Saturday, February 17, 2007

Sonic Youth - Death Valley '69



Sonic Youth - Death Valley '69
Tonight I'm seeing Sonic Youth! I'm incredibly excited- I saw them once in 2004 and it still is one of the best shows I've ever been to. Today's song will thus be Sonic Youth, a track from a very underrated SY album, Bad Moon Rising, that happens to be one of my favorites of theirs. "Death Valley '69" is a rather creepy song, often rumored to be about Charles Manson. While it's a great song in itself, in the context of the album it takes on a different form with the preeceding tracks almost seeming to build up to it. Right when the song starts, it climaxes, and all the tension built up erupts. Lyndia Lunch is a guest vocalist on the song, with her voice taking on a sinister tone that Kim Deal's couldn't quite achieve. She appears in the song's video as well, which I feel is the best video Sonic Youth have ever made. It a great example of a low budget being an advantage in terms of achieving a gritty and horrific feel. How many videos do you see where the band members are lying dead in an abandoned house gouged open and bleeding profusely?

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