Rather Ripped

Rather Ripped
Studio album by Sonic Youth
Released June 13, 2006
Recorded December 2005 – January 2006
Studio Sear Sound in New York City
Genre Indie rock
Length 51:53
Label Geffen
Producer Sonic Youth, John Agnello
Sonic Youth chronology
Sonic Nurse
(2004)		 Rather Ripped
(2006)		 The Eternal
(2009)
Singles from Rather Ripped
  1. "Helen Lundeberg"/"Eyeliner"
    Released: 2006
  2. "Incinerate"
    Released: 2006

Rather Ripped is the 14th studio album by the American experimental rock band Sonic Youth, released on June 13, 2006 by Geffen Records. It was recorded from December 2005 to January 2006 at Sear Sound in New York City.

Background and recording

Rather Ripped is the follow-up to Sonic Youth's 2004 album Sonic Nurse and the band's first record after the departure of multi-instrumentalist Jim O'Rourke, who joined the group as a fifth member in 1999.[1] According to guitarist Lee Ranaldo, O'Rourke left the band to pursue film work and other recording projects.[2] His departure affected the sound of Rather Ripped, with singer and guitarist Thurston Moore stating that the new record "is just a far more straight up rock and roll album", in contrast to the "darker, twisted, complex quality" of O'Rourke's contributions.[3] Moore also explained that he decided to write simpler songs "for everybody to plug into immediately".[3] The album's working titles were Sonic Life and Do You Believe in Rapture?[3] The name "Rather Ripped" came from a Berkeley, California record store that later moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[4][5]

Unlike its immediate predecessors, which were recorded at the band's own Echo Canyon studio in Lower Manhattan, Rather Ripped was recorded at Sear Sound in New York City (the same studio where their 1994 album Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star was recorded), from December 2005 to January 2006.[6] The album was quickly produced and much of the material was not reworked due to the band's limited time in the studio.[7] During the recording sessions, Moore's gear included two Fender Jazzmasters and a Fender Princeton, while Ranaldo played a Gibson Les Paul guitar for half of the album and his Fender Telecaster Deluxe, "Jazzmaster copy-made" by Saul Koll, and modified Fender Jazzmaster with humbuckers for the remaining tracks.[8] Guitars were directly plugged into the mixer with no guitar amplifier in the signal chain.[8] The band chose John Agnello as the album's engineer due to his work with Don Fleming on albums by Screaming Trees in the early 1990s. He was also recommended by fellow musician J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr., who had been working with Agnello for years.[8] Additional work was done in early 2006 at Echo Canyon, as well as J Mascis's Bisquiteen studio in Amherst, Massachusetts.[9] The album was mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound in New York City in March 2006.[9]

Music and lyrics

Rather Ripped is generally considered one of the band's most accessible albums, featuring an abundance of concise and catchy melodies.[10][11][7] Moore described it as "a super song record" that contains "rockers and ballads".[3] In addition, seven of the album's 12 tracks have a duration of less than four minutes, a feature that is uncommon in Sonic Youth releases.[12] The album generally favors guitar textures over feedback or noise, which typically characterized the band's earlier works.[13] As Dave Heaton of PopMatters remarked, guitars are joined together to form "something that's not intense and fiery, but mysterious and vibrant. The guitars float, they soothe, they soar. They do unexpected things; it often feels like Sonic Youth are taking all the instrumental tricks they've learned over the years and putting them in the service of building a lasting landscape of guitar sounds, one that reverberates with the sounds of the past but also feels eternally youthful."[13]

Lyrically, Rather Ripped deals with melancholic topics about adultery, sexual frustration, and infidelity.[14][10] In the opening track "Reena", whose working title was "Stonesy",[15] singer and bassist Kim Gordon is involved in a secondary relationship with a woman.[4] The song "Incinerate" is built on a conventional love-as-fire metaphor, while "What a Waste" attributes sexual lust.[16] "Pink Steam", which is the longest track of the album, features a lengthy instrumental part that was described as "gorgeously windswept and violently romantic."[4] Its title was taken from a book by San Francisco author Dodie Bellamy.[17] The song "Do You Believe in Rapture?" is a political reflection on Christians in the office,[13] while "Rats", which is the only song on the album written by Ranaldo, was described as a "fulfilling ghost-narrative".[18] The album ends with the semi-acoustic ballad "Or", which starts with strip-club imagery and ends with Moore recounting various interview-like questions such as "What comes first? The music or the words?"[13]

Release

Rather Ripped was released on June 13, 2006 by record label Geffen. It charted at No. 71 on the US Billboard 200 and at No. 64 on the UK Albums Chart.[19][20] It was Sonic Youth's last studio album on Geffen; they left the label in 2008,[21] and until their 2011 hiatus, recorded thereafter on Matador Records. Two singles were released from the album: "Helen Lundeberg"/"Eyeliner" and "Incinerate".

