hit or miss, parfois trop grinçants et empilés, mais parfois c'est du lourd. Sinon, voix absolument terribles, même dans le genre. Je dois aussi manquer le contexte historique. 2.5 rounded down à cause des voix et parce que c'est long.

High and lows. Les lows sont assez nul par contre. J’aurais pris moins

90s. meh. all over.

2.5

I was already familiar with the band's name. I've heard some of their songs on various compilations. This album is probably the first one by the band that I've listened to almost in its entirety. It was too exhausting for me. I didn't like it. I don't think I'll listen to it again. 2/5

Vocals sorta suck but music is cool

Meh

Bit of greatness, bit of slop. Guitars can have some nice fuzz but the vocal performance is consistently on the punkish lower end outside of a couple save instances. On the whole, the tracks are a bit too long with too little focus to justify a repeated listen or a spot in my memory.

Hard rock album. Instrumental interludes are taking away from the songs (older trend). A try of reviving punk scene, for me - unsuccessful.

Meh. This album was just meh. Wanted to like it, as the playing wasn’t bad. The singing was just not good.

No me ha terminado de convencer, llevaba años queriendo escucharlos y no era lo que esperaba.

This has been gruelling to sit through, I was not a fan of the first album that was chosen day 1. But I can say I definitely dislike Sonic Youth and their sound after listening to this album, A lot of tracks blended together into a caucophony of distorted noise and whiney voices. Poor just poor. I am also surprised that 2 (two) Sonic Youth albums were chosen within the first week out of a supposed 1001 albums. Just shitty luck? I had to look it up apparently there are 3 (THREE) more albums that Sonic Youth have in this list, making them have 5 (FIVE) albums in the whole list. Either SY are god's gift to music and I just don't get it or the original author of the list has a massive hard on for whiney 90's alternative rock.

Not Sonic enough for me in places - perhaps because I am no longer a youth :( Too bad and messy overall, but points retained for doing it so early.

Sonic Youth? More like Sonic Nouth.

Not for me

Quite abrasive stuf, not my cup of tea per se

Sonic Youth just aren't my thing. I like other noise projects, but somehow Sonic Youth just doesn't strike me. It's just kind of frustrating how they always sound like they don't know how to tune their instruments nor even really play them properly at all, even after all these years.

Fuck sonic youth

Almost impossible for me to listen to using quality headphones, because it actually hurt my ears. I guess if you're into Noise Rock, this is the highest praise. However, I can't wrap my head around why anyone would be into Noise Rock. It's good that the album also features less noise-heavy songs. Unfortunately, if you subtract the noise, all that remains is mediocre indie rock.

With Dirty, Sonic Youth continues their descent from avant-noise royalty to alt-rock elder statesmen—albeit begrudgingly. Produced by Butch Vig (fresh off Nevermind), the album tries to fuse the band’s signature dissonance with something resembling structure. Sometimes it works: “Theresa’s Sound-World” captures a woozy, distorted beauty, its layered guitars swirling around Thurston Moore’s lethargic drawl. “Shoot” stands out thanks to its hypnotic bassline and tight rhythm section, though Kim Gordon’s monotone delivery feels more numbing than edgy. Dirty isn’t without moments—but too often, it sounds like Sonic Youth trying to be Sonic Youth™ in a grunge-hungry market.

¡¡¡Rayos!!!!, me soltaron de nuevo la diarrea.. Mala semana para la música.

I'm a bit disappointed. Some of the guitar moments on this sucked, and I found that I continuously checked to see how many songs were left.

3-10 not my style

Seems like this is the 3rd Sonic Youth album on this list for us so far. Since this was not to my liking at all, I think I officially have to announce that I don’t like this group. It is a bit unfortunate, because they have a pretty cool band name. Shame this music is not particularly good.

intense, shrill and grating—not much fun

My heart sinks when I hear stuff like this

The more i hear of this genre the lessi like it. I found the make vocal poor, the guitars jarring and the sound too weak for rock and too loud for pop

Ok if you want to listen to a grunge rock album. "100%" seemed an OK song, and generally some good guitar through most of the album. I was very put off of the female vocalists voice through most of the songs, but it seemed less strained and more palatable in "JC"

Some good songs some bad, not my style of music though

- paar moody Tracks dabei, weitestgehend aber echt anstrengend 1-2/5

The least worst Sonic Youth album which has a couple of decent songs. But once Kim's voice descends into ugly, instead of emotional, then you know it's just more noise. Surely onw album of identical shit is enough, but we've been forced to listen to four.

