I have never had a WTF moment with Sonic Youth. One of my earliest purchases was Please Just Leave Me My Paul Desmond by Thurston. That prepared me for anything. Just the way he lets the tape run while he's chilling in the studio is classic. I can't theorize it beyond that.

I LOVE that record... and this one... and this one...

But I think I was already turned on to possibilities by that Legend of the Blood Yeti cd.. Maybe you need to learn to listen before being able to appreciate it?

I guess I'll be the first in this thread to say that I didn't enjoy the album. It's too experimental for me and doesn't capture what I love about Sonic Youth. Yes, yes SY is experimental, but SYR4 is not my ish. I understand if I were to research the significance of the artists that the album is tributing I would have a founder appreciation for it, but it doesn't compel me to do such a thing so that is where the album fails.

John Cage might say something very different to this. Or perhaps not, idk, haha. All I know is, I loved most of the artists covered on SYR4 even before SYR4 came out. And when SYR4 did come out, I came.

To the store.

To buy it.

Quickly.

its an amazing record...why is there an argument about that?

Neither. Just a good record.

John Cage said somewhere (I heard it at ubu.com) that he really dislikes/disliked Glenn Branca. For that reason I compared the slow indeterminacy of Cage with the slow passion (for lack of a better word) of Branca. The two are really different. Which leads me to wonder why or how SY picked up on both of them, especially Cage, since the Branca aesthetic is in their genes (pretty much). I suppose they don't hate on Branca like Cage did. It boggles the mind that the two composers could share the affections of the same group.

I've never listened to this all the way through... until today. "Edges" is awesome.

What are your favorite moments from this record? Pretty cool reading posts from 2006-2009.

I did a few times and managed to find a copy of it in a record shop just yesterday. I think it's a great record. It won't sound like a Sonic Youth's conventional record unless you enjoy the mantra of 'Having Never Written a Note for Percussion'. Most of it seems to me like referring to composers like Pauline Oliveros, Arnold Dreyblatt and the mid-to-late 60s group of people making experimental music back then. Obviously, I could be wrong.

Lol.

I should have mentioned that I adore it. It's like a greatest hits collection from some of my favourite artists, played by Sonic Youth. I still spin this regularly.

I love that Sonic Youth did these SYR releases alongside the 15 "main" albums. We were so spoiled by this band for 30 fucking years.

Dammit, a box-set of all the SYR releases would be great. Get that 10th one onto CD. Come on, Lee. Do it.

I relistened to SYR4 today, in honour of this thread.

The highlight/centerpiece for me is indeed the elephant in the room - the 30min John Cage - Four piece. God I love John Cage, and it's clear that Sonic Youth do also. I'm sure that Cage would be proud of this version.

Excellent atmosphere on this record. SYR3 and SYR4 have very surreal, otherwordly atmospheres for me

I also really appreciate how radical this record was at the time/still is