Sonic Youth are old. There is no denying that. And many will say that their best is far behind them (Damn, did "Daydream Nation" really come out in 1988??? Am I really that old???) and I actually agreed after listening to their last album "Sonic Nurse." Talk about a turd. That album sucked. The tour for that album sucked. And so I had given in to the fact that my Sonic Youth fascination was over and dead.

Fast forward to this weekend: As I was perusing my secret (and cheap) Russian MP3 site i discovered "Rather Ripped" a new SY record. I had no idea they were even working on anything though I had been seeing live dates for them popu p recently. Anyways, given the price I paid and the fact that it is Sonic Youth, I decided to give the new album a shot. And boy, did they ever come back with a vengence.

Now don't expect the noise and shrieks of their 80's albums. SY has made it pretty clear that they over that in so far as their formal releases are concerned (their indie releases still blast walls of noise). But what they have done is create an album that is easily their best since Washing Machine. Lots of great grooves. Lots of great vocals. And lots of great songs.

I don't have to time to go track by track through the album but if you are a SY fan I would recommend picking this up. It's sure to not disappoint. In fact, I know that my buddy NOELMO probably had serious reservations about the album when I first told him about it. But he has been converted. And when NOELMO is converted, there really is nothing more to say.

"Rather Ripped" is exactly what I needed. A great SY record which has re-energized my fandom of all SY. And now I have a reason to continue my string of 15 years of seeing SY live.