Salut Cyril! Pourrais-tu arrêter de m’envoyer des albums des Sonic Youth, stp? Ça commence à être franchement lourd… Faque t’es un adepte de google maps aussi? Est-ce que tu fais du GeoGuessr?(si tu connais pas: https://www.geoguessr.com/) C’est drôle, moi aussi je déambule souvent dans les grandes capitales d’Europe à travers google streets, ça démontre que l’homme veux toujours ce qu’il n’a pas… Prof d’anglais! J’aurais dut m’en douter, un français avec autant de prose en anglais, ça cours pas les rues 😂 Pour l’alliance Europe/Québec, je suis 100% pour, faites nous sortir d’ici! Ça fait un bout que je suis adepte de l’idée de reformer «l’alliance scandinave»: tout les pays descendant des vikings unis sous la même bannière, ça serait top. En plus, le Canada possède une frontière directe avec le Danemark sur une petite île en bordure du Groenland, on pourra construire le premier portail de teleportation là en terrain neutre pour pouvoir fuir de monsieur Cheetos en personne Merci pour tes recommandations, je vais explorer les différents artistes que tu proposes en parallèle de ceux de la liste, je vais peut-être même faire des doubles reviews dans les prochaines semaines. Pour l’instant, je peux aussi te proposer quelques albums d’artistes récents que j’apprécie beaucoup (tu les connais sans doutes déjà, mais je prends ma chance): Chiac Disco - Lisa Leblanc (disco-funk acadien (franco du New-Brunswick) très fun et éclaté) Ikebe Shakedown - Ikebe Shakedown (fusion jazz/funk quasi cinématique) King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - Tout leurs albums, tu connais sans doute Ping Pong Go - Ping Pong Go (jazz de jeux vidéos, petit band de Québec (j’ai même fait une animation pour eux il y a quelques années sur leur toune Corvette) Any Day Now - The Brooks (old school funk par un band Montréalais) King - Gnome (stoner metal belge qui incorpore des éléments fantasy très prog) Lost Knights - Orgone (un autre band funk, j’aime beaucoup le funk!) Bon ben, j’ai fait le tour, à la prochaine et bonne St-Jean Baptiste! (vous fêtez ça, right?)

One and a half good songs. The rest is almost unlistenable crap. 1.5/5

I liked the sound, but it wasn't really memorable. There's better 90s bands.

Trying to hard. 3 liked songs.

sonic youth sucks. stupid noise for music snobs to proclaim "genius!"

My least favorite of the Sonic Youth albums I have listened to. It feels like it's serving too many masters at the expense of the ambient and noise elements I like the most. A touch of pop, a touch of grunge and experimental songs. I see how this album and the three before it creates a road map for Alt Rock deep into the early 2000s but this one didn't hold me from start to finish.

Nah

Very discordant and shouty at times. Not real pleasant to listen to.

Didn’t hate this album but also will not be revisiting. Not a fan of the vocals.

Not much of a sonic youth fan coming into this and this one didn’t change my mind. Only the back half of this is listenable and maybe Sugar Kane. Definitely experimental but not all experiments work and most of these songs don’t do to me except make me want to skip it. 4/10.

I’ve always struggled with noise music, and by extension grunge. While I can see why it might be impactful or interesting, it’s just no fun to listen to, which makes any deeper analysis difficult. However, I will say that this album did the best at making me understand this sort of music compared to the others I’ve listened to. However, understanding is different from enjoyment, and J can’t say I enjoyed very much of this. Favorite Track: Sugar Kane

2/5. This is just bad music.

Meh

Great instrumental play but the vocals are horrendous not all the songs. Enough to really not enjoy the album, hey somebody loves it. Thats what makes music magical, we all like what we like. It would be boring if we all listened to Taylor (notso) Swift.

Populært fordi det er noise-infused rock til et bredere publikum. De er også lidt grunge agtige som giver god mening fordi nirvanas producer på nevermind er producer på det. Berører politiske områder bl.a. corporate sexism. Ukonventionel lyd men stadig godt nok til mtv Broader audience

There were virtually no sounds on this that I found appealing.

I feel like an angry teenager in the 90s hanging out in the park. This also reminds me of Scott Pilgrim.

