Sonic Youth - 1998 - A Thousand Leaves [TQMP]

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| Sonic Youth - 1998 - A Thousand Leaves |::
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| Ripped w/EAC v1.0b2 (Secure) :: Encoded w/FLAC v1.2.1 -8 |::
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| No. of Files / Size _____ 25 files / 466.17MB (488,816,044 bytes) |
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| Type / Quantity _________ CD (Compact Disc) (* 1) |
| Date Released ___________ 12th of May, 1998 |
| User Rating _____________ 3.5/5 (120 ratings) |
| Genre(s) ________________ Alternative |
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+------+ Review +--------------------------------------------------------------+
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| This album comes at a special time in the career of our beloved Yoof. |
| Here, they have had time. Time as noise rockers, alternative |
| trailblazers, and even time as charting artists. They've had quite a |
| time by now. Now they have their own studio to explore their sound in |
| and a rock era fading past. Here they've taken up their mantle as |
| fiercely independent and exploratory artists once more. |
| |
| A Thousand Leaves sounds like little else in the Sonic catalog due to |
| their willingness to leave rock territory behind and carve out a new |
| niche in their own land of open tunings and three guitar luster. |
| |
| It begins with crunching, crackling feedback. Not like the Sonic Youth |
| of old. Here, there seems to be more body to the noise. It doesn't |
| accentuate the notes; it is the whole of the music. Kim's voice wanders |
| in. It really doesn't matter that she's referencing Lewis Carroll or |
| talking about sexism. Her voice is actually warm, slightly manipulated, |
| but reassuring in a way it never was before. Contre le Sexisme is a |
| declaration of Kim's presence on the album and the femininity that |
| pervades it. |
| |
| Sunday follows. While a great single, it doesn't rock out like earlier |
| Sonics. It seems more laconic, more willful, and revels in noise as |
| beauty, with not a hint of pop convention adorning it. The guitars here |
| crunch and growl with abandon, then plunge into a howl and scream solo |
| that fans have never heard before. Here there is texture, atmosphere, |
| even emotion that had been so absent during the rock era of the |
| nineties. This is beautiful. |
| |
| What's that sound squeezing your head out of shape? It's the intro to |
| "Female Mechanic Now On Duty". Angry, politicized, and slightly |
| ridiculous, it nevertheless works. The guitar interplay is bliss, and |
| the second half's percussion is just sublime. Liquid guitar may not save |
| the lyrics or vocals, but really, that's not at all out of place for |
| Kim. And Steve Shelley's percussion makes up for it, I swear. |
| |
| "Hoarfrost" is a highlight here, one of the best Lee songs. Cold, wintry |
| guitar plucking leads you into a snow-covered forest, and while the |
| spiders build their silver webs, you just gaze around at all the beauty |
| that threatens to swallow you. |
| |
| Lee contributes another highlight, 'Karen Koltrane', precursor to Murray |
| Street's 'Karenology'. Though nearly grating in its aggressive |
| dissonance, the song is saved from being a particularly abrasive |
| curiosity by an utterly incredible instrumental. The multi-part, fluid |
| and intricate guitar interplay makes this a latter-day classic. |
| |
| Aside from these highlights, some of the songs don't quite perform as |
| well. Thurston's vocals in Wildflower Soul are too fragile, and Kim gets |
| a bit obnoxious and overly silly from time to time. However, overall, |
| the album is consistently engaging and pleasing. This album finds beauty |
| in noise like early Sonic Youth, only here tempered by maturity and |
| wisdom. Though Kim's songs get to be a little too much, the thematic |
| unity of the album and wonderful guitar sounds that these rockers have |
| found again are worth a few bad moments. [altron2095, sputnikmusic] |
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+------+ Track List +----------------------------------------------------------+
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| No. | Title | Duration |
| ----+--------------------------------------------------------+---------- |
| 001 | Contre Le Sexisme .................................... | 00h03m55s |
| 002 | Sunday ............................................... | 00h04m52s |
| 003 | Female Mechanic Now On Duty .......................... | 00h07m43s |
| 004 | Wildflower Soul ...................................... | 00h09m05s |
| 005 | Hoarfrost ............................................ | 00h05m01s |
| 006 | French Tickler ....................................... | 00h04m52s |
| 007 | Hits of Sunshine (for Allen Ginsberg) ................ | 00h11m05s |
| 008 | Karen Koltrane ....................................... | 00h09m21s |
| 009 | The Ineffable Me ..................................... | 00h05m21s |
| 010 | Snare, Girl .......................................... | 00h06m39s |
| 011 | Heather Angel ........................................ | 00h06m09s |
| ----+--------------------------------------------------------+---------- |
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| Total Length ____________ 01h14m03s |
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+------+ Audio Rip +-----------------------------------------------------------+
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| Ripped with _____________ EAC v1.0b2 [http://www.exactaudiocopy.de] |
| Encoded with ____________ FLAC v1.2.1 [http://flac.sourceforge.net] |
| Encoding Stats __________ 1411kbps / 44.1kHz / CBR / 16-bit / Stereo |
| Tag(s) __________________ Vorbis |
| Includes Artwork? _______ Yes |
| Includes Rip .LOG? ______ Yes |
| Includes Rip .CUE? ______ Yes |
| Includes Playlist? ______ Yes |
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rainfo v0.2 [2011/06/26 @ 14:46:10]