Sonic Youth

Sonic Youth, Franz Ferdinand, The Magic Numbers, Babyshambles at Norway Oya Festival, Thu 11 Aug

Review by Julian Ridgway

“Are you on drugs?” says the sternly bearded Norwegian customs official. “No,” DiS explains, “I’ve only slept an hour and I’m full of coffee. Hence the shakes.” “What are you here in Norway for?” I shudder, “A music festival.” Ping go the blue rubber gloves... our acquaintance doesn’t get as intimate as I fear and I am allowed on my way. If only Pete Doherty had been as lucky...»

Oya Festival

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Sonic Youth

• Kim Gordon - vocals, bass
• Thurston Moore - vocals, guitar
• Lee Ranaldo - guitar
• Steve Shelley - drums
• Bob Bert - drums
• Richard Edson - drums
• Jim Sclavunos - drums

Sonic Youth formed in 1981. Their first show was at the noise festival in New York that year. This was the only show that Ann DeMarinus played in the line-up. Richard Edson of Konk did the drumming for the band. Around that time Thurston got to know Glenn Branca who was one of the most important experimental artists at that time. He introduced Thurston to Lee who had been playing with Glenn. Sonic Youth's first record the 'Sonic Youth EP' was released on Glenn's own label Neutral Records. Everyone, including the band members, were amazed how well the record came off, considering the limited time and budget that was spent on it. Just before the recording of their second album Confusion Is Sex, released in 1983, Jim Sclavonous took Edson's place behind the drums.

In an interview with Guido Chiesa, Kim says: 'our music changed a lot since our first record...our second LP, [CIS] is more what we are, more emotional'. The band’s performance on stage certainly was very wild and energetic. Of this Thurston says: 'it's a way of throwing out all your inhibitions, knocking down all barriers to emotion'. Jim Sclavonous took Edson's place behind the drums for Confusion Is Sex.

During this period Sonic Youth developed their distinctive style with a emphasis on the sound textures. Bad Moon Rising, on which Bob Bert drums, clearly marks this transformation, with on the one hand the loud Death Valley'69 but also the refined way in which the greater part of the songs flow into each other. Repetition and development on themes become more predominant in the music. After the European BMR tour Bob Bert was replaced by Steve Shelley as the drummer for the band. Steve had been a great fan of the band and his influence on their development is apparent in the first album on which he drums EVOL. There is a much greater variation of styles on EVOL than on previous albums. The name of the album is a reference to the theme of accepting multiplicity, rather than expressing opposed dualism’s (EVOL spelling LOVE backwards). Thurston explains this as 'Our nature is to bring together good and evil in a single element'. The band had also moved to SST record label during this period. This label was founded by Black Flag, Henry Rollins former punk band.

The Late 80's are the peak period of Sonic Youth's independent period. Both Sister and Bad Moon Rising are highly regarded albums and 'Schizophrenia', the opening track of Sister, has a haunting quality to it. The experience of playing together has made the sound tighter but also richer. It's been suggested that the writing of Philip K. Dick (author of Blade Runner) influenced Sister. Lyrically the album certainly seems to make use of more complex imagery although the themes are still the same. The rich guitar textures that make up Sister are even more predominant on their next release Daydream Nation. Technically it is seen as a masterpiece of experimental guitar playing. Thurston, Lee and Kim all seem completely comfortable expressing their own views within a solid musical framework. DDN was released as a double album on Blast First records. During this period Sonic Youth also recorded Ciccone Youth's The Whitey Album together with Gregg Ginn and Mike Watt. 1988 also saw the release of the 'Master=Dik EP', a highly experimental record which never had much impact. When Sonic Youth joined the David Geffen label to record Goo there were concerns how the band would develop in a commercial environment.

Thurston has always made it clear that their total artistic freedom was a vital demand in their acceptance to record for the label. Acutely aware of outside perception Goo was to become a spoof on commercial recordings in many ways. Unfortunately this diverted the band from the path that they had been following with the preceding albums, making Goo a somewhat disappointing record to most. The tension between the commercial interests of Geffen and the development of Sonic Youth also became apparent on their second Geffen release Dirty. Lee Ranaldo was not happy with the way the producer Butch Vig influenced the album. Only one song of Lee ended up on the album. 'This period was the closest Sonic Youth ever came to breaking up' Lee would later proclaim. Despite the tensions recording the album, Dirty turned out to be a much more successful album than Goo. This could certainly be attributed to the fact that it is one of the most listener friendly albums by Sonic Youth.

Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star seem to point to a more experimental sound to Sonic Youth again. Not as a reaction to their commercial label, as Goo was, but as a sign of the band getting more comfortable and confident in their new position. Although less successful than it's predecessor, EJS has a much greater variation to it. Unfortunately Lee did not sing on this album, but he would return vocally for their next release Washing Machine. Perhaps it can be said that it took EJS for the band to reinvent itself. Everything seems to fall into place again on WM. Two wonderful Beat-like songs by Lee. Some strong vocals by Kim and Thurston's dreamy images. The greatest impact, no doubt, can be attributed to the closing track the 'Diamond Sea'. The most successful and cohesive example of sound-scaping produced by the band. Despite of it's length (19:33) it manages to remain engaging throughout. The longer format allowed the band to develop their mastery of weaving sounds to the maximum. A trilogy of records SY1, SY2 and SY3 would follow released on their own label, pushing the limits even further.

As their final release of the 90's Sonic Youth produced A Thousand Leaves for Geffen. It mixes tunes that are quite easy to listen to with some highly experimental tracks. Making it difficult to predict the bands future development. Their mastery of sound-scaping is at such an advanced level that the predominant musical format (3-5 minute songs) doesn't allow the band to express their abilities. Unfortunately this makes it hard for the band to reach a wide audience, as the time people take to consume a piece of information seems to get ever shorter. Artistically the band is widely regarded as being of great influence on the music scene over the past two decades. Perhaps Sonic Youth will be regarded as the greatest band never to make it big. It's doubtful though if they would have had the same influence if their development would have put them into a position where they did have mass appeal. Fashions by nature change over time and many of the most popular bands of five years ago are nowhere to be seen or heard of today. The audience who appreciates Sonic Youth will be able to enjoy the fruits of their labour for many more years to come.

Biography from www.xs4all.nl/~bigron/sonic/lyrics.html»

Franz Ferdinand

Franz Fact #1: Both Alex and Paul were once members of The Yummy Fur, although Alex does not feature on any of their recorded material.
Franz Fact #2: Alex once worked in the 13th Note in Glasgow.
Franz Fact #3: He was also in a band called The Karelia, who were "the only band in the world to sound like the Monochrome Set (sometimes)". Check out the photo in an old Jockrock review (tip: he's the one on the left on the top-right pic).

Official Biog:

Some time around the end of 2001, Bob was sitting in Alex's kitchen. Alex had just been given a bass by his friend Mick, on the condition that he did 'something useful' with it.

"Do you want to learn to play the bass then, Bob?"
"No, I'm an artist, not a musician."
"It's the same thing."
"OK then."

So Bob learned the bass and they planned a band. It had to be something big. Bob wanted it to be on the level of Field Marshall Haig's tears that fell as he counted the statistics of the men he had sent over the top. Alex wanted to make music that girls could dance to.

Alex met Nick in Jo and Celias' kitchen. Nick was dressed like a young Adam Ant and was stealing Alex's Vodka. They were about to batter each others brains in when Alex asked if he could play drums. Nick lied and said that he could. They agreed to meet up in Nick's South Side mansion.

Nick could hit the drums, but not in any particularly coherent order. He was a classical pianist and double bassist and had come to Glasgow because a friend in Munich had said it was a laugh. Although he couldn't drum, he liked the idea of music for girls to dance to, and they found that they could write songs together.

Paul was the best drummer in Glasgow, but nobody wanted to hear drums, now that 808s had been discovered. Paul had pawned his kit, but liked the idea of playing the guitar, so started coming down to Nick's South Side mansion. One day he and Nick swapped over, on the condition that Paul still got to sing and didn't have to use rack toms, as they stopped the audience getting a decent view of him.

Girl Art was an exhibition organised by a group of students at GSA. They heard the plan for music that girls could dance to, so asked the boys to play their first gig. It was in Celia's bedroom which was lit by neon. At least 80 people watched and most of them danced.

Nick and Alex decided that they needed somewhere bigger than Nick's South Side mansion to play music in. Hunting for property, they went for a walk along the disused railway line that crosses over Paddy's market and the Clyde. They discovered two things: that the line wasn't disused after all and a huge abandoned art-deco warehouse overlooking the Clyde. They tracked down the landlord, persuaded him to give them the keys to the 6th floor, christened it the Chateau and made it their home.