Mostly noise

I remain amazed at some of the high reviews some of the albums you guys send over have received. This was obviously not targeted to people of my generation.

Nope. I like the sound of Sonic Youth, even as they restrain themselves and try out more conventional rock songs, they tune their instruments differently, they let feedback fill all the empty spaces in songs… decent noise rock sounds. But the songs aren’t that good, and the lyrics are embarrassingly bad, sing-songy literalist and full of forced rhymes. The songs’ concerns are not interesting, and the music doesn’t make up for it. And any time Kim Gordon “sings” it pains the ear. Sonic Youth is best when they shut up- gummies the SYR series over this any day.

Crazy that they came out of the late 70s New York scene along with The Pretenders, The Talking Heads, Lou Reed, and the like. And kept going through grunge, which it seems they did first. Unfortunately, they did it first but they don’t do music very well, so I just can’t listen with a historical ear enough to like them.

Nineties noise rock in it's purest form. There's defined droning guitars, snarling vocalists, a set of lyrics you can only barely understand, and a wide variety of not much at all. Didn't do it for me, the Sonic Youth I've listened to before this was I think later on, and benefited from being a bit more melodic.

Interesting and intriguing. Appreciate the change ups in vocals. Not my jam.

когда включала, думала "ой сейчас будет круто", но в результате очень сильно расстроена - временами было скучно, временами раздражало, временами было просто неприятно. я не подчерпнула ни че го интересного совсем и не понимаю, как это возможно. ну блин как есть... больше к этому альбому я не вернусь 100% если учесть еще и непозволительную длительность этого альбома, мне хочется забыть об этом, как о страшном сне

Eh, some cool sounds were made but wasn’t a huge fan. 2/5 Fav song Sugar Kane

2.5

Not good. Musically mediocre, but vocally painful.

Bunch of noise.

A tough listen for me. I liked the instrumentals but the vocal work was getting to me. The length was also not helping any.

Liked a few songs but overall not really

a bit too dirty for me. Sonic Youth always has been, despite many of my friends really loving them.

It's not really my thing. I enjoy a few sonic youth songs casually, but overall noise rock isn't really my thing.

Not nearly as bad as the first two I've drawn here, but just not a fan. Every time a song comes on that makes me think, hmm, maybe it's not that bad an album, the next one confirms that it is that bad. And WAY too long.

2.5 Ok we’re officially hitting diminishing returns with Sonic Youth. This is also overlong and I cannot fucking stand whatever weird awful voice Kim Gordon is using in all her songs here.

This album is just alright. No really memorable tunes. Nothing I wanted to sing along with. I could have lived without hearing it 1001 album worthy: No - 47/84

Started out OK, but I didn't really like the vocals after a few songs. Some good riffs though. 2.5/5

This was a rooough first album for me to listen to for this project. Listening on Spotify I found it interesting that the few tracks I half-liked were the least listened to by most people. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Sonic youth is not for me.

I was optimistic after the first song and then it went downhill fast. An assault on my eardrums.

Only some of these songs are songs. The others are noise. Never thought I’d say that the female vocal made this worse? And finally, why did I hear Weird Al so often?

This band is not as good as people make them out to be. Also fuck them for bullying Nardwuar.

a little too much noise for my taste

I didn't care for some of the growling and screaming here but this album was alright, overall I don't think I'm going to come back to this and have it at a 2.

While I enjoy the chaotic sounds they wring out of the guitars, the chaos is practically unceasing. The lack of contrast makes it an exhausting listen. The vocals are terrible. An exhausting listen can be rewarding, but this isn't. 2 stars

Of all Sonic Youth albums, why this one? Having heard earlier records by the band, I can say there's something about Dirty that seems like Sonic Youth are trying really hard to fit the grunge/alternative mold of the period. It doesn't feel natural or authentic. True to it's name, Dirty, sounds grimy and sludgy, but it seems like a polished, manufactured filth. At times Sonic Youth sounds like Mudhoney and the Breeders; two bands I like, but Dirty sounds too slick for as "dirty" as the instrumentation is trying to be. Highlights: "Wish Fulfilment", "JC" There are better Sonic Youth albums.

