To put it bluntly, I love Sonic Youth and have done for a long time, I fell in love about the fifth time I heard Dirty (the first few times my ears had never been put through such a torment of reverb, distortion and pure brilliance.) Since then my horizons have broadened greatly but I have always been amazed by the Sonic Youth's releases.
None more so than 2002's Murray Street, which, although I'm sure many would have a different view I feel is one of their greatest albums. The Eternal is as good as Murray Street. So good in fact that when I first gave it a listen I was driving and had to pull over to write this review as I was instantly taken aback by it.
From the first few chords of opener 'Secret Trickster' you get the feeling that this is going to be a no holds barred onslaught, with a 2:10 homage to painter Vves Klien that feels straight out of the 1970's New York punk rock scene.
The album is certainly not all heavy, tracks like 'Leaky Lifeboat (For Gregory Corso)' and 'Antenna' showcase a more progressive, spacey rock side, in fact The Eternal seems to mix each of their eras into one album, from the lo fi, punk sounds of their first era (Secret Trickster, Calming The Snake,) to their infamous forward thinking song structures of the 90's (Poison Arrow, Malibu Gas Station,) to their more refined sound explorations (Antenna, Walkin Blue.)
This is their first album away from old label Geffen and since signing with Matador they decided to take a different route with the recording process, opting to record two or three tracks one weekend and record the next, bringing in ex Pavement bassist Ibold along for the ride.
The Eternal is a beautiful yet chaotic album and simply must be heard by any Sonic Youth fan. If you are not a fan a: Why not? and b: This will be a great insight into one of the most influential contemporary bands probably of all time.
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