For the UK edition of the album, two bonus tracks were included ("Helen Lundeberg" and "Eyeliner"), which were taken from an untitled single that was released shortly before the record. "Helen Lundeberg" was also included in the US as a bonus track on the iTunes Music Store digital download edition of the album. On the Japanese edition of the album, three bonus tracks were included: the two UK bonus tracks plus "Do You Believe in Rapture? (Psychedelic Mix)".

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic82/100[22]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[18]
Blender[23]
Robert ChristgauA[24]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[25]
The Guardian[10]
Los Angeles Times[26]
Pitchfork7.5/10[4]
PopMatters7/10[13]
Rolling Stone[11]
Slant[14]

The album so far has a score of 82 out of 100 from Metacritic based on "universal acclaim";[22] the score is tied with the 2002 album Murray Street.[27] Stylus Magazine gave the album an A- and called it the band's "radio-rock record, and it's not a tribute, it's as close to the real thing as they've come since they actually had a chance at radio play back in the '90s".[28] The A.V. Club also gave it an A- and said it was "unmistakably a Sonic Youth album, right down to the snatches of amp-on-fire distortion, the tuneless speak-singing of Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon, and an emphasis on guitar texture that includes amplifying each strummed string".[29] Prefix Magazine gave the album a very favorable review and stated, "To call the album the band's most accessible to date is no slur. There's nothing wrong with accessible indie rock when it's this pristine and polished."[30] The New York Times also gave it a very favorable review and called it "a fully legitimate, clear and strong rock 'n' roll record in the band's own style. And it may really be the best one".[31] The Phoenix gave it 3.5 stars out of 4 and called it "[Sonic Youth's] most openly 'mature' disc, possibly their best since ’95’s Washing Machine, maybe even the almighty Daydream Nation".[32]

Neumu.net gave the album a score of 8 stars out of 10 and said it was "what you'd expect from a Sonic Youth that's getting back to the cool rock 'n' roll sound they trademarked years ago, completed by a tagline of frenzied feedback and chiming guitars".[33] Yahoo! Music UK also gave it 8 stars and called it "a terrific, life-affirming and, at times, deeply romantic album - one that proves the potentials in both rock'n'roll and the electric guitar".[34] Playlouder gave it 4 stars out of 5 and called it "the most accomplished and mature album Sonic Youth have done in years".[35] Mojo also gave it 4 stars out of 5 and stated, "There's surely never been a Sonic Youth album so un-self-conscious".[22] Uncut likewise gave the album 5 stars out of 5 and said that "several tracks are up with [the band's] best".[22] Alternative Press likewise gave it 4 stars and called it "the sound of a band no longer setting their distortion pedals on stun, and, as a result, the best songs are as low-key as a small town on Sunday morning".[22] Paste gave it a score of 8 out of 10 and called it "about as accessible and smooth as this band is going to get".[36] Now also gave the album 4 stars out of 5 and said that Sonic Youth "continue their slow but remarkable progression that currently finds them, for the most part, dropping old SY standbys such as long experimental noise passages in exchange for a significantly more sedated route".[37] Billboard likewise gave it a favorable review and called it "a concise serving of what the band does best".[38]

NME gave the album a score of 7 out of 10 and called it "a really good record--but not a patch on... Daydream Nation".[22] Under the Radar gave the album 7 stars out of 10 and stated, "Rarely have [Sonic Youth] laid down so many tunes that are this downright pretty, hummable, even".[22] Dusted Magazine gave the album a positive review and called it "a fitting overview of everything that’s always worked for Sonic Youth in the past".[39] E! Online gave it a B- and said that the album "feels more overly familiar and Velvet Underground-y than usual, which isn't a good thing for a band with such forward-thinking ideals".[22]

Other reviews were average or mixed. Q gave the album 3 stars out of 5 and called it the "most mature album to date".[40] Blender also gave it 3 stars out of 5 and called it "[the band's] songiest record in more than a decade".[22] Spin gave the album a score of 4 out of 10 and called it "three- or four-minute songcraft--never the highlight of [the band's] resume".[22]

Accolades

The album came in 43rd in Pitchfork's Top 50 Albums of 2006[41] and ranked third in Rolling Stone's Top 50 Albums of 2006.[42]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Sonic Youth. 