jahas lisää näitä miksi ei, miksi ei lisää. hirvittävin laulukokemus mitä olen koskaan kuullut. varmasti paskin vokalismointi albumilla mitä olen tähän mennessä kuullut, aivan vitun huumeinen känninen paska painu studiosta vittuun ja vähän ryhtiä saatana askeleeseen.. totaalisumma on neljä.. neljä slottia annettu näille. neljä istumapaikkaa noin tuhannesta.. vain noin tuhat paikkaa no otetaans nuo neljä tuoltanoin.. menkää istumaan ottakaa neljä paikkaa.. niukasti on paikkoja menkää istumaan te neljä sisarusta siellä... ei voi yksi ottaa sieltä vaan yksi kaksi kolme....nneljä!!!! kauan onk ärsitty styssien valtaa juomapoika perkele rintamahan ylös pojat pohjanmaan urhot kalliit karjalan jääkäriveri tässä velvoittaaa... sugar kane

This has been said, but I think this music and a lot of grunge was a direct response to pop music in the 80’s. Without that context it’s hard to appreciate. The noise rock is kinda cool at moments. The guitar sound and variance in how it’s used is very good. I liked Sugar Kane for that reason. Most of this is unlistenable though.

Punky noise rock, OK at times, but not an easy listen. Much better than the previous Sonic Youth album I heard from this list, E.V.O.L.

I should like Sonic Youth. I like so many of their contemporaries, but I just can't get into Sonic Youth. Maybe it's the uninteresting voices. Maybe it's just a little too raw. I don't have a good explanation, but they don't do it for me.

2/5. I don't think I like Sonic Youth. There is a sense of punk here but it feels filtered. Loud and static, but missing substance. There are some songs here that have some merit and listenability but most are not interesting enough. I do enjoy the vocals and the fact that they switch between the vocalists. The guitar is good most of the time, I just don't like the fuzz and feedback throughout all the time. Best Song: Chapel Hill, Sugar Kane, Swimsuit Issue

опять первые две песни вспоминала отличие соник юс от юс груп/алфавил. соник юс никак не захватывают меня

Not doing it for me. Maybe there was a moment in counterculture time when if you happened to be there, and you happened to be into it, then this made sense. Kim Gordon sounds like she's literally projectile vomiting the lyrics in one song (Shoot). “I would like to thank everybody for not going to see Guns N’ Roses tonight, and for coming to see Pavement and Sonic Youth instead,” Thurston Moore told a crowd. I'm at Gn'R.

I absolutely love Creme brûlée! What? The Song? No, of course not!

Reminds me a lot of other grunge bands but not as aggressive and I don't know if it fits. At the same time it also feels like some kind of pop-rock but with more dist in the guitars which also creates a sound I have a hard time pinpointing. That being said a lot of the songs are easy to listen to while going about the day. I don't know if its something I would actively listen to but I also wont skip to the next song.

Can understand the legacy on this one but personally didn't really do anything for me

Not really my cup of tea

I always want to like Sonic Youth and then I never do.

The album should be listened to consciously, is musically demanding in parts, mixed with pleasant passages. Stick with it!

3rd Sonic Youth album on this list, and my least favorite.

its fine. im not a big fan

Noise in the making, beauty in the noise?.. great elements here and there, but above all it like it is getting to conceptional. Noise rock for the purpose of noise rock, lacking groove and vibe.. I recall listening to this album back in the day, and not quite getting on board, although Sonic Youth was a big thing then (late 80’s). It hasn’t really changed now that I give it a new listen.

A couple of good tracks, but this is simply too noisy / grungy for me. I couldn't get into it.

Musically this album is good, but the vocals are horrific. 3 for the music, but minus 1 for the vocals. 2/5

Too much noise, not enough genuinely good songs. 2/5

Juno was right, it's just noise

I know so many people rave about SY. I never understood what all the fuss was about. They just sound like a hundred other bands that I could name. Just found this a little tedious.

a lot of shit from a butt. i hate grunge

“I bought another Sonic Youth album and it sucks. It’s just noise.” - Juno MacGuff. There are some good songs here, most notably “Sugar Kane” and “Chapel Hill”, but overall Juno is right. I can’t rate an album where one vocalist sings like she’s throwing up everywhere very highly.

these guys just never really do it for me

If you like screeching guitars and a whole lotta noise this is the album for you. Unfortunately for me I'm not a big fan of those things so this didn't do much for me.

