I bought Corporate Ghost, the Sonic Youth DVD. There's something really satisfying about hearing about their exploits with other musicians I respect, like Kim Deal, Kathleen Hannah, Mike Watt, Steven Malkmus, Sleater-Kinney, etc. It's like one big experimental indie club that I would like nothing more than to join. The music videos are good overall, and mostly improve as they follow the band through their career (with the exception of the last video, Disconnection Notice, which, though it works pretty well with the feel of the song, is absolutely full of extremely distracting dialogue). In some cases, seeing the videos made the songs actually sound a lot better, namely Little Trouble Girl, directed by Mark Romanek, and Sunday, directed by Harmony Korine. The bonus material is cute and actually quite useful in the case of a nice playlist function. I give it an 8.9 and insist that all Sonic Youth fans go out and buy it so that Thurston and Kim can take a nice vacation together.
I also picked up Shellac's 1000 Hurts. Holy shit. This album and Big Black's Songs About Fucking (both bands are fronted by the genius Steve Albini) are easily the most aggressive, genuinely angry albums I have heard. I'm not talking about that generic death metal crap anger, or the unintelligible grating of grindcore, or the "Mommy took away my Xbox and I'm 2 levels from beating Red Dead Revolver!" screams of Linkin Park. No, Steve gives us the cold, biting anger of someone from whom so much has been taken away that the only conceivable way to feel some kind of happiness is through sweet sweet revenge. The bitterness and hatred are carried through in every beat of the drum machine and every note on the guitars. Musically, Shellac has progressed in more of a punk direction from Big Black's industrial roots, showing signs of some Slint influence as well as even some Nirvana-esque moments, which is understandable as Steve Albini produced In Utero. This is not for the faint of heart and it's certainly not easy listening, but if intensity is what you want then definitely check this one out. 8.3 (yes I agree with Pitchfork).
I also picked up Shellac's 1000 Hurts. Holy shit. This album and Big Black's Songs About Fucking (both bands are fronted by the genius Steve Albini) are easily the most aggressive, genuinely angry albums I have heard. I'm not talking about that generic death metal crap anger, or the unintelligible grating of grindcore, or the "Mommy took away my Xbox and I'm 2 levels from beating Red Dead Revolver!" screams of Linkin Park. No, Steve gives us the cold, biting anger of someone from whom so much has been taken away that the only conceivable way to feel some kind of happiness is through sweet sweet revenge. The bitterness and hatred are carried through in every beat of the drum machine and every note on the guitars. Musically, Shellac has progressed in more of a punk direction from Big Black's industrial roots, showing signs of some Slint influence as well as even some Nirvana-esque moments, which is understandable as Steve Albini produced In Utero. This is not for the faint of heart and it's certainly not easy listening, but if intensity is what you want then definitely check this one out. 8.3 (yes I agree with Pitchfork).