No. TitleVocals Length
1. "Reena"  Gordon 3:47
2. "Incinerate"  Moore 4:55
3. "Do You Believe in Rapture?"  Moore 3:11
4. "Sleepin Around"  Moore 3:42
5. "What a Waste"  Gordon 3:33
6. "Jams Run Free"  Gordon 3:52
7. "Rats"  Ranaldo 4:24
8. "Turquoise Boy"  Gordon 6:14
9. "Lights Out"  Moore 3:32
10. "The Neutral"  Gordon 4:09
11. "Pink Steam"  Moore 6:57
12. "Or"  Moore 3:31
Total length:
 51:53

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[9]

Sonic Youth
Design personnel
  • Christopher Wool – sleeve artwork
  • Amanda Decadenet – band photography
  • JP Robinson – front cover design
  • Brandy Flower – sleeve design
Technical personnel
  • John Agnello – production, mixing, additional recording
  • TJ Doherty – recording
  • Aaron Mullan – assistant engineer, additional recording
  • Chris Allen – assistant engineer
  • Anthony Fontana – assistant engineer
  • Don Fleming – additional vocal production
  • Greg Calbi – mastering

Charts

Chart (2006) Peak
Australian Albums Chart 40[43]
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) 20[44]
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) 54[45]
Finnish Albums Chart 40[46]
French Albums Chart 25[47]
German Albums Chart 79[48]
Norwegian Albums Chart 13[49]
Swedish Albums Chart 46[50]
Swiss Albums Chart 59[51]
UK Albums Chart 64[52]
US Billboard 200 71[19]

