"Bull in the Heather" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Sonic Youth | ||||
from the album Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star | ||||
B-side |
| |||
Released | April 19, 1994 | |||
Studio | Sear Sound, New York City | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:04 | |||
Label | Geffen | |||
Songwriter(s) | Sonic Youth | |||
Producer(s) | Butch Vig | |||
Sonic Youth singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"Bull in the Heather" on YouTube |
"Bull in the Heather" is a song by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth from their eighth studio album, Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star (1994). It was released to radio as the lead single from the album on April 19, 1994, by Geffen Records. The song was written collectively by Sonic Youth, and production was done by Butch Vig. According to band member Kim Gordon, the song is about "using passiveness as a form of rebellion."
The single featured an outtake, "Razor Blade", and an alternate version of "Doctor's Orders" as B-sides. [1]
Singer and bassist Kim Gordon explained that the song is about "using passiveness as a form of rebellion—like, I'm not going to participate in your male-dominated culture, so I'm just going to be passive". [2] The song's title is a reference to the race horse Bull Inthe Heather, who won the Florida Derby in 1993. [3]
Barbara O'Dair of Rolling Stone referred to the song as "enigmatic," highlighting Gordon's "breathy, talk-singing." [4] Also from Rolling Stone, Matthew Perpetua praised the song's "graceful combinations of pop songwriting and off-kilter experimental noise," making note of the unorthodox guitar techniques employed throughout it. [5]
In the United States, "Bull in the Heather" debuted at number 29 on the Billboard Alternative Airplay chart for the issue dated May 28, 1994. The song reached a peak of number 13 for the issue dated June 18, 1994, spending a total of eight weeks on the chart. [6] The song became Sonic Youth's highest charting song in the United Kingdom, reaching a peak of number 24 on the UK Singles Chart for the issue dated May 7, 1994. The song spent a total of five weeks on the chart. [7] In Australia, the song reached a peak position of number 90 on the ARIA Charts. [8]
The music video was directed by Tamra Davis and produced by Kris Krengle. [9] Filmed in Los Angeles, [9] the video features Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna dancing and occasionally interacting with the band members, particularly guitarist Thurston Moore; she accidentally gave Moore a bloody lip during filming. Also featured are a young couple hanging out in a semi-wooded field and stock footage of horses racing.
The scenes of Moore and Lee Ranaldo jumping around on a bed were inspired by a photo of Moore when he was younger. At the time of the video, bassist Kim Gordon was five months pregnant.[ citation needed ]
The music video was featured in an episode of Beavis and Butt-Head .[ citation needed ]
Sonic Youth performed the song during their set at Battery Park’s River to River Festival on July 4, 2008. A recording of this performance was released as a promotional single on June 7, 2019 and was subsequently included on the live album Battery Park, NYC July 4th 2008 . [10]
In 2007, NME placed "Bull in the Heather" at No. 48 in its list of the 50 "Greatest Indie Anthems Ever". [11] Spin placed the song at No. 37 in its list of "The 100 Best Alternative Rock Songs of 1994". [12]
"Bull in the Heather" directly influenced The Strokes' 2003 single "12:51", and lead singer Julian Casablancas would admit that the phrasing was "totally ripping it off". [13] [14]
Credits and personnel are adapted from the Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star album liner notes. [19]
Sonic Youth
Technical
Chart (1994) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [8] | 90 |
UK Singles (OCC) [7] | 24 |
US Alternative Airplay ( Billboard ) [6] | 13 |
Region | Date | Formats(s) | Label(s) | Ref(s). |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States | April 19, 1994 | Alternative radio | [20] | |
College radio | [20] |
Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City and formed in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon, Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo remained together for the entire history of the band, while Steve Shelley (drums) followed a series of short-term drummers in 1985, rounding out the core line-up. Jim O'Rourke was also a member of the band from 1999 to 2005, and Mark Ibold was a member from 2006 to 2011.
Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star is the eighth studio album by American experimental rock band Sonic Youth, released on May 10, 1994, by DGC Records. It was produced by Butch Vig and recorded at Sear Sound studio in New York City, the same studio where the band's 1987 album Sister was recorded. Unlike its predecessor Dirty, Experimental Jet Set features a more low-key approach and references the band's earlier work on the independent record label SST Records. The album contains quieter and more relaxed songs that deal with personal and political topics.
A Thousand Leaves is the tenth studio album by American rock band Sonic Youth, released on CD and cassette on May 12, 1998, by DGC Records. A double-LP vinyl issue had been released three weeks earlier on My So Called Records. It was the band's first album recorded at their own studio in Lower Manhattan, which was built with the money they had made at the 1995 Lollapalooza festival. Since the band had an unlimited amount of time to work in their studio, the album features numerous lengthy and improvisational tracks that were developed unevenly. The highly experimental extended plays Anagrama, Slaapkamers met slagroom, and Invito al ĉielo were recorded simultaneously with the album.
"Love Spreads" is a song by British alternative rock group the Stone Roses, released on 21 November 1994 as the first single from their second album, Second Coming. The record reached number two on the UK Singles Chart, the highest peak for any song by the band, as well as number 55 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart and number 67 on the Canadian RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart. The single also reached the top 10 in Ireland and the top 20 in Sweden.
