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THE ISLANDER, SEPTEMBER 14, 2009, PAGE 9
Friedman's Ear Food
By Ben
Sonic Youth
The Eternal
(Matador Records - 2009)
Three years have passed since Sonic
Youth released their last album, Rath
er Ripped.
Since then, the band has been
involved in their Sonic Youth Record
ings label and the individual band
members have been pursuing projects
through it.
The Eternal marks Sonic Youth’s
return to the musical avant garde. As a
whole, The Eternal manages to encap
sulate many of the genres the band
has played over their career. Noise, art
rock, punk, and psychedelia all make
their way onto the album
The opening song, “Sacred Trick
ster”, takes the listener by force with
its loud and dissonant guitar work.
Such an aggressive and somewhat
cacophonous opening seems unusual
for the band.
Normally, Sonic Youth waits a few
tracks to ease into their noisier work,
but instead they have jumped right
into it. “Sacred Trickster” also estab
lishes bassist Kim Gordon’s vocal domi
nance on the album over the band’s
guitarists and singers Thurston Moore
and Lee Ranaldo.
After the opener, much of the middle
of the album is art rock and punk influ
enced.
This mixture is exemplified by
“Leaky Lifeboat” being dedicated to the
beat poet Gregory Corso and “Thun
derclap for Bobby Pyn” being named
after the Los Angeles punk pioneer and
founding member of The Germs.
The Eternal is also dedicated to Ron
Asheton, the guitarist and songwriter
for the influential punk band and Iggy
Pop’s collaborators, The Stooges.
“Anti-Orgasm” best captures all of
the elements on the record. It opens
with relatively straight punk guitar
parts before the singers come in and
deliver.
The vocals feature a back and forth
between all three of the bands singers.
Moore provides most of the lead with
Gordon coming in as a response.
About midway through the song
it changes up and where most bands
would place a bridge, Sonic Youth
instead includes a noisy jam that shows
off their experimental leanings.
The track’s closing follows this
aggressive middle with a psychedlic
and slower paced guitar section.
Some of the album highlights are
“Massage the History”, “What We
Know”, and “Malibu Gas Station”.
“Massage the History”, the album’s
closer, is a long and winding track
Friedman
which features acoustic guitars and
Gordon singing in a haunting manner.
The song is a perfect closer to many
of the noisy numbers because of its
stark contrasts. ‘What We Know” is
a straightforward jam that is reminis
cent of The MC5 and is a rock song that
takes no prisoners.
The song “Malibu Gas Station” is
one of the straighter songs and fea
tures a melodic guitar part and is
probably the best song for new fans to
hear along with being the most radio
friendly piece on the album.
“The Eternal” is ultimately in the
middle of the pack among Sonic Youth’s
other records.
Calling an album mediocre may
normally be insulting, but considering
Sonic Youth’s discography and their
importance to modem music, medi
ocrity is not necessarily a bad thing.
The album has all of Sonic Youth’s
notable features and many well per
formed songs.
Eric Clapton &
Steue Winwood
Live from Madison
Square Garden
(WEA/Reprise - 2009)
Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood
are, without a shadow of a doubt, rock
legends and when they took the stage
together in February 2008 it was an
event almost forty years in the mak
ing.
In 1969, both musicians were
between projects. Clapton had recently
left Cream and Winwood’s Traffic
was taking a hiatus.
What began as jam sessions in Clap
ton’s basement eventually became the
super group Blind Faith when Ginger
Baker and Rick Grech joined.
Until last February, Winwood and
Clapton had not played on stage togeth
er since Blind Faith’s ’69 tour and the
result was well worth the wait.
Live From Madison Square Garden
features a track listing that looks like
a mash up of a few “greatest hits”
records.
Most of the songs are from Clapton’s
solo work, Traffic, and Blind Faith,
but there are a few exceptions.
Surprisingly, there are two Jimi
Hendrix songs, “Little Wing” and “Voo
doo Chile”, and there is also a recording
of “Georgia on My Mind”. Conspicu
ously absent from the record are songs
from Cream and Winwood’s Spencer
Davis Group along with Clapton’s
signature song, “Layla”.
Before I heard the album a sense
of apprehension came over me. Any
one who has seen a Behind the Music
about Eric Clapton knows that it is
miraculous he is alive and can still play
the guitar as well as he does.
Considering both Clapton and Win
wood are now in their 60s and have
seemingly passed their musical primes
it was a very large relief that they
both performed admirably during the
concert.
Most of Clapton’s guitar work
sounds spot on, but occasionally in
songs like “Can’t Find My Way Home”
he abridges the guitar work to make
it simpler. Vocally, both performers do
well, but their ages sometimes show
when their voices strain.
The 2009-2010 Performing Arts
Series will feature a wide range of
entertainment for all audiences.
• Friday, November 6, 8 p.m.,
Michael Cooper: Masked Marvels
and Wondertales: Using handmade
masks and weaving captivating sto
ries, Michael Cooper creates a magi
cal world and an unforgettable perfor
mance for all ages.
• Friday and Saturday, December
18 & 19, 8 p.m.; Sunday, December 20,
3 p.m., A Christmas Carol: GIAHA’s
stage production of the Dickens classic
is a cherished holiday tradition for the
whole family.
• Thursday, January 21, 2010, 8
p.m., Dave Bennett’s New Orleans:
Bennett and his ensemble will play
the music of New Orleans in a tribute
to the city’s legendary musician Pete
Fountain.
• Saturday, February 20, 8 p.m.,
Any fan of Eric Clapton, Traffic,
Blind Faith, or any of the other asso
ciated acts between the two musicians
should definitely listen to Live From
Madison Square Garden.
The two musicians perform many
of their best songs and manage to add
an extra sparkle to many pieces. Their
version of “Glad” for example features
Winwood on the piano and Clapton
on the guitar playing amazingly well
together.
Even though the artists may no lon
ger be at their bests, they still put on a
better show than most other perform
ers around. □
Chicago City Limits: Wikiphobia: This
famous improv troupe from New York
takes on the weird and wacky world of
the Internet, spoofing our often confus
ing virtual realities in a hilarious send-
up of modem life.
• Saturday, March 6, 2010, 3 &
8 p.m., Legend Froze in Time: Take
a step back in time to the heyday of
country music legend Hank Williams,
brought to life through the interpreta
tion of singer David Church.
• Saturday, April 3, 8 p.m., Drom
edary Quartet: A mesmerizing fusion
of global styles played by the virtuoso
ensemble making a return engage
ment in the Golden Isles after standout
appearances at the Ritz and the Down
town Fall Street Fair.
For more information about
GIAHA’s events and programs, please
visit www.goldenislesarts.org or call
912-262-6934. □
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GIAHA 2009-10 Performing Arts Series schedule