music video for the album opener "Sacred Trickster" on Sonic Youth's brand new album The Eternal. The Eternal is avaivable to buy now at is at the super low price of €12.99 in Road Records.

continue reading>>

Sonic Youth play Vicar St on December 6th.

continue reading>>

Encase anyone missed it the other night.

continue reading>>

Matadors have the first mp3 for the new new new sonic youth album up on there site here


what you still doing reading this get over there and get it and loads of more info there as well about pre ordering the LP

continue reading>>

the summer ATP arent even over yet and they have already announced the Christmas one and wow

"After the enormous success of last year’s sold out and mind-blowing UK tour and a brilliant turn as the inaugural curators for ATP New York, we are very pleased to announce that the curators for ATP: Nightmare Before Christmas, 2009 will be:

MY BLOODY VALENTINE!

The event will take place at Butlins Holiday Resort in Minehead, England from December 4th - 6th, 2009.

So far confirmed to join the legendary sonic sculptors are:

Sonic Youth
De La Soul
EPMD
Sun Ra Arkestra
The Horrors

And of course, My Bloody Valentine themselves."

Tickets go on sale Firday

continue reading>>

The youth, playing live in Chile debuting some material off next album "The Eternal" footage is from some fan so quality is not the best but does give some idea of what to expect

continue reading>>

well that is the cover of Sonic Youth greatness installment 16 , look at it teasing me with its unheard gems, the cover was done by steel-string guitar pioneered John Fahey who died in 2001

tracklisting in the read more

01 "Sacred Trickster"
02 "Anti-Orgasm"
03 "Leaky Lifeboat (For Gregory Corso)"
04 "Antenna"
05 "What We Know"
06 "Calming The Snake"
07 "Poison Arrow"
08 "Malibu Gas Station"
09 "Thunderclap For Bobby Pyn"
10 "No Way"
11 "Walkin Blue"
12 "Massage The History"

The Eternal is due out June 9 on sonic youths new home Matador Records

continue reading>>

This weekend your in for a real treat as Somadrome has picked this weekend hangover mixtape. Somadrone is Neill O'Conor (member of Dublin's The Redneck Manifesto and The Connect Four Orchestra) mixing the sounds of To Rococo Rot, Stereolab and Spacemen 3 type electronic blankets of melody and intricate gliches and noise using laptop, vibraphone and pounding live drums.
(tracklisting and download link for the rather excellent mixtape in the read more)


tracklisting
1. Devo - Beautiful World
2. Yo La Tengo - Everyday
3. Kraftwerk - Europe Endless
4. Serge Gainsbourg and Bridgette Bardot - Bonnie and Cylde
5. Sun Ra - Space is the Place
6. Brian Eno - The Big Ship
7. My Bloody Valentine - To Here Knows When
8. David Bowie - Look back in Anger
9. Talking Heads - The Great Curve
10. Sonic Youth - Expressway to ur Skull

Click here to go to download page

Somadrome as a list of up coming gigs they are as follows
8 Aug 2008 20:00 Roisin Dubh Galway
15 Aug 2008 20:00 Cleares - Kilkenny Arts Festival Kilkenny, Kilkenny
16 Aug 2008 20:00 Plugged Records Cork
30 Aug 2008 20:00 Electric Picnic Stradbally, Laois
25 Oct 2008 20:00 Cyprus Ave Cork
8 Nov 2008 20:00 Model Niland - New Spaces for Music Sligo
12 Dec 2008 20:00 Stress - De Burgo’s Galway

also his albums can be bought thru paypal on his myspace page

continue reading>>

You might see this as an indication of my increasing anal-retentiveness but sometimes it gets to me when I see a band being referred to with the 'The' word put in front of when in fact their actual name contains no such word. Pluralisation of a word does not necessarily mean that a the pre-fix should be added. For instance: Rabbits. In sentence: Rabbits are all around us. Can also be used as: The Rabbits are all around us. Depending on the context entirely. So whether a band has a 'The' at their start of the name depends entirely on what context the band themselves want to present themselves in.