I tried to get onboard with Sonic Youth back in the 90's, they just never struck a chord with me. They had popularity, but compared to their competition at the time I found them bland, bare bones and less hooky. There's just so much unnecessary noise and feedback that take away from the songs themselves, I think that was what turned me off 30 years ago. The one minor hit, "Sugar Kane", is the one tune that stands out. I gave it a listen but it's not Top 1001 for me. I can hear some influence maybe but with no hits, no longevity, no memorable songs, Kim Gordon's very unappealing voice and the overall sound that doesn't hold up well it falls well short of making my list.

painful beginning. Okay end. 2.5 stars

I really try to not let first impressions weigh too heavily on the rest of an album, but this one only took 5 seconds for me to think that it was going to be a 2 star album. Hopefully it gets better, but it started in the hole. Sugar Kane was fine. Purr was fine. These songs saved this from being a 1.

I have learned that I don't really like Sonic Youth

No, I don't care for this music

Punk rocking in the early 90's. Can't say I jammed with the style but its alright.

They did me dirty making me listen to this album.

Some powerful 90s punk. Highly recommendable, but only if you are into that kind of music. I am not. 5/10

I thought I would enjoy this more. Meh.

Love Sonic Youth, but not a fan of this era particularly. This has a few moments – Sugar Kane is prime bombastic psychedelic pop rock in the way only SY can do – but a lot of this does sound like they were trying to out-grunge grunge and forgot about all of the other elements that made their sound so engaging. Not enough subtlety in the guitars, and not generally their best tunes. Dirty: not pretty.

Oh good sonic youth. I don't know if I have the same contempt for it as Daydream Nation, they've learnt how to stand near their microphones at least. Unfortunately, sometimes they should stay away from the mics. The female vocalist especially is like nails down a chalkboard. The music is OK, it would get a 3, although it's nothing special and it's long and boring.

As a child of the 70s this hit right in my prime era of music consumption, and the alternative scene was my wheelhouse. Despite that, I never got into Sonic Youth. Listening to this full album now, I under better why. Some of was ok, but man to vocals are really awful quite a lot of the time. Maybe they’re going for something I just don’t get. And I’m ok with that.

I always feel like I *should* like Sonic Youth, but I just can't. I liked Sugar Kane well enough, but the rest of the songs were either just okay, or just bad.

I already knew I didn’t care for Sonic Youth and this didn’t change my mind.

Meh

get in the bin

Like the many of the Sonic Youth albums I've had (this in #4), it's just a bit too noisey/anti-melodic for me. They do tend to tone it down for a few songs on each record though and those are always nice. 4/10

Noisy noise

A lot of discordant noise. Meh. Enjoyed Chapel Hill because it was the least noisy nonsense in this album.

Blah

Musicians are talented and it's ok just not my cup of tea

Interesting early grunge rock, but nothing truly engaged me on this album. I did note the interesting contrast between his melodious singing and her angry rasping.

Una mica massa dur per mi...

Meh

Sounds like a bad Pixies cover band

Pretty decent but not sure why it’s on here

This album really fucked with me. There would be a good, solid grunge song that would have me feeling like this album was going in a good direction, followed by several much more experimental noise rock songs that were absolutely not my jam. I swear this back and forth happened at least three times. This is yet another case where I feel like the wrong Sonic Youth album was chosen for this project. Or maybe I only just like a very, very small slice of what they have to offer. Ultimately, the good points of the album just weren't enough to make up for the lows for me.

Sugar Kane and Dirty weren't bad. The rest didn't follow.

My favourite track was Theresa's Sound-World, it was as the title stated, a world of sound. Thick and lush. Aside from that I didn't particularly care for Sonic Youth.

I feel like I listened to worse bands that made better music.....Now I know why I never bought any of their music.

Het album begint met overstuurd geluid. Dan blijkt de zang een erfenis uit de Punk-tijd. En het derde nummer zeurt vooral. Het stomme is dat ik ondanks die ergernissen wel vaak lekker meeknik met het hoofd. Op de typische jaren 90 rock klanken die er toch doorheen zitten. Ik worstel daardoor met het cijfer. Ik zou een 2,5 normaal afronden naar een 3. Maar ik gun dit gewoon geen voldoende.

Just not very good, this.

I was expecting to like this more than I did. It was generally unremarkable.

My least favorite band of this genre.

Not my cup of tea.

I’ve mostly lost my taste for this kind of rock. Rarely listen anymore and have to be in the mood for it.

Not my bread and butter, so it was a rough listen.

