SYR5

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The follow-up to SYR4 Goodbye 20th Century is this Kim Gordon, DJ Olive and Ikue Mori affair (and a piece with Yuka Honda of Cibo Matto). More ambient/electronic than the previous SYR efforts and more generous in numbers (11 tracks in one CD). But SYR 4 "Goodbye 20th Century" is not left out - SYR 5 is something of a musical follower, but with a lot less noise/distortion, and more diverse sound sources. Percussion, orchestral textures, and synths take a lot of space here ...

This is not to say that this release is more accessible than the previous releases on Sonic Youth's SYR label. It's at the same level of weirdness as SYR 4. It's got an abstract electro/dub feeling throughout the whole album without actually sounding like that; no groove, no bass. Also Kim Gordon's voice over the wall of sounds is something of a strange relation ...

Her voice is atonal (sometimes on purpose I think), yet innocent, perfect for such music that doesn't follow any musical rules, even giving the feeling of two tracks in one on occasion ("Fried Mushroom", "Lemonade"). This touch is welcome, since all SYR tracks so far always followed a somehow linear musical line (start on some frequencies, then develop). This gives you Kim Gordon's vocals over modern musique concrète.

A few moments are (unfortunately) reminiscent of the first Sonic Youth releases (remember the minimal, dumb Kim Gordon lyrics, and the little worked-on noise guitar).

But overall, it's a really good one, maybe the best of the series. Mixed by Jim O'Rourke - who really knows how to make "strange noises" sound warm and near (like the band are playing in front of you). Highly recommended!