To wit I bring you a list of bands that aren't a 'The' band but that most people think are and a few bands that actually are 'The' bands but that you didn't know.
Click down for more



'The' Ramones

Forerunners of US punk movement. Made same variation of song 100 million billion times. Members largely dead. Surviving members now selling condoms.

'The' or 'Not The':
'Not the'. Album covers figure largely in the evidence for this piece. If a band is not choosing to call themselves 'The' on the album then you can be damned sure that they don't want a 'The' in their name. Ramones had 14 albums. One featured 'The' on the cover. Not in the band name. In the title End of the Century.



'The' Red Hot Chili Peppers

Former funkmeisters who wore socks on their cocks. Currently stadium-filling, virtual soft-rock writing dullest band on the planet. I say dull because they were fucking awesome circa 1991 and now they're like watching paint dry. On your balls. Which is uncomfortable as well as boring.

'The' or 'Not The':
'Not the'. They ARE Red Hot Chili Peppers. They're not THE Red Hot Chili Peppersm for one can only assume that there are many red-hot chili peppers.



'The' Smashing Pumpkins

Grungers turned psychedelic rockers turned double-album-writing-art-rock wannabee's turned gothic-industrial types turned broken up turned reformed who-knows-what types.

'The' or 'Not the':
'The'. They are THE Smashing Pumpkins. Smashing in this case is used the way that the Brits use it, as in 'Amazing' or 'Wonderful'. No Pumpkins are being harmed in the making of this band.



'The' Pixies

Punky grungey whatevery Nirvana-inspiring tunesters, once defunct now-reformed (supposedly). Frontman plays spontaneous performances in Dublin city parks before being moved on by Gardaí like common busker.

'The' or 'Not THe':
'Not The'. It actually sounds cooler if you say it as 'Pixies' rather than 'The Pixies'.



'The' Sonic Youth

New York avant-garde noiseniks turned New York avant-garde noiseniks turned...well...New York avant-garde noiseniks.

'The' or 'Not The':
'Not The'. Never been much debate over this except with the release of their arguably greatest (in my opinion) album Sister which included the 'The' on the front cover. All albums before and since have not.



'The' Pink Floyd

60's psychedlic masters turned 70's and 80's Prog-rock masters turned band that people want to see reformed the most.

'The' or 'Not the':
Both. The band started life as 'The Pink Floyd Sound' before dropping the 'Sound' but retaining the definite article. The 'The' didn't just go with the Syd Barrett era either as two albums in the new 'Gilmour' era (More and Ummagumma) also included the word on their original releases. By the time of Atom Heart Mother in 1970, however, the word was gone.



'The' Beastie Boys

1980's comedy rappers turned 90's and 00's serious musicians/rappers. Currently trying to excise their rap sound by playing Jazz oddysseys on stage which, as anyone who has seen This is Spinal Tap can attest to, can result in playing second fiddle to a puppet show.

'The' or 'Not The':
'Not The'. They are Beastie Boys and are never THE Beastie Boys. Presumably to escape from the ire of all the other beastie boys that are out there.



'The' Eels

Late 90's alternative type band who...ah fuck it can't think of a description really. They make music and its good (except when they play at Oxegen).

'The' or 'Not The':
'Not The'. Album cover evidence aside, the one second ad for the superbowl should be evidence enough.



'The' Verve

Early 90's Brit Rock, turned broke up, turned reformed, late 90's Brit Oasisalikes, turned broken up, turned biggest prick in the world, turned reformed Brit Oasisalikes.

'The' or 'Not The':
'Both'. Started life as just plain and simple Verve, named after the hangover cure. Added the definite article just in time for their last album before they broke up for the first time: A Northern Soul.



Other ones that I thought of but couldn't be bothered with are Wu-Tang Clan, Editors, Manic Street Preachers, Mc5, Kings of Leon, Queens of the Stone Age, Kaiser Chiefs, Deftones, The KLF.

Cases of people adding 'The' when there shouldn't be one are more common than people taking away a 'The' when there should be one. Let me know if you notice any glaring omissions of either case.

continue reading>>

Thats how much it will apparently cost for the painting used on the cover of Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Story here.

All these years and I always thought it was a photograph.

If you don't own the album, by the by, then go get it now.

continue reading>>