Meh

This one was painful. I understand that punk and grunge are part of the history of music and there are people passionate about these styles. This album just does not connect with me musically, stylistically, lyrically or harmonically. One thing of specific note is how off key the female singer is. Yikes!

How many fucking Sonic Youth albums do we need in here? (5, apparently). Not as unpleasant as their earlier stuff.

I feel like I missed the boat on Sonic Youth.

I have wanted to like Sonic Youth but in the end its just too much noise for me and their alternative tunings weird me out. Love the female frontman and the lyrics are great, I just can't get into it

Snerende gitaren en toch rustige popmuziek. Heeft iets weg van Nirvana, maar ik vind het iets meer poppie en minder duister. Daardoor voelt het soms een beetje als punkrock. **

It starts out fine but by track #4 I was over it. Loud, repetitive, and angry noises are just not my thing.

Only listened to half, but I liked it. I'll try to listen to the rest this week.

A long, muddy, feedback-drenched album that I’m sure Pitchfork loved. Interesting moments here, though describing what the vocalists are doing here as “singing” would be pretty generous. Best song: 100%

Quite annoying

I love obnoxious loud music but I just couldn’t get into this.

They are mostly okay. I dont hate them but i dont like them - they feel like the way i feel about some food which is weird to say.

My favorite part is the middle of 'Shoot' when Kim Gordon starts to throw up having to listen herself sing. I really connected with that.

Almost every innovative band (across every genre) that has found success has followed a common career arc. One, maybe two, ultra-raw albums; one to three albums that are technically imperfect, often quirky, and filled with brilliant songs; and then one to a series of well-performed and well-produced albums that aren't nearly as interesting. I think it's because of boredom and (ambitious) desperation. Artists that want to be unique are desperate to create great works. Starting out, nothing matters but learning to play better, writing better songs, and finding and perfecting that unique sound. And when they first hit the road they have SOOOOOO much down time; so much boredom - hour upon hour in vans and crappy hotels and backstage with nothing to do but joke around, practice, and write. I think the convergence of this boredom and desperation are the periods of intense creativity. Because the artist(s) is/are still searching for that perfect sound, all of their influences are freely thrown into the cauldron and stirred around. No one outside of the band is depending on the next album selling and so there is freedom to explore and take risks. In fact, the five to ten fans a week who come to the shows are the type of people who LOVE the creativity and quirkiness. And those few encounters mean SO much to the artist(s) that it reinforces the desperation and drive to make something brilliant. The desperation is never happy with the results and it fills all of that time with editing, writing, editing, writing, editing. And then they start to perfect and hone in on their "sound." They're mastering the instruments and the song-writing process from all of the practice. The writing and recording become just a bit easier. And then success starts to come. But it doesn't make life easier - it makes it a whole lot more complex. It's no longer a band in a van; it's an organization and a brand. Suddenly there are 1,000 decisions to be made every day about the business of the organization: the touring logistics, political/social/HR shit (among the band members, the roadies, the assistants...), the record label's demands, the publicists, the image, which festivals to play in 18 months...People the artist cares deeply about start to rely on the money coming in for their livelihoods. The band, the manager, the publicist, the roadies start to collect expensive addictions, car payments, significant others, kids, mortgages, etc. And this pressure tends to fall on the one or two people who are doing the writing because it's "their band." All of that time that used to go to songwriting and editing gets eaten up by more "urgent" matters relating to the health and sustainability of the org and the brand. But it's OK, because the artist(s) is/are more practiced at the songwriting and so it comes quicker and easier. We need three more songs? No problem, I'll do it on Tuesday. But the product doesn't lie. All of that desperate creativity, the social "space" for risk-taking, and the time spent editing made great songs. Now the "sound" is polished and the techniques are mastered and the albums sell because they sound great and the concerts are sold out because the brand is known. But the songs don't quite sparkle anymore. And the org and the brand are doing great so no one in the inner orbit notices or cares in the rush of the high-life. I love Sister and Daydream Nation as much as I love any albums by any band. The songs are absolutely golden and send me into a joyous delirium. This album sounds great. It reproduces a band that's clearly mastered a really unique and interesting sound. But the songs just don't sparkle and explode and stick in my head the way those on Sister and Daydream Nation do.

Vaikka tässä vaihtelee laulaja ja biisien tyyli tosi paljon, miten voi silti olla tylsä! Yllättäkää minut kunnolla, pyydän! Jää kaikesta huolimatta muminaksi ja etäiseksi - kuulen, että tunnetta on ja sitä koetetaan välittää, mutta tällä muminalla ja melodiattomuudella (okei kyllä siellä jotain oli) ei päästä mun sydämeen.