The Chateau was a wonderful home. After evicting the pigeons and fixing the windows, they found a sympathetic electrician who managed to wire the building in a way that left the electricity board innocent of the knowledge that they were supplying the power. At one point in its long history, the warehouse had stored sports equipment. Franz Ferdinand held a Sports and Leisure night: rowing machines strapped to trolleys were raced, vibra-belts wobbled, weights were lifted and rifles were shot from the saddle of a rocking horse.

The Chateau is in a part of Glasgow that used to be called the Gorbals. At one point it was associated with violence, vermin and poverty. None of these exist in Glasgow today. The second Chateau event was a little grander. On the Fifth floor, Robb Mitchell and Switchspace gathered together a collection of artists to put on an exhibition. On the sixth floor, Ferdinand brought together some of the best music Glasgow has produced: Uncle John and Whitelock, Park Attack and Scatter. Lighting was in the form of banks of sunbeds that had been found on one of the other floors. They were wired to flicker on and off randomly as the bands played. Early evening, people started to arrive. Then more people. Then more people. The bands played and the lights flickered. Wine flowed and everyone danced. It felt liberating. Then the police arrived. They seemed terrified. There were only a few of them and they were panicking. Very soon another couple of vanloads arrived. It was like a scene from a speakeasy in prohibition-era Chicago. As the cops were racing up one staircase, crates of booze were flying down the other. Somehow, Al Kapranos took the brunt of the wrath. Possibly because of the phonetics of the name, possibly because he was the only one who didn't run away. He was arrested, but the charges of running an illegal bar and contravening various health and safety, fire hazard and noise abatement legislation were dropped. When he was chatting to the cops over a cup of tea down at the cells, everyone friends again, they said that they had been looking for the place for a month. They had been driving round the block, trying to find a way in to where the noise was coming from. It seemed that they were just happy to be confused no longer.

The Chateau was now marked territory and could no longer be used as a centre of noise. Franz Ferdinand played shows in other places. Lucy McKenzie, a Glasgow artist, held nights in her Flourish Studios. These were similar to the Chateau, but a little quieter. Stereo, a bar with a rare and supportive attitude was also a haunt. The Chateau was never abandoned, but another place, equally as magnificent was found.

On Tobago Street there is a Victorian courtroom and gaol. When McCarthy discovered it, it had been abandoned for over 30 years. It was ideal. The perversity of breaking the law in what was a bastion of the legal system appealed greatly. It has that air of brooding opulence and inarguable authority that 19th century West of Scotland municipal buildings command. The ceilings are higher than church and are mounted in omnipotent plasterwork. They were entered in awe and fear. After thirty years of Glasgow elements, some of the harshness had been softened, however. The plaster had cracked. Rain ran down some of the internal walls. The cell doors swung open. It was perfect.

It was decided that the gaol and courtroom was also the Chateau. Anything can be the Chateau, if it seems right. It is even suspected that there are parts of the Capithole that could be the Chateau too. For the next night, the building was split. Robb Mitchell filled the cells with artists. Franz Ferdinand presided over the courtroom. They booked train tickets and brought the Country Teasers North. They built a stage from scaffolding and borrowed bits of sound system from anyone vaguely sympathetic across the city. On the night, it was colder in the building than outside, but people arrived. Then more people. Then more people. Braziers burned in the courtyard and the bands burned in the courtroom. Wine flowed and everyone danced. Eventually the police arrived.

Tobago street is one of the city's rougher streets. It is populated mainly by scrapped cars and hookers. This time, the police were much friendlier. They didn't want to arrest anyone and gave four warnings before shutting the power down.

By this point it had been noticed that there were faces in the audience that definitely belonged South of the border. Somehow London had seeped in to Glasgow. This wasn't a bad thing and Franz Ferdinand decided to visit the Capithole. They played a few shows and decided that they liked it. As a city, London is bigger than Glasgow and has more people that want to put out records. Franz Ferdinand spoke to several of these people. Some of them were truly astonishing mavericks who have changed the world with their work. Some were wankers, shoving too much coke up their noses, while letting shite fall from their mouths. Eventually, they met Laurence Bell, firmly in the former category. He runs the Domino Record Company. A last great independent. When he asked them to sign, they were so touched they could say nothing but yes.

Franz Ferdinand currently live in the courtroom of the Chateau, where they write and record.»

The Magic Numbers

The Magic Numbers are Romeo, Michele, Angela and Sean. They might be related. Not all of them. But some of them.

WEBSITE

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Babyshambles

Pete Doherty's post-Libertines band.»