Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore, Kim Gordon 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.
Thurston Joseph Moore is an American musician best known as a member of Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside Sonic Youth, as well as running the Ecstatic Peace! record label. Moore was ranked 34th in Rolling Stone's 2004 edition of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time."
Lee Mark Ranaldo is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Ranaldo at number 33 on its "Greatest Guitarists of All Time" list. In May 2012, Spin published a staff-selected top 100 guitarist list, ranking Ranaldo and his Sonic Youth bandmate Thurston Moore together at number 1.
Jim O'Rourke is a Tokyo-based American musician, composer and record producer. He has released albums across varied genres, including singer-songwriter music, post-rock, ambient, noise music, and tape experiments. He was associated with the Chicago experimental and improv scene when in around 2000 he relocated to New York City, before moving to Japan, where he currently resides. O’Rourke is best known for his numerous solo and collaborative music projects, many of which are entirely instrumental, and for his tenure as a member of Sonic Youth from 1999 to 2005.
Sonic Youth Recordings is a record label established by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth in 1996. SYR was set up to allow the band to release records by themselves and their friends without the commercial pressures of a major label. As a result, the work on this label tends towards free improvisation and experimental music.
EVOL is the third full-length studio album by the American alternative rock band Sonic Youth. Released in May 1986, EVOL was Sonic Youth’s first album on SST Records, and also the first album to feature then-new drummer Steve Shelley who had just replaced Bob Bert.
SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century is an album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth. It is a double album of versions of pieces by avant-garde composers, performed by Sonic Youth and collaborators.
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.
SYR1: Anagrama is an EP by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth. It was released in May 1997, and was the first in a series of experimental and mostly instrumental releases issued on the band's own SYR label.
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.
SYR3: Invito al ĉielo is an album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth. It was released on March 2, 1998, and was the third in a series of experimental releases issued on the band's own SYR label. SYR3 marked the beginning of the band's collaborations with producer and musician Jim O'Rourke; his continuing work with the group after SYR3 resulted in O'Rourke becoming an official member of Sonic Youth by 2002's Murray Street.
Mats Olof Gustafsson is a Swedish free jazz saxophone player. He is known for his tonal belligerence and intensity when improvising.
Scriptures of the Golden Eternity is a solo album by guitarist Lee Ranaldo, who also performs in rock band Sonic Youth. It was released on vinyl by the Father Yod label, and later reissued on CD by the Drunken Fish label. The cover design is by visual artist Savage Pencil. The album consists of three untitled tracks featuring a solo Ranaldo performing guitar, tape loops, and occasional vocal. The first was recorded on 18 July 1988, and the remaining two were recorded on 28 November 1989.
SYR7: J'Accuse Ted Hughes is the seventh release in American group Sonic Youth's SYR series. It was released only on vinyl—the first in the series to receive no compact disc release—and featured two songs: "J'Accuse Ted Hughes", and "Agnès B. Musique". It consists of an improvised piece performed live during the band's April 8, 2000 performance at the first All Tomorrow's Parties festival, followed by an unused soundtrack for an Agnes B. fashion show.
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.
Balázs Pándi is a Hungarian drummer and journalist. He has worked and toured with various acts from all around the world including Venetian Snares, Otto von Schirach, To Live and Shave in L.A., The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble and Zu. He also played drums for the Blood of Heroes project.
Between the Times and the Tides is the ninth studio album by the American alternative rock musician Lee Ranaldo, released on March 20, 2012 on Matador Records. His first release on Matador Records and since Sonic Youth's indefinite hiatus, the album features a more straightforward songwriting approach to his prior material and includes guest musicians such as Nels Cline, John Medeski and Leah Singer. The album was originally intended to be a minimalist acoustic album but its sound was developed by Ranaldo during its recording at Echo Canyon West in Hoboken, New Jersey during a seven-month period in early 2011.
Smart Bar Chicago 1985 is a live album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth, released on November 13, 2012, on Goofin' Records. It features a live 4-track recording of the band's performance at the Smart Bar in Chicago, Illinois, on August 11, 1985, during the tour in support of Sonic Youth's second studio album, Bad Moon Rising (1985).
Cuts is collaborative studio album by the Japanese noise musician Merzbow, Hungarian drummer Balázs Pándi, and Swedish saxophonist Mats Gustafsson. It was recorded during a stop on the trio's East European tour in April 2012. The album was followed up in January 2015 by Live in Tabačka 13/04/12, which was recorded live the day before Cuts in Slovakia. Cuts of Guilt, Cuts Deeper, a studio album recorded with the addition of Thurston Moore, was released in March 2015.
Flying Basket is a collaborative studio album by the Japanese free jazz saxophonist Akira Sakata, American experimental guitarist Jim O'Rourke, improv duo Chikamorachi, and Japanese noise musician Merzbow.