They passed me by as a teenager. To be honest, I’m relieved. Really didn’t like this. The Kim Gordon songs in particular gave me really bad Courtney Love energy. Occasional nice guitar interplay, but generally a bit of a dirge

The band with horrible singers

This was fine. Not something that I plan to seek out in the future.

Nowhere near as good or cool as hipsters have made them out to be. Again, owned this, got very little play from me even in the pre-streaming, pre-ipod days

I might like this more if I listened to it more to get a feel for it.

2.5 I get what they were going for but it’s not my thing. Little too much screamin

It was ok!

Didn't grab me, too much distortion and I didn't connect.

Eh...some powerful lyrics here & there. Really not a fan of Kim's voice lol. I got thru it.

I know they have a great following, but did nothing for me,

This just sounds generic to me. I’m sure it’s awesome in a live club setting but on a record it’s just annoying me.

Paar nummers beginnen gruwelijk goed, maar eindigen zo tyfus slecht. Soms dat gezangjank waardoor je het wilt afzetten, dan weer goede instrumentals. is het een 4 of een 2... ga toch voor de 2

Like the Grateful Dead, Sonic Youth is a band with longstanding cultural impact with no recognizable songs.

Never listed to Sonic Youth in the day - some isn't bad, some is. Rides the line between noise and alt. 2.4

The more I listen to Sonic Youth the more I think they caught lightning in a bottle with Daydream Nation. How can one band have such a stellar, groundbreaking album, but everything else they do is pretty naff? It's rare to find a good song outside of that album nevermind a good album. The few decent tunes here are ruined by Kim's strained vocals, which are used waayyy too frequently. 2.5*

Not gonna lie, I was kinda relieved when it was over. This was just not my vibe. I'll chalk it up to my basic ass taste over the album being genuinely terrible though.

A little old fashioned anti fascist song is the only thing that saved that from a 1. I’ve never known Dave Grohl to be so wrong before.

I feel like I should really like this album, I just don't.

Usually a big grunge fan, but this album didn't impress me.

Бля, насколько же соник юз переоцененная хуйня, я маму ебал + они еще на нардвуара наехали в интервью, уебки 5/10

Not excited about this album, the female vocalist is bad. I can tolerate several songs on this album, but would not buy it.

noise

Decent sounding guitars ruined by idiotic and annoying singing.

4 people playing 4 different songs at the same time

I want to say i "get" sonic youth, that i like this slightly challenging music. i don't. i do like the noisy aggressive and interesting music, but the ineffectual talky/singy vocals that seem pretty unmelodic mixed with music that doesn't either find a driving groove or has some engaging hook doesn't entirely add up for me.

I'm not digging this pre-Paramore punk band, but I get why some love it.

Not a fan of the vocals. Music isn’t too bad.

Eh

I couldn't tell you which of the two Sonic Youth albums I've had was better I could only tell you that I didn't need two.

Interesting to hear about how this album was received in the era of grunge and Nevermind. Frankly, noisy teen garage rock has never done anything for me, and this album didn't move the needle there. There were also a few songs where the singer adopted an "I'm about to throw up" sound to her vocals, which didn't work for me.

Not a fan.

"it's just noise"

I. Hate. Noise. Rock. It's a shame, because there are a few tracks that might have sounded ok without the horrible sounding guitars (e.g., 100%, Theresa's Sound World, Wish Fulfillment, Sugar Kane, Youth Against Fascism, Stalker). Songs that weren't awful: Drunken Butterfly, Chapel Hill. Songs that made me want to tear my ears off: Swimsuit Issue, Drunken Butterfly, Shoot (Kim Gordon sounded horrendous on this one), Orange Rolls Angel's Spit, Nic Fit, On the Strip, JC, Creme Brulee. Giving it a 2 because for me a 1 means there's zero redeeming value - but it was a close thing. In fact, it had the rare distinction of sounding worse on 2nd listen. Not looking forward to hearing more Sonic Youth albums.

Oh more Sonic Youth 🙄 keeps making me think of Chronic Youth, early 2000s Raging Speedhorn. When it was in the background it was fine, but I kept listening when it was noisy 😠

It was okay

First time listening to sonic youth… I guess it’s okay??

Didnt really listen