I was into Sonic Youth so long ago that it almost seems decadent or (decade-ent) to be speaking about them at all; I essentially grew up on the band. I probably saw them in concert three times and own everything, gut and but. But here they are again, the Grateful Dead of our time, releasing Sonic Nurse. My notes on the album:

• screeching is good both for the ears and to refresh the soul
• stealing from Godspeed You Black Emporer is good even if they stole from SY
• the song “I Love You Golden Blue” must be about the sun in the daylit sky
• SY is deliberately political in an arcane way, which I adore – the last song on the album, “Peace Attack,” speaks the line “nature sucks” which is funny and sad and the bass line is pure 1994, the end of our last (R) government
• Kim Gordon can still screech like the best of ’em