"Buddy Holly" is a song by the American rock band Weezer. The song was written by Rivers Cuomo and released by DGC as the second single from the band's debut album, Weezer (1994). The lyrics reference the song's namesake, 1950s rock-and-roll singer Buddy Holly, and actress Mary Tyler Moore. Released on September 7, 1994—which would have been Holly's 58th birthday—the song reached number two on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. Outside the US, the song peaked at number six in Canada, number 12 in the United Kingdom, number 13 in Iceland, and number 14 in Sweden. The song's music video, directed by Spike Jonze, earned considerable exposure when it was included as a bonus media file in Microsoft's initial successful release of the operating system, Windows 95.
Washing Machine is the ninth studio album by the American experimental rock band Sonic Youth, released on September 26, 1995, by DGC Records. It was recorded at Easley Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, and produced by the band and John Siket, who also engineered the band's previous two albums. The album features more open-ended pieces than its predecessors and contains some of the band's longest songs, including the 20-minute ballad "The Diamond Sea", which is the lengthiest track to feature on any of Sonic Youth's studio albums.
NYC Ghosts & Flowers is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Sonic Youth, released on May 16, 2000 by DGC Records. The highly experimental album is considered to be a reaction to the theft of the band's instruments in July 1999, when several irreplaceable guitars and effects pedals were stolen. NYC Ghosts & Flowers was the first album since Bad Moon Rising in which the band used prepared guitar.
Murray Street is the twelfth studio album by American rock band Sonic Youth, released on June 25, 2002, by DGC Records. Murray Street is the first album by the band to feature Jim O'Rourke as an official fifth member to bolster the group's sound.
"Crush with Eyeliner" is a song by American rock band R.E.M., released by Warner Bros. Records as the fourth single from their ninth studio album, Monster (1994). Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore provides background vocals. Michael Stipe claims the song was inspired by the band New York Dolls, who, in his opinion, "knew how to exaggerate a song, to make it sound really sleazy and over the top." This was also one of the first songs that surfaced from Stipe after the writer's block that hounded him after the death of his friend, actor River Phoenix.
"Teen Age Riot" is a song by American rock band Sonic Youth, and the first single from their 1988 album, Daydream Nation. It received heavy airplay on modern rock stations and considerably expanded their audience.
SYR2: Slaapkamers met slagroom is an EP by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth. It was released on 12" vinyl on September 2, 1997, and was the second in a series of experimental and mostly instrumental releases issued on the band's own SYR label.
Rather Ripped is the fourteenth studio album by American rock band Sonic Youth, released on June 13, 2006, by Geffen Records. It was the band's first album following the departure of multi-instrumentalist Jim O'Rourke, who had joined as a fifth member in 1999. Unlike its immediate predecessors, the album was produced by John Agnello and recorded at Sear Sound in New York City, the same studio where the band's 1994 album, Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star, was recorded. It also completed Sonic Youth's contract with Geffen, which released the band's previous eight records.
The discography of American rock band Sonic Youth comprises 15 studio albums, seven extended plays, three compilation albums, seven video releases, 21 singles, 46 music videos, ten releases in the Sonic Youth Recordings series, eight official bootlegs, and contributions to 16 soundtracks and other compilations.
The Destroyed Room: B-sides and Rarities is a compilation album by Sonic Youth. This album contains tracks previously only available on vinyl, limited-release compilations, imports and B-sides to international singles. The tracks, which also include unreleased material, were hand-picked by the band. The album was released on December 12, 2006. A double vinyl LP edition with two extra tracks was released in early 2007 on the band's own Goofin' Records label. The cover image, as well as the album's name, is "The Destroyed Room", a 1978 photograph by Canadian artist Jeff Wall.
"Kool Thing" is a song by American rock band Sonic Youth, released in June 1990 in the United States and September 1990 in Europe, as the first single from their sixth studio album Goo. The song was inspired by an interview bassist/singer Kim Gordon conducted with LL Cool J for Spin. Although he is never mentioned by name, the song's lyrics contain several references to LL Cool J. Gordon's lyrics make reference to several of the rapper's works, including the single "I Can't Live Without My Radio" and the album Walking with a Panther. She also repeats the line "I don't think so", which appears in LL Cool J's "Going Back to Cali". Chuck D also contributed spoken vocals to the song.
"100%" is a song by American rock band Sonic Youth from their seventh studio album Dirty (1992). It was released as the lead single from the album in July 1992, by DGC. Written by Sonic Youth, the song discusses the murder of Joe Cole, a friend of the band who was killed in an armed robbery on December 19, 1991.
"Sugar Kane" is the third single from Sonic Youth's 1992 album Dirty. It was released in 1993 on DGC.
"Undone – The Sweater Song" is a song by the American alternative rock band Weezer, released on the band's self-titled 1994 debut album. It was released as their debut single in 1994.
The Eternal is the fifteenth and final studio album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth, released on June 9, 2009, by Matador Records, their first and only on that label. It was their first studio album in three years, making it the band's longest delay between studio albums.
Goo is the sixth full-length studio album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth, released on June 26, 1990, by DGC Records. For this album, the band sought to expand upon its trademark alternating guitar arrangements and the layered sound of their previous album Daydream Nation (1988) with songwriting that was more topical than past works, exploring themes of female empowerment and pop culture. Coming off the success of Daydream Nation, Nick Sansano returned to engineer Goo, but veteran producer Ron Saint Germain was chosen by Sonic Youth to finish mixing the album following Sansano's dismissal.
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