References

  1. ↑ Steve Appleford (2005-10-06). "100%". LA CityBeat. Archived from the original on 2006-03-27. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  2. ↑ "Sonic Youth Moving On Without O'Rourke". Billboard. 2005-10-14. Archived from the original on 2014-09-13. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Jessica Suarez (2006-02-03). "Thurston Moore On New SY Album". CMJ. Archived from the original on 2006-04-17. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Brandon Stosuy (2006-06-12). "Rather Ripped". Pitchfork Media. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-02-25.
  5. ↑ Scott Mervis (2012-11-29). "Rather Ripped Records gets a new life in Lawrenceville". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on 2014-11-02. Retrieved 2014-11-02.
  6. ↑ "Sonic Youth Begins Recording New Album". Billboard. 2006-06-06. Archived from the original on 2015-06-14. Retrieved 2016-04-30.
  7. 1 2 Chuck Myers (2006-08-01). "Middle age just a number to kids of Sonic Youth". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 1E–7E. Retrieved 2016-04-30.
  8. 1 2 3 "Sonic Youth on Their Stripped-Down Rather Ripped Album". Guitar Player. 2006-11-14. Archived from the original on 2015-03-08. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  9. 1 2 3 Rather Ripped (CD booklet). Sonic Youth. New York City: Geffen. 2006. GEF #B0006757-02.
  10. 1 2 3 Dave Simpson (2006-06-02). "Sonic Youth, Rather Ripped". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2016-03-14. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  11. 1 2 Rob Sheffield (2006-06-12). "Rather Ripped". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  12. ↑ Robert Christgau (2006-06-13). "Rather Exhilarating". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on 2016-04-01. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 Dave Heaton (2006-06-09). "Rather Ripped". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 2016-03-08. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  14. 1 2 Jimmy Newlin (2006-06-12). "Rather Ripped". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  15. ↑ Steve Chick (2009). Psychic Confusion: The Sonic Youth Story. Omnibus Press. ISBN 1-84772-705-0.
  16. ↑ David Browne (2008). "Chapter 14". Goodbye 20th Century: A Biography of Sonic Youth. Da Capo Press. ISBN 030681515X.
  17. ↑ "Thurston Moore Lifts Up the Underground with Flowers & Cream". Standard Hotels. 2014-11-26. Archived from the original on 2016-05-02. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  18. 1 2 Heather Phares. "Rather Ripped". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 2016-01-31. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  19. 1 2 "Sonic Youth - Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2016-01-27. Retrieved 2016-02-25.
  20. ↑ "Sonic Youth | Official Charts Company". Official Charts. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  21. ↑ Sonic Youth leave major label after nearly 20 years. "The New York noiseniks are indie once again after completing their contractual obligations with Geffen. And you can expect a 'new band-zone-vibe' for their next album."
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Critic reviews at Metacritic
  23. ↑ "Rather Ripped". Blender. 2006-06-13. Archived from the original on 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  24. ↑ Robert Christgau Consumer Guide
  25. ↑ Entertainment Weekly review
  26. ↑ Los Angeles Times review
  27. ↑ Metacritic score for Murray Street
  28. ↑ Stylus Magazine review
  29. ↑ The A.V. Club review
  30. ↑ Prefix Magazine review
  31. ↑ The New York Times review
  32. ↑ The Phoenix review
  33. ↑ Neumu.net review
  34. ↑ Yahoo! Music UK review at the Wayback Machine (archived June 25, 2006)
  35. ↑ Playlouder review at the Wayback Machine (archived June 9, 2006)
  36. ↑ Paste review
  37. ↑ Now review
  38. ↑ Billboard review at the Wayback Machine (archived June 16, 2006)
  39. ↑ Dusted Magazine review
  40. ↑ "Sonic Youth: Rather Ripped". Q: 118. July 2006.
  41. ↑ Top 50 albums of 2006 of Pitchfork Media. December 19, 2006.1 "On Murray Street and Sonic Nurse, Jim O'Rourke pulled Sonic Youth out of a late-90s rut, spurring noise-rock jams that looked backward, forward, and somewhere in between. But even the biggest fan of those albums probably wouldn't deny craving a sequel to pop records like Goo and Dirty, and on their first post-O'Rourke effort, Sonic Youth offer exactly that: Twelve shiny, beefed-up rockers that funnel noise into melody at a level not seen since The Year Punk Broke. The surprise isn't so much that the quartet made this move, but that they pulled it off so sharply. There's hardly a wrong turn here, just reams of revved-up rock with all the classic pieces-- Kim Gordon's voice, Thurston Moore's writing, Lee Ranaldo's poetry, Steve Shelley's energy-- locked together as tightly as a jigsaw puzzle." --Marc Masters
  42. ↑ Top 50 albums of 2006 of Rolling Stone at the Wayback Machine (archived June 19, 2008). December 29, 2006. "Their mean age now up to forty-eight with thirtysomething troublemaker Jim O'Rourke gone, indie's gray eminences made a light, simple, terse, almost-pop album. Granted, the guitar hook on, for instance, 'Do You Believe in Rapture?' wouldn't sound so lovely if they and all their progeny hadn't long since adjusted our harmonic expectations. But who better to play to our expanded capacity for tuneful beauty? The vocal star of Rather Ripped is Kim Gordon, breathlessly girlish at fifty-three as she and her husband evoke visions of dalliance, displacement, recrimination and salvation that never become unequivocally literal."
  43. ↑ "Australian albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-04-18. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  44. ↑ "Belgian (Flanders) albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Ultratop.be. Archived from the original on 2016-04-24. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  45. ↑ "Belgian (Wallonia) albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Ultratop.be. Archived from the original on 2016-04-24. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  46. ↑ "Finnish albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Finnishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 2006-06-28. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  47. ↑ "French albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Lescharts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-04-11. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  48. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Offiziellecharts.de. Archived from the original on 2016-04-24. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  49. ↑ "Norwegian albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Norwegiancharts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-04-09. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  50. ↑ "Swedish albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Swedishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-04-14. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  51. ↑ "Swiss albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Hitparade.ch. Archived from the original on 2014-08-23. Retrieved 2016-04-24.
  52. ↑ "UK albums charts – Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 2016-03-07. Retrieved 2016-04-